Posted on Fri, Nov. 06, 2009

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Downtown planners to seek input from public

BY BILL WILSON

The Wichita Eagle

Downtown planners will kick off a six-month public engagement process in December, seeking broad input on downtown revitalization.

The city of Wichita, Wichita Downtown Development Corp. and Visioneering Wichita, working with downtown planning consultant Goody Clancy and other groups, will gather input from the public and downtown stakeholders.

The Goody Clancy team and its economic analysis partners will be in Wichita over the next six months, conducting numerous meetings to gather the public's input on downtown's future.

Plans include:

* Dec. 4 and 5: "Walk-shops" will gather ideas from residents, who are asked to take and share digital photos of downtown. The sessions will be led by PlaceMatters, part of the Goody Clancy team.

Sessions will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 4, and 9 a.m. to noon and 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 at the Eaton Block, 523 E. Douglas.

Participants may sign up by contacting Visioneering Wichita at 316-268-1141.

* Jan. 12: Results and themes from Walk-shop will be presented at a public meeting. Time and location has not been determined.

Presentations also will cover a preliminary assessment of downtown housing and commercial market opportunities.

* Feb. 27: Individuals will be able to participate in a full-day, hands-on workshop to discuss visions, utilizing economic and transportation analysis and design principles. Times and places will be announced.

* March: Preliminary vision and action strategies that blend community input with technical and economic analysis will be presented at a public meeting. * May: The Goody Clancy team will present the draft vision plan for community input.

The Goody Clancy team also will meet each month with a variety of stakeholders, including the Wichita City Council, Sedgwick County Commission, neighborhood groups, employers, arts and culture groups, developers, commercial brokers, retail, transportation, property owners, educational entities, churches and social service groups.

Goody Clancy began the process this week, holding 45 meetings involving more than 165 people.

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