PORT ANGELES — Two members of an American Institute of Architects design team that inspired the downtown spruce-up project last summer are returning to town this week to see for themselves how their recommendations on improving city’s design and planning have been carried out.
The team leader of last year’s six-member team, Northampton, Mass., Planning Director Wayne Feiden, and AIA staff member Erin Simmons are expected to attend the Port Angeles Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday, Port Angeles Forward Committee meeting on Thursday, and various civic organization meetings.
From their visit in March, the team members developed an 87-page report, released in August, that analyzed provided recommendations on how Port Angeles’ main commercial areas — downtown and the U.S. Highway 101 entrance to the downtown, dubbed the Gateway Corridor — can be improved.
Painting downtown
Following the visit, local citizens started the “Our Community at Work — Painting Downtown” that was focused on repainting downtown buildings that had seen better days.
Improving building facades was one of the team’s recommendations.
Feiden said Friday that the purpose of this week’s return visit is to see what about the team’s report was helpful and how the team can improve future assessments elsewhere.
He explained that the design team only revisits the communities that it feels has done a good job.
“I’ve now done 10 of these, and Port Angeles is definitely in the top three that I’ve been involved with,” he said.
Nathan West, city community and economic development director, said the volunteer-driven Painting Downtown project helped the city meet some of the goals of the report, which was funded by an AIA grant, early on.
The grant was met with a $5,000 match out of city coffers.
“It’s been great to see the community jumping and help out with getting items implemented,” he said.
“It made a difference as far as [the design team’s] attention to Port Angeles.”
Capital projects
This year, as part of the team’s recommendations, the city is working on three capital projects: a waterfront promenade, an improved sign and way-finding system, and new entryway monuments.
He said the city also plans to do another two rounds of the facade improvement program.
West said the promenade is in its design phase and he couldn’t place a timeline on construction until the financing is in place.
The city is using $67,000 in lodging tax money to fund the project’s design. It has applied for $1.5 million in federal grant funds for the project as well.
Last year, the City Council enacted a face improvement program, brought the Port Angeles Farmers Market downtown, and changed its comprehensive and capital facilities plans as part of the recommendations.
Visual aesthetics
Feiden said the team members placed such a large emphasis in its report on improving the visual aesthetics of the town because getting more travelers to stop and spend money in Port Angeles on their way to Victoria or Olympic National Park will be one of its keys to economic recovery.
“Some communities, once they have a problem it’s really hard to regain ground,” he said. “But every single year, you have a huge number of people come through town.
“Each year you have a chance to begin anew, create a new persona.”
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.