OLD TOWN, Maine — Residents and business owners will have the opportunity to help redesign the heart of downtown at a public workshop Monday night.
“We want the downtown to have curb appeal to retain the businesses we have and attract new businesses,” Ron Harriman, the city’s economic development director, said Thursday. “We feel this is an ideal time to get comments from residents about what they envision for the community and what they would like to see downtown.”
The meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Old Town Public Library.
“There are going to be three of these meetings and this one is to get community input,” Town Manager Bill Mayo said Wednesday.
City leaders are working with engineering firm Wright-Pierce on a master plan for the center of the city where the former Old Town Canoe factory was located, with associated improvements along portions of Main Street.
“Wright-Pierce is looking at the downtown and grant funding for improvements like sidewalks,” Mayo said. “They’ll make a presentation about what is available.”
Old Town Canoe, which was acquired by Johnson Outdoors in 1974, moved manufacturing from its Middle Street factory to a plant on Gilman Avenue in 2009. The company then sold the downtown site to the city for a $1 in 2011.
The last portions of the massive brick canoe and kayak manufacturing site were removed earlier this year, which left approximately 6 downtown acres available for redevelopment. James W. Sewall Co. is interested in establishing a new headquarters on Middle Street within the cleared zone but nothing official has been finalized, Harriman said.
What residents tell the seven-member Old Town Downtown Planning Committee and Wright-Pierce on Monday will be incorporated into plans that will be presented to the public in the spring.
“We’ll prioritize the ideas and Wright-Pierce will come up with a draft in February,” Harriman said.
That is when the second public gathering will be held, he said, adding the draft also is scheduled to go before the town council in March for input.
“Then we’ll have a final plan in April and we’ll present that to the public,” Harriman said of the third public meeting.
Those who cannot attend Monday’s workshop can provide their vision for the downtown area by completing a downloadable questionnaire that must be returned to the city manager’s office by Dec. 1.
In addition to asking for ideas, the questionnaire also asks residents to rate other proposals already on the table, including adding benches, bike racks, on- and off-street parking, connecting the riverfront trail to the University of Maine system, updating infrastructure, improving or adding housing, and several economic development options.
“It’s an ambitious project but it needs to be done and the crucial part is citizen input and business input,” Harriman said.