Saline Seeks Public Input on Conceptual Plan of Downtown Gathering Place

The City of Saline wants residents to provide input on a conceptual plan for a downtown gathering place.

(See the plan attached. Send feedback to Community Development Director Ben Harrington at bharrington@cityofsaline.org.)

Carlisle/Wortman Associates and OHM Advisors presented the plan to Saline City Council Monday night after consulting staff and evaluating feedback from two March stakeholder meetings that featured downtown property owners, Saline Main Street and others. The focus groups identified a farmers market structure, pavilions and shade, stages, seating area, a hardscape and landscaping as things they'd like to see.

What are the benefits?

• Enhance the aesthetic appeal of downtown with landscaping and architecture.
• Bring a lively atmosphere to bring people downtown.
• Create a green space and open space downtown.

Why Parking Lot 2

• The city-owned parcels downtown are parking lots.
• The plan was pitched for Parking Lot 2, home to the Saline Farmers Market and events like Summerfest, Oktoberfest and the Salty Summer Sounds music series. The other lots all had issues. The city hall lot was deemed too far away, for example. The McKay Street lot was viewed as having physical encumbrances. Lot 2 has pedestrian linkages and activation potential.
• The lot was identified as a gathering place as far back as the 2007 Urban Design Plan.
• Lot 2 was best suited to meet many of the identified needs, but this decision is not final and many of these elements could work on other sites.

What's in the Plan?

• The vision is a central gathering space with seating and shade. It should be attractive for people of all ages, whether for events or passive recreation. There should be year-round use and programming (such as the music series).
• The design includes a hardscape or turf in the center of the site. It would be flanked to the north and south by raised planters that double as seating. On the north side of the site, there would also be seating, string lighting and shade trees or umbrellas. On the eastern portion, swinging benches would be to the north and south. The eastern entrance would be under a pergola that might double as a stage. There would also be a small "mastodon mounds" play area for kids.
• Main Street, which hosts Oktoberfest and the Salty Summer Sounds concert series, has approved the early concepts. City staff also consulted with the farmers market manager. Parking would be prohibited in the lot during the farmers market, for example, and the parking spaces on the west side of the site would be replaced by vendor tents.

Phase 2

• The presenters showed what a second phase could look like. The hardscape would be expanded at the expense of more parking.

Council Issues

• Maintenance. Councillor Dean Girbach and Councillor Janet Dillon asked about maintenance. That's one reason by OHM Advisors' suggested turf instead of grass, said OHM's Jennifer Morris. Girbach also asked about the durability of a project. Morris said that it could be designed to minimize upkeep costs, but there will always be some maintenance expenses.
• Accessibility. Both Councillors Dillon and Nicole Rice emphasized the need to make the gathering space accessible to all residents.
• Councillor Dillon asked if the designers were trying to cram too many elements into one site.
• Councillor Jenn Harmount asked about the sustainability of the design.
• Councillor Jack Ceo asked about a cost estimate. That won't be available until the next report.
• Council Ceo asked about replacing parking. That will be up to council.

The Parking Issue

• .The downtown parking issue has vexed council and split downtown business owners for longer than the "gathering space" issue.
• Currently, there is no apparent city-owned site where a central gathering place can be located other than a parking lot.
• The report counted 680 parking spots downtown, including the public lots (including city hall) and on-street parking. Phase 1 would cost the city 15 parking spaces. Phase 2 would cost the city 40 parking spaces.
• These are important parking spots for some businesses. The eagerly-awaited DropTop Pizza at one point halted its plans in downtown Saline when it learned it might lose parking. Ownership forged ahead after being told by city officials that any lost parking would be replaced.
• Councillor Girbach bemoaned the idea of funding parking for landlords and downtown tenants, suggesting that could be he thinks the city makes up lost parking.
• It's unclear how far this process can go without the council stating its plans for parking.

What Feedback is Requested

• Carlisle/Wortman and OHM want City Council to show them what they like, what they should add, and what needs to be changed.
• City Council was asked to talk to their constituents.
• Residents can review the plan and send thoughts to Ben Harrington (bharrington@cityofsaline.org) soon. Council has been asked to send feedback by July 31.

What's Next?

• The designers will tweak the concept based on the feedback that's received.
• The next concept will include more detailed and 3-D renderings.
• Importantly, it will also indicate the cost estimates for the city to review and evaluate.

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