The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Forward thinkers
Citizens envision the Chelsea of the future during DDA session
By Edward Freundl, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: February 7, 2008
They probably don't consider themselves visionaries, but looking into the future of Chelsea was exactly what about 50 people were doing last Wednesday night at the Chelsea Depot.
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The night was bitterly cold and windy, but it was a bigger crowd than attended the first "visioning session" on Sept. 12.
Chelsea City Manager John Hanifan and Downtown Development Authority President Mike Jackson welcomed the group and thanked them for coming out on a bitterly cold and windy night.
A large number of concerned citizens attended, along with six of seven Chelsea City Council members and seven of 10 DDA board members.
"A session like this provides direct citizen input, where you have a chance for suggestions," Hanifan told them.
"When you're planning for projects for the next 20 years, you want a lot of input from as many sources as you can."
The first step was to review suggestions generated in the September visioning session — the things people were most proud of; strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats; and the most popular options to develop into future DDA projects.
The two top ideas coming out of that session were the concept of a pavilion on Park Street next to the Purple Rose Theatre, and developing mass transit.
The purpose of the Jan. 30 session was to further refine those suggestions and come up with others.
"It's good to get input like this on a lot of things," Jackson said.
"I'm thrilled so many people are here. Obviously word's getting out, and people want to attend these sessions."
Hanifan gave a short explanation of the DDA, how it's funded, and the nature of the downtown improvement projects on which it chooses to spend those funds.
One of the first things to look at in any downtown development plan is parking — for customers, visitors and employees.
The thing is, Hanifan said, parking is a "revenue negative" project: It costs money to provide, and doesn't generate any revenue directly.
"We also want revenue-generating projects like the McKinley Clocktower redevelopment," Hanifan added.
"That one project basically doubled the valuation of the DDA district.
"It's a perfect example of a revenue enhancement project."
As the groups set to work on their lists of ideas, the phrase "a lot of potential" was heard over and over.
"I think it's helpful to get a lot of ideas out there; you never know what's going to hit," said Jane Creswell, who jotted down her group's ideas on a large sheet of paper.
Middle Street resident Rob MacLeod suggested "more lighting on Main Street," among the changes he'd like to see.
"I don't want to see any more of the town torn down, I want to see more positive things," he said.
Brian Keyes said he "loved the concept" of working in small groups to come up with ideas.
"I wanted to hear their ideas on the Longworth Building and on City Hall," Keyes said, explaining why he came to the session.
"Our table liked the idea of moving City Hall to the Post Office, if and when that moves out."
Lynn Fox, a member of the McKune Memorial Library board of trustees, indicated that the library had a keen interest in the future of the downtown area.
"As a member of the library board, it's important that we participate in improving the downtown and keeping it vibrant," Fox said.
Jackson and Hanifan also introduced three people with particular ideas they wanted to present to the group as additional food for thought.
Rick DeTroyer, an artist and sculptor with the Chelsea Center for the Arts, presented the concept of a "Chelsea Sculpture Walk."
Sculptures on small concrete pads, can be located in several spots downtown and in nearby neighborhoods, enhancing Chelsea's image as a "destination" for the arts.
The sculptures could be listed in a brochure with a map, and people coming for a show at the Purple Rose Theatre or dinner at the Common Grill could go on self- guided tours of the area, DeTroyer suggested.
"A lot of people don't know all the good we have in this town,"
"This would be something that would tie together a lot of the things that we already have."
Chris Fellows, an intern with the University of Michigan Parking and Transportation Department, spoke on the idea of providing a shuttle bus from Chelsea to relieve some of the traffic congestion in Ann Arbor,
"At least 800 Chelsea residents work at the university, and we can't keep building parking ramps on campus," Fellows said.
Taking a shuttle into Ann Arbor would take a lot of cars off the street, he noted, whether for work or for shopping.
"The important part is getting people to work without their cars," he said.
After that, Scott McElrath of Dangerous Architects showed his model of a covered pavilion that could be built on Park Street between the Purple Rose Theatre and Springer Insurance Agency.
The multipurpose, open-air structure could provide space for the farmers market, public restrooms and covered parking for the municipal lot below.
When questioned, McElrath said his rough estimate for construction is about $550,000.
The idea of the pavilion topped the list of ideas at the September visioning session, and scored well again with last week's group.
The eight work groups generated 16 ideas for everyone to vote on, and the most popular turned out to be the Park Street pavilion and a commuter rail corridor, another repeat from September.
Two new ides joined the short list: preserving at least a portion of the Longworth Building, and establishing a year-round farmers market, either in its current location or somewhere else in the city.
Hanifan said the visioning sessions help to keep the DDA moving on the right track.
"To be as true to this process as possible, we have to turn it over to the collective wisdom and energy of the community and make sure that policies include most, if not all, of that energy," Hanifan said.
"After tonight we will go through another refining process of the top projects, the DDA will work for the next couple of months to develop the plan, and report back to the community what the projects will be."
Jackson said involving the public in the process was "a great opportunity" for individual citizens to make an important contribution.
"There is a lot of talent in this community, and this is a great opportunity to call on that talent," he said.
"In a small town you can make things happen if you put a strong foot forward."
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