Downtown Master Plan Developing

— The city needs to develop its brand, define its story and find a way to tell the story in order to develop a plan for downtown.

About 30 people attending an open house and brainstorming session, or charrette, Wednesday discussed what is needed to draw people to Springdale’s downtown. The meeting was a part of the study process that will formulate a downtown master plan.

Downtown Springdale Alliance will pay up to $100,000 for the study, performed by Alta/Greenways. The alliance intends to use the plan to apply for grants. Grant money would be used as seed money to begin some of the changes suggested by the plan.

At A Glance

Razorback Greenway

The Razorback Greenway will be a 36-mile trail stretching from Fayetteville to Lake Bella Vista. The estimated construction cost, including trailheads, bathrooms and other amenities, is $38 million.

The Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission received a $15 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant for the project. The grant required $3.75 million in matching money, which will come from $15 million for trails in Benton and Washington counties pledged by the Walton Family Foundation.

Source: Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission

The master plan is scheduled to be completed in the spring, said Chuck Flink, president of Alta/Greenways.

“We are getting input now,” Flink said. “We’ll come back at the start of next year with a public workshop after we’ve added some of the suggestions.”

Springdale’s downtown has fallen on hard times since it was the center of the city’s business community, said Mayor Doug Sprouse. Many storefronts on Emma Avenue, the major street for downtown, are empty.

“I have seen several false starts to revitalizing downtown,” Sprouse said, “but right now we have the best opportunity to make that happen.”

Construction of the Razorback Greenway, a 36-mile trail stretching from Fayetteville to Lake Bella Vista, provides an opportunity for Springdale’s downtown, Sprouse said.

A trailhead for the greenway will be located at Shiloh Square, a city-owned facility on Emma. The trail design, also by Alta/Greenways, includes a boardwalk over Spring Creek between Huntsville and Johnson avenues, Flink said.

“That will not be enough to bring people to downtown,” Flink said.

Destinations are needed to bring people to the area, according to meeting attendees. The destinations could range from entertainment venues to residences.

“People need to have a reason to be downtown,” said Max Ryan of Ryan’s Clothing. “If people live in there, they will be committed to using its facilities.”

A common theme could unite the area, Flink said. Spring Creek could become an attraction for the area, he said. Developing the creek could include uncovering a section buried under parking lots during improvement projects in the 1960s, he said.

The creek and trail could become part of a river walk, said Vivi Haney, a city resident.

Springdale celebrates its diversity with areas that reflect the ethnic groups that make up the city, said Jacci Perry. Those include Italians, Hispanics and Marshallese.

“Everyone needs to be represented,” Perry said. “Downtown could be the hub of a wagon wheel, with the different groups representing the spokes.”

Whatever the method of revitalizing downtown, it remains vital to the future of Springdale, Sprouse said.

“If you look around the country and Northwest Arkansas, the cities that have healthy economies have a strong downtown,” Sprouse said. “It doesn’t have to be a retail center. Downtowns need to draw people to the heart of their cities. That will promote economic development.”

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