Lombard set to OK downtown plan
Lombard’s village board is expected to approve a plan Thursday that aims to make downtown a “premier destination for families and friends” by 2013.
The plan includes sections for economic development, redevelopment of certain sites, and improvements to streetscapes, facades, signs and transportation.
In the works since 2009, the plan is expected to continue guiding expenditures until 2023, when a downtown tax increment financing district is set to expire.
Residents will see action fairly quickly, especially in the area of economic development, Bill Heniff, director of community development, said.
The village plans to revamp its downtown grants for facades, infrastructure upgrades and other improvements, and reintroduce the programs at a property owner training session in July, according to the plan.
The new grants will provide better criteria for determining if property owners should receive funding for improvements, Heniff said.
“We can now say when a grant (application) comes forward, it’s consistent with the facade program or it’s not consistent with the facade elements within the plan,” he said. “And then we can make the decision.”
The document also lists a grand opening for new downtown businesses tentatively scheduled for September.
Aside from economic development, several streetscape changes are scheduled, including intersection upgrades at Park Avenue and St. Charles Road, a mid-block crosswalk spanning West St. Charles Road between Park Avenue and Elizabeth Street, and changes to the railroad bridge across Main Street.
When streetscape and parking projects move forward, Lombard residents, including Linda Sullivan, asked the village to consider using permeable pavers for environmental and flood-prevention benefits.
Heniff said community input has shaped the plan from the beginning and the result is a partnership that promotes reshaping current infrastructure for new uses.
“A downtown plan almost by design is inherently a green plan,” Heniff said. “When you’re talking about looking for adaptive reuse of existing buildings and modification of a built environment, that is frequently considered more green and more sustainable than green field development.”
Public art initiatives and sign installation also make the list of short-term projects in the 116-page downtown plan. But the plan’s biggest benefit is providing “a game plan for as many different attributes that affect the vitality of downtown Lombard,” as possible, Heniff said.
How candidates view downtown plan
Lombard District 5 Trustee Laura Fitzpatrick is the only one of five candidates for Lombard village board who will cast a vote tonight on the downtown plan. But her challenger, James Hogan, and three candidates for the District 4 seat being vacated by Trustee Dana Moreau — Peter Breen, David Brown and Jeff Shuert — also have expressed views about the plan and how to do whats best for downtown Lombard.
<h3 class="briefHead">District 5</h3>
<B>Laura Fitzpatrick, 53, district office director for a state representative</B>
My commitment to downtown is a commitment to that streetscape, to the history, to what we can do to adaptive reuse those buildings ... Its an ongoing love affair that you have to totally commit to. Ive never opposed a reasonable plan for improving the downtown.
<B>
James Hogan, 56, accountant
</B>I think the consultants are correct when they say you have to turn it back from a car-oriented downtown to a pedestrian-oriented downtown. You have to gear things toward pedestrians because there arent any. You go downtown at 2 in the afternoon and you dont see anybody outside. So I think some of the things in the plan are good.
<h3 class="briefHead">District 4</h3>
<B>Peter Breen, 34, public interest attorney</B>
We have the consumers that are willing to purchase things if we get the right mix of businesses in there. I support the downtown development plan that has been brought forth. I like the idea of really relying upon our history as the Lilac Village and making a consistent look and feel throughout the downtown.
<B>David Brown, 61, pastor</B>
Im old enough to remember the old downtown ... You cant go back. Its nice to know where youve been, but its important to know where youve been going. Since the advent of Yorktown (shopping center), all of the downtowns have changed. However, in Lombard the development plan for downtown is a good plan.
<B>Jeff Shuert, 39, medical services director
</B>There are four sets of roles and responsibilities, none of them have been really committed to the project, and its going to take all of them. Thats the residents, the business owners, the property owners and the village ... The infrastructure, some of the changes to the crosswalks, the signage, that is very distinctly the role of the village and we need to plow forward on that.