By Alixandria Wells-Good

Contributing writer

Community members and representatives from the city of Urbana met on Thursday, Jan. 18 at the Urbana Municipal Building as part of the continued community outreach regarding the development of the North Main Street Corridor.

The plan is focusing on North Main Street, beginning near Washington Avenue northward to just before the Grimes Field airport.

The focus of the meeting was to engage with the community, specifically residents of the North Main Street corridor, on what they would like to see for the future of that part of the city.

It was emphasized that the purpose of the meeting was to get the community’s feedback on the plan’s draft vision, goals, and action steps, not to make any decisions on actionable steps to be taken at this time. The director of administration, Kerry Brugger, stated that the city is “trying to identify how the community would like to see that area developed.” He went on to say that they’ll use this information to help “put together the final draft of what the proposed development could look like.”

During the meeting, the residents in attendance were asked to walk around the room to various boards set up. Each station shared more information on the plan’s draft vision statement and goals, and meeting attendees could interact with the board by placing a vote that they agreed or disagreed with statements on the boards, and they could also leave comments and feedback regarding each board’s information.

Doug Crabill, the community development manager for the city of Urbana, stated: “The city isn’t the one that generally does development. Development is done privately, but plans help developers when they come in looking to develop on what they can do, what they cannot do, and what the vision and goal of what that development may be.”

The following are purpose points for the plan, as shown on the city’s website:

▪ Developed with community and stakeholder input

▪ Intended to guide future zoning designations and land uses, zoning code updates, infrastructure improvements, and to provide strategies to ensure the continued economic success and growth of this corridor, including the preservation of the existing residential neighborhoods along and adjacent to this corridor

▪ The plan will be presented to Urbana City Council for adoption

The city has also established a steering committee, comprised of business owners, property owners, and residents, as well as representatives from the Champaign Economic Partnership, Champaign County Chamber of Commerce, and Grimes Field Urbana Municipal Airport. This committee has met and will continue to meet throughout the planning process.

Stakeholder interviews have revealed the following feedback:

▪ Need for improvements (buildings, parking lots, curbs, sidewalks)

▪ Need for additional housing and new businesses to draw new people to the area (residents, employees, visitors, etc.)

▪ Incentivize new businesses and new housing

▪ Support and capitalize on economic benefits of the airport

▪ Invest in beautification for the area (code enforcement, street trees, signage, etc.)

▪ Good visibility in the area for businesses

▪ Opportunity for additional manufacturing in the area

A survey, regarding the plan’s draft so far, is available for Urbana residents on the city’s website, urbanaohio.com, and can be found by clicking on “North Main Street Corridor Plan” on the main page. The survey is open until Feb. 5.

Information on upcoming meetings, summary of past meetings, and more general information on the project can also be found on that page of the city’s website at https://www.urbanaohio.com/north-main-street-corridor-plan.html .

Reach the writer at [email protected]