Title
Adopting the Greater Lowertown Master Plan Summary as an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan.
Body
WHEREAS, there has long been interest in the downtown community in updating the Historic Lowertown Plan, adopted in 1994 as part of the City's Comprehensive Plan; and
WHEREAS, the Downtown Station Area Plan was adopted in 2010 as part of the City's Comprehensive Plan, and addresses development opportunities and issues related to the construction of light rail transit through downtown, starting at Union Station in Lowertown; and
WHEREAS, the Downtown Station Area Plan called for a Lowertown Master Plan to address outstanding issues that were beyond the scope of the Downtown Station Area Plan, and recommended that the Lowertown Master Plan be guided by a community-based task force representing Lowertown's residential, commercial, entertainment, arts and cultural communities; and
WHEREAS, the Greater Lowertown Master Plan Task Force was created in 2009 to craft a Scope of Work for the Greater Lowertown Master Plan, issue a Request for Proposals, interview consultant teams and select a consultant team; and
WHEREAS, the Greater Lowertown Master Plan Task Force raised nearly $200,000 from the Lowertown Future Fund, Central Corridor Funders Collaborative and The Saint Paul Foundation to hire a multi-disciplinary consultant team led by the Cuningham Group; and
WHEREAS, the Greater Lowertown Master Plan Task Force worked from 2010-2011 to prepare the Greater Lowertown Master Plan; and
WHEREAS, City staff attended all task force meetings, participated in several focus group sessions, advised the task force on consistency with City policy, reviewed drafts of the Plan and helped write some of the language in the final draft; and
WHEREAS, in October 2011, the CapitolRiver Council Board voted to support the Greater Lowertown Master Plan at a vision, goal and conceptual level, and recommended it for approval by the Planning Commission and City Council; and ...
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