“We’re doing outreach to the community,” said city councilmember Lori Saroya. “Trying to get people’s input and really help them understand what we’re doing in this area.”
The city has been looking at the Northtown area for a few years, and the city council officially approved an initial development plan last year, with the goal of making it an appealing space that adds value to the city and the neighborhood.
“I would really like to see something that can draw people to this area. We need to keep people down in the Northtown area,” said city planner Sheila Sellman.
To do that, some changes might be helpful.
“Having mixed-use rather than just commercial and retail,” suggested city council member Tom Newland. “We need to do something. And what we’re doing is copying the blueprint that a number of other cities have shown us what works at Ridgedale, who works at Rosedale is going to work here at Northtown”
Councilmember Lori Saroya has lived in the area for two decades, and through that time, she’s seen how it’s changed.
“I remember when I moved here, 20 years ago, it was just a place where you could come here with your families. And I feel like they’re trying to get back to that,” said Saroya.
Looking at some potential future designs, she is excited about what she sees.
“They’re doing one thing that I really like, is the walking bridge to the library. So connecting both parts of the area, and people can actually walk with their families to the library, there’s a park nearby. And so I think it’s just creating a better community and a better neighborhood for Ward one, ” said Saroya.
But, big changes to roads and buildings don’t happen quickly.
“The finish line is probably 30 years out there,” said Newland.
“We’ve started with a vision. Now we have to do some of the studies. And then we have to get the engagement from the actual property owners. The city doesn’t own a lot of the property down here. So getting the property owners involved, the money and the funding, all those things need to kind of fall into place in order to do a redevelopment project,” said Sellman.
