SPRINGDALE -- Tim Breihan's vision of downtown Springdale would see the area developed into three districts -- one for shopping and working on the west, an arts district to the south and an area of diversified housing on the east.
Breihan, a principal with the H3 Studios architecture and planning firm in St. Louis, on Tuesday presented to the Planning Commission a draft of an updated Downtown Master Plan.
The firm created the city's first downtown plan, which was adopted in 2015, and hopes to build on its successes, Breihan noted.
Since the city adopted the plan, the community has completed 15 projects and more than $125 million has been invested in downtown, Breihan said.
This updated draft was created with input from city officials, business people and residents through a series of meetings and public input sessions and and an online survey which gathered more than 1,300 responses.
Commission member Roy Covert at the end of the meeting thanked Breihan and said he liked the ideas.
"But at what point do we go down the rabbit hole about who pays for all this and what's the timeline," Covert said. "That's what the public always wants to know, and that's what it boils down to."
"We don't have all answers yet," especially about developing residential areas that are both diverse and affordable, Breihan told the commission.
"And we're not done talking," he continued. "We're just getting started."
Huntsville Avenue is the nearest east-west traffic corridor in the city to Emma Avenue and also the best access to downtown from the rest of the Northwest Arkansas region.
Breihan proposed creating a gateway into the city off of Huntsville, with a streetscape and a walkable loop along South Shiloh and Holcombe streets and West Meadow and Johnson avenues.
The loop would include the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History and the new Municipal Campus, still partially under construction.
More retail and restaurants could develop around this loop, but so could buildings important to downtown that don't need storefronts, such as offices, Breihan said.
This loop on the south side would take visitors into the arts district, which would extend south from Emma to Maple Avenue. The Creative Arkansas Community Hub and Exchange arts center -- the 214 -- would be at its center.
Breihan said the architects proposed expanding the 214 facility -- the former Arts Center of the Ozarks building -- to West Meadow Avenue, with added facilities, amenities and programming. He mentioned a cafe, a performance space, studio space and perhaps living spaces for artists.
The 214 could be comparable to the new TheatreSquared building in Fayetteville, he said.
And a parking deck for the downtown area would be built east of the 214 building.
"We've wanted a parking problem downtown, and now we have a parking problem downtown," said Patsy Christie, director of the city's Planning Department. "It's a good thing."
H3 suggested an arts district in the 2015 downtown plan, but the city wasn't ready to move that idea forward, Breihan said. The city is ready now and downtown is poised to support the district.
The Razorback Greenway, Spring Creek and the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad tracks create a natural break in the city's downtown area, Breihan noted.
The eastern end of Emma, east of the railroad tracks, creates challenges for city leaders and planners -- both in terms of development and maintaining the character of Springdale's downtown, Breihan said.
But Tyson Foods has located a number of its employees there, Luther George Park is there and the Walton Family Foundation has announced plans for the Market Center of the Ozarks east of the park.
"What was envisioned has come to be," Breihan said.
Breihan suggested Luther George Park as another entrance into the downtown area and an opportunity to unlock the development potential of the area.
The architects see more mixed-use development by the park -- similar to the Little Emma building and others under construction on Emma by the Blue Crane Development.
Various types of housing would line the secondary streets in this district.
"We've got to rethink housing," Breihan said. "Cities that are successful include a mixture of types and affordability of housing."
He noted national trends include spaces to work at home and several generations of families living under one roof.
Architects' ideas for the area include accessory dwellings, such as carriage houses and clusters of cottages, townhomes, duplexes and even small single-family homes around a common greenspace.
Under most zoning codes, developments such as these would be illegal to build, Breihan noted.
But Springdale adopted the form-base code in 2015, which allows for various types of housing, setbacks and sizes.
More zoning decisions still need to be made, he cautioned.
Breihan suggested a northern entrance to this part of downtown created along North Water Street. He also recommended rehabilitation for the houses between Huntsville, Berry Street and The Jones Center.
Breihan's final suggestion was the city continue the expansion of the downtown area to include connections with amenities lying on the outskirts of downtown -- Northwest Technical Institute, Parsons Stadium, Springdale High School, Murphy Park and Northwest Medical Center-Springdale.
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NonePublic input
The Downtown Springdale Alliance plans two public workshops with representatives of H3 Studios to review a draft of a new Downtown Springdale Master Plan. The meetings are planned for:
• 6:30 p.m. today at 214 on South Main Street, the former home of Arts Center of the Ozarks
• 6:30 p.m. May 25 at The Jones Center
Source: Downtown Springdale Alliance