7(b) Downtown Plan Update - Placemaking, Proposed Improvements and Implementation

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VI. Proposed Improvements The committees set up to discuss downtown improvements assisted in creating an overall plan for making improvements to the downtown. The components of the plan are discussed in the following. Gateway Enhancements The intersection of Highway 371 and County Road 11 will be the principle entrance to the Downtown. There will be an enticement to simply provide for standard commercial development at this intersection. While that may be appropriate,great care should be taken to ensure that this intersection, and of equal importance the boulevard into the downtown, is a unique gateway to the City. The road, and the development that lines it,should frame the City, both physically by providing a straight and picturesque drive into the downtown and thematically giving drivers and pedestrians a taste of the character they will experience in the Downtown. This needs to be offset and designed so as to be visible and appealing from the highway clearly indicating to the driver that a unique place is waiting down this short corridor. The bobber water tower,which should be able to be seen from the intersection,should remain unobstructed as it is a unique curiosity that will draw people's attention. The roadway improvements needed to create a memorable boulevard and gateway to the City may be beyond what would be provided for or allowed by Crow Wing County in their maintenance and potential reconstruction of this corridor. The City may need to assume responsibility for this short stretch of road if it becomes necessary to create this critical element of the Downtown gateway. In addition to these improvements,the City must regulate construction along the highway corridor to ensure that it does not detract from creating the sense of destination. This stretch will be unique as most of the highway from Baxter north will be lined with development while this area will be largely forested. The forested gateway, as described in the Comprehensive Plan, helps to give context to Pequot's destination downtown. It is essential that this be maintained. Parking Strategy Pequot Lakes currently has roughly 390 public parking spaces in the downtown area. On street parking represents 334 of the spaces. The public off street parking is located in three lots:the Pequot Visitors Center(27 spaces),the Cole Memorial Building(14 spaces) and the lot south of Sibley Street on Front Street(12 spaces). The proposed parking plan offers a significant increase in the amount of parking spaces in the downtown area. Many of the proposed spaces will be on street public parking spaces,with a bulk of the spaces coming from defining parking spaces along Sibley, Butler, and Oriole Streets and making more efficient use of current parking spaces. The proposed parking increases will only satisfy the current demand in downtown and as the number of downtown businesses increase so will the demand for parking. The City will need to explore methods to provide additional parking in an efficient manner.The following strategies are offered: