Yesterday, “06880” talked about this Saturday’s “Visioning Workshop” — an opportunity (June 7, 12:30-4:30 p.m., Bedford Middle School) for Westporters to share opinions about the future of downtown.
Today, you can see some of the ideas that might be on the table.
Downtown Steering Committee member Melissa Kane sent along a few of the “Visual Preference Cards” to be used in the Downtown 101 portion of the workshop.
“They’re terrific examples of some of the 35 topics we’ll cover,” she says. “I hope they give people a better understanding of the exercise — and hopefully get them excited to participate.”
Sure, you can click “Comments” below to voice your opinions.
But — if you can — go to Saturday’s workshop too. That’s when officials will officially listen.
Fantastic. How can you not love the ideas?
Why is such an important meeting being held on a Saturday afternoon in June? This time of year people are busy attending graduations, weddings, communions etc., preparing their children for the end of the school year/beginning of Summer and generally liable to thinking, “hmmm, it’s such a beautiful day…I’d rather be at the beach.”
How can anyone evaluate this “vision” without an estimate of the costs, and a determination of who will pay them?
Re: the vision thing and Michael’s point above. I’ve raised the issue of cost and maintenance recently because (a) somebody has to pay for that vision and (b) the town has generally not maintained the last “vision”. To take just one example, look at the Riverwalk in the heart of the downtown area: sharp, broken irrigation lines protrude from the ground everywhere, pieces of same drift into the parking lot. This condition has persisted for over three years and it’s not just a tripping hazard, it’s a commentary on the choices that we make. Notwithstanding the weed infested, mulch-free abandoned garden beds, who would want to hang out in a park overrun with poison ivy? I could go on for pages, but the point is it’s no accident that things look as they do here: this is our present standard, it’s obviously not sustainable but it is, I guess, what passes for acceptable. If we are to to be a blue ribbon town, we need to first chose to become one. Without SOME indication from leadership that there is to be a meaningful cultural change in the way that we have (mis)treated our public spaces and other assets in the public trust, why spend time in a school on a weekend?
The above comments are all accurate. June is not the right time for the meeting.MidSeptember would be a lot more feasible.If we have not maintained what we have? How will we fare in the future.? Where will the funds come from for this fabulous reinvention of Westport’s downtown. I did complete the survey.
I completed the online version of the survey as well but I can’t resist commenting on the stack of empty surveys and the cardboard box for placement of completed paper surveys carelessy tossed in the lower entrance vestibule of the Westport Library. I know this was covered in another post but there is nothing stopping me from filling out multiple surveys and submitting them. The process is not only flawed it is insulting to our collective intelligence.
Mr Petrino….have no fear. Obviously these changes and future plans, including the library expansion, the redoing of Compo Beach, and building the Art Center on the Green are all free. Do you not recall what Jim Marpe said in his campaigning, something about he will assure that taxes will not go up more than 2%. What a guy. Personally, I don’t think he knew what he was getting himself into. But here we are, all these committees and groups redesigning things and ready to spend our money.
Without a detailed financial plan, this is not a vision, it is a mirage.
Grayson…that must have been a figment of your imagination. RBA wouldn’t even consider doing something as dumb as that…..hmmmm, would they? Again, where did that company come from and how did it get the contract to be our arbiter? Tsk, tsk…I shan’t believe it. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!