WATERVILLE — The City Council is set Tuesday evening to host its fifth public meeting seeking input on how the area directly around downtown Waterville should look in the future.
The meeting is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at The Elm at 21 College Ave. An executive session to discuss labor negotiations is planned for 6 p.m., and a regular council meeting is to start at 7 p.m. Those wanting to watch the meeting remotely or take part may do so through a link on the city’s website — www.waterville-me.gov.
The $11.2 million downtown revitalization effort by the city, Colby College and the Maine Department of Transportation is nearing its final stretch, with Main and Front streets expected to be changed Nov. 5 from one-way to two-way traffic. The project also includes landscaping, new lighting and improved intersections and sidewalks.
The city has been hosting public input sessions on what officials are calling the second phase of improvements and developments, this time targeting the area bounded by Front Street, College Avenue, Elm Street, Spring Street and part of Water Street.
“The focus is on bringing about development and redevelopment that addresses the city’s housing, commerce, parking, traffic flow, public relaxation space, and leisure and entertainment needs for the foreseeable future,” City Manager Stephen Daly said in a statement released last Wednesday to the news media.
The theme of Tuesday’s public input session is “The Way Forward,” Daly said. City officials are expected to share the plan and timeline for the effort developed by the project management team that includes city and Colby officials and representatives from Beyer Blinder Belle, an architecture and planning firm from New York City that has worked with the city on other projects.
The plan spells out a timeline for neighborhood input sessions to be held throughout the city and specific dates and topics of charettes, or meetings, intended to lead to an end product, according to Daly. He said Tuesday’s input session is to be the last in a series of meetings held in September and October.
At the regular meeting Tuesday, councilors are scheduled to consider adoption of a vacant buildings ordinance, and approval of a natural gas easement for The Concourse. They are also expected to discuss a Waterville Public Library parking pilot program and a rental housing registration ordinance.
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