TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — In an attempt to bring more activity to downtown Terre Haute, officials are now looking at big changes to Wabash Avenue.
For around a year now, Terre Haute city officials and other outside stakeholders have been performing a visionary study called Destination Wabash Avenue.
City engineer Marcus Maurer says they are looking at long-term improvements of the street in the downtown area.
“We’ve been looking at what we could do different on Wabash Avenue. How we could make it more friendly for pedestrians, cyclists, downtown users. Maybe more economical for downtown businesses and still accommodate vehicular traffic. Kind of an overhaul for downtown if you will.”
Wednesday evening, leaders of Destination Wabash Avenue held an open meeting to discuss some of their ideas.
“One of the things I’m most excited about is going to be what we are calling the flat street or the flexible street. There is a section of Wabash Avenue, in this proposed plan, that doesn’t have curves. What we are looking to do is lineate the roadway in those areas with colors, with furniture, with textures and really guide the cars to stay on the road. In the event that Wabash Avenue is closed for a festival or an event, which frequently happens, we can flex that space into one big area.”
Scott Siefker, a principal of the design group on the project, says that the meeting was open to the public because the feedback from the local community is paramount.
“I think the input is important because at the end of the day we want that community buy-in. As a designer, I don’t want it to be my idea that is imposed on some place. I want to make sure that, collectively, it’s owned by the users. That’s the community, that’s the people.”
Plans for the area are currently in the conceptual phase and city officials say there are still many things to figure out, such as financial backing, before ideas are set in motion.
If you are interested in seeing the concepts up close, or leaving your feedback, the link to Destination Wabash Avenue’s website is here.
