DOWNTOWN VISIONING OPEN HOUSE

 

Based on attendance, comments and enthusiasm, the first Downtown Visioning OPEN HOUSE was a great success.  Approximately 120 attendees were welcomed to hallway walls covered with oversized panoramic photos of the City's downtown streetscapes, some as long as ten feet.  What follows are images and information on the Visioning Process. 

 

 

Attendees were asked to "dot" their favorite buildings and provide comments on the character and visual impacts they have on the downtown.  (SEE ALL PANORAMAS on display during Open House)

 

 

The OPEN HOUSE was a first step by the Council appointed Downtown Visioning Committee to formalize a "Vision Statement" that will be shared by local organizations including the Gig Harbor Historic Waterfront Association, the Chamber of Commerce and others that care about the future of downtown.

 

 

In addition to images, attendees were asked to identify missing "Uses" for the community.  

 

 

Some placed dots on printed words while others wrote in their own ideas. 

Information on the history of prominent historic buildings were on display including images of character-defining homes along Harborview Drive that are part of the Millville District.  (SEE MORE on Historic Buildings)

 

 

Planning Commissioner Jim Pasin and Senior Planner Peter Katich discuss next steps for the Visioning Committee.

 

 

A Visioning Station asked participants to "dot" the words that should be part of the Committee's formal "Vision Statement" or add their own. 

 

 

In addition to the images and interactive input, a Gig Harbor Model Project led by Design Review Chair Darrin Filand and Planning Commissioner Rick Gagliano is underway.   Students from local high schools have begun gathering parcel information that will be used to populate the 9'x5' 3-D Model.  It will be used for hands-on planning exercises during the visioning process.  For more information or to help, contact Darrin Filand.

 

 

Many of the students that make up the Gig Harbor Model Project team turned out to give their input.

 

 

 

DOWNLOAD A SAMPLE SURVEY that was used as resource data.  The MAP YOUR DOWNTOWN form provided input on what citizens considered their "downtown" boundaries.

 

For more information about the Downtown Visioning Project, contact Senior Planner Lindsey Sehmel at (253) 853-7615.  For information about Historic Preservation, contact Historic Preservation Coordinator Lita Dawn Stanton at (253) 853-7609.

SEE MORE IMAGES from the OPEN HOUSE