Clarkesville residents got a glimpse into their city’s future this week during the final presentation of the city’s Downtown Master Plan. Development of the plan began last year after fire swept through the eastern side of the town square.
The standing room only crowd that showed up for Monday’s meeting eagerly devoured the details of what’s been done and renderings of what’s to come during a nearly two hour long presentation. City Manager Barbara Kesler told the crowd, “This was truly a public process and we wouldn’t be where we are without your help.”
A community effort
The Downtown Master Plan unveiled Monday is the culmination of six months of work by the City of Clarkesville, Main Street Clarkesville program and the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia. It is heavily weighted by public input. Plan developers distributed surveys last fall, held focus groups and interviews and held a town hall meeting to gather public input. They received feedback from over 800 people about what they wanted to see in Clarkesville. The resulting plan includes rebuilding options for the fire damaged buildings on the square, streetscape makeovers and other short and long term projects targeted at revitalizing the downtown district and promoting the city of Clarkesville.
Danny Bivins is with the Carl Vinson Institute. He’s worked closely with the city in master plan development and presented the group’s findings during this week’s meeting. “Your community told us what the issues were and then they helped us develop the plan on how to address those issues,” he said. Bivins delivered a comprehensive slide presentation (see above) replete with artist renderings of how the city may well one day look. He says the plan was developed with four key approaches to downtown revitalization in mind: Organization, Design, Business Development and Promotion. “We created a plan that works with the Main Street four point approach so this will be an outline for the yearly work program. This will also be helpful for the city to begin a long term vision for helping to determine what’s the best way to implement it.”
Projects underway
Local business owners and residents presented a dozen projects that are already underway. The projects go well beyond sheer aesthetics. They speak to the heart of the city’s desire to enhance the overall Clarkesville experience. The projects include:
- Development of a Downtown Clarkesville Guide Book
- Establishment of a Junior Main Street Board
- Dinner and Movie events at the Habersham Community Theater
- Placement of public art in vacant storefront windows
- Friday Night Live, a program that encourages local businesses to stay open late one night a month to attract business to the downtown district
- Removal of the city’s 2 hour parking signs to make Clarkesville more inviting and because the parking rule was deemed unenforceable
- Improvements to the Pitts Park restrooms
- Signage on the metal traffic light box located on the east side of the square to cover the structure and help direct tourists
- Striping parallel parking spaces in downtown Clarkesville
- Development of boutique-style lodging as opposed to chain motels/hotels.
- Renovation of the Mary Street Building across from the old Clarkesville swimming pool
- Maintaining updated property listings online to encourage buyers and development
Major redesign projects
The big question on many people’s minds Monday was ‘what will the renovated Clarkesville square look like?’ The master plan contains many design options for the burned buildings. The plan calls for them to retain their central character and facades although several options call for additional stories to be added to the buildings.
The most notable redesign is of the old county courthouse and surrounding area. The courthouse, which many consider an eyesore due to its monolithic build and yellow brick, would be transformed into a center of commercial and residential activity with plans for construction of several multi-storied, multi-use buildings that would serve as residential, office and retail space. The iconic Clarkesville gazebo would be moved into the center of the space and continue to serve as a central community gathering place. The space would include four mini-plazas, a new connection to Pitts Park and the city clock tower would be revived and relocated to the corner of Washington Street and Highway 115.
Financial incentives and funding
Clarkesville is also offering financial incentives to help revitalize the downtown district. The city has established an enterprise zone around where the buildings burned to spur development through tax incentives for businesses that locate there. In addition, the city has applied to the Department of Community Affairs to develop an opportunity zone that would allow for further tax credits and incentives.
Main Street Executive Director Mary Beth Horton said she’s thrilled by Monday’s turnout at city hall and is excited about the future of Clarkesville. “I’m amazed and so proud of the community. People are really interested and this shows that they want to know what’s going on,” Horton said.
No decisions were made Monday night regarding Clarkesville’s rebuilding designs. Horton says now that the master plan is in place Clarkesville can better explore funding options. “We are still in the process where the city’s trying to determine the feasibility to rebuild given those redesign options,” Horton said.
Funding likely will come from a variety of sources. Kesler says the city has consulted with bond financing experts and they are working on a plan “so that we can do several bond issues to get a substantial sum of money so that we can really make a difference with the projects in the master plan.” She says the city has also contacted the U.S. Department of Agriculture which provides grants for historic building preservation.
No timeline for renovation and/or construction has been set.
