Stop By the Open House on Oct. 26

The City of Greeley invites residents to a community open house on the Downtown Master Plan (called Downtown 2032) from 4-7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26 at the Greeley Recreation Center, 651 10^th Avenue.

During the open house, attendees can:

• review community input to date;
• hear from planning staff about the existing conditions in downtown Greeley and;
• offer feedback on draft plan concepts and recommendations.

Residents can stop by anytime during the open house hours. Staff will not provide a formal presentation but will be available to discuss ideas or answer questions throughout the evening. Light refreshments will be available. This event will accommodate Spanish speakers.

The Downtown 2032 plan updates downtown Greeley’s current master plan created in 2011. The plan looks at the long-term vision for downtown and identifies priorities to guide improvements and investments over the next ten years.

“Downtown Greeley has made great strides over the past 10 years,” said City of Greeley Community Development Director Becky Safarik. “We encourage all residents to come, check out what the next 10 years could look like for downtown, and share your feedback.”

We’ve Come a Long Way
Since the last downtown plan was completed, the City of Greeley and the Greeley Downtown Development Authority (DDA) have worked to improve downtown by:

• investing in community events
• improving streets, sidewalks, alleys, and parks
• adding more public art
• successfully recruiting new development or redevelopment on underused land
• welcoming new businesses, mixed-use development, and housing in the downtown area.

To assist with the current planning process, the City contracted with Progressive Urban Management Associates (PUMA) and Livable Cities Studio to develop the Downtown 2032-The Path Forward plan. PUMA was also contracted to create the 2011 plan.

So far, City staff and PUMA conducted five roundtable discussions with downtown stakeholders, met with a community advisory group as well as a city technical team, hosted a table during Friday Fest to gather public input, and conducted a community-wide survey that received nearly 1,100 responses. The process also includes:

• a market assessment that looks at the housing market, retail, and businesses
• a capital improvement assessment addressing streets, pedestrian mobility, and connectivity
• an urban design analysis that looks at spaces for residents, parking, biking, and safety

What’s Next

The PUMA team will present draft plan concepts during the Oct. 26 community open house based on feedback and documentation gathered to date. Comments from the open house will be considered and incorporated into a final plan.