Gateway to downtown sought

The city plans to create a new “downtown gateway” at the western end of Memorial Boulevard to let travelers know they’ve made it to the city center.
“You want some sort of arrival, that you’ve arrived downtown,” said Jonathan Rosenthal, the director of the Bristol Development Authority.
The city is shelling out $5,000 to Beta Group, the consultant that came up with Main Street streetscape overhaul plan, to come up with concepts for the proposed gateway.
Ray Rogozinski, an assistant city engineer, said there will be two or three alternatives for officials to pick the one they like best.
Rosenthal said the gateway proposal initiated with the Bristol Downtown Development Corp., which is overseeing the revitalization of the 17-acre mall site.
Frank Johnson, who heads the downtown development effort, said the BDDC wants to see improvements made downtown whenever possible “in order to send a positive signal to residents and to send positive signals to the development community” that Bristol is eager for progress.
Johnson said he wasn’t sure what the gateway proposal is focused on, but the nonprofit he heads is interested in making sure people “know they’re approaching downtown” when they come in to the city center.
Rosenthal said the first gateway would be placed somewhere near the Tinty’s Furniture Store on the western end of the Boulevard.
But, he said, there’s probably a need to have other downtown gateways, particularly one on Riverside Avenue.
The goal, Rosenthal said, is to send a clear message that “you’re there now.”
The City Council and BDA approved the spending without much dissent.
But city Councilor Ken Cockayne voted against it.
He said he doesn’t have a particular problem with the gateway concept but doesn’t like the Main Street streetscape plan as a whole because it doesn’t include angled parking.
Cockayne said that others are pressing to do it quickly to make sure the funding’s still available
But, he said, he would prefer to “do it right the first time.”
Rosenthal said that the downtown corporation would pick which design to pursue when Beta Group finishes up the concepts.
“It really is the BDDC’s baby,” Rosenthal said.

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Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

Riverside Avenue to get city's attention

The city is eyeing a facelift for Riverside Avenue, a key downtown gateway that could use a little help – or maybe a lot of help.
Mickey Goldwasser, a Bristol Development Authority commissioner, said that officials want to tie the soon-to-be-expanded Route 72 with the downtown mall property the city hopes to revitalize.
The goal is to make improvements that would enhance the road for people entering downtown, said Jonathan Rosenthal, the city’s economic development director.
The BDA has formed a working group to oversee efforts to improve Riverside Avenue, which includes the New England Carousel Museum and the former J.H. Sessions clock factory on the stretch between Middle and North Main streets.
City Councilor Craig Minor said the mid-1980s effort to bolster Forestville’s center is the model for what the city aims to do along Riverside Avenue.
In a Sept. 10 memorandum to the BDA, Minor laid out his vision for what can be done on Riverside Avenue.
He said that with the Route 72 extension slated to hook up with the eastern end of Riverside Avenue in 2009, “a significant increase in traffic will be directed” along the stretch leading into downtown
“The BDA should capitalize on this moment and create a plan similar to what was done in Forestville 20 years ago,” Minor said in his memo.
Among the idea that Minor suggested the city consider are:
* The realignment of Riverside Avenue, where appropriate, to create a more aesthetic approach to downtown;
* New sidewalks and curbs;
* The possible consolidation of many, small, adjacent business driveways to reduce curb cuts;
* Better landscaping;
* Adding signs and “street furniture.
Minor said a program like the one he envisions “requires the active involvement and participation” of many city departments, including the BDA, public works and planning.
During the Forestville project of the 1980s, Minor said, the city offered façade grants to help business owners improve the appearance of their building, added public parking lots and a traffic island.
It also added new walkways and curbs, he said. Some adjustments in traffic patterns were also made.
Goldwasser said that stepping up to help Riverside Avenue in the same way is an indication the city is trying to be “proactive” as Route 72 is extended from the end of the expressway in Plainville.


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Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com