Site 13 Planning Issues and Objectives Community
Workshop
March 23, 2000
On March 23, 2000 over 100 people, of which
two-thirds reside in the Central City, participated in a community workshop
to discuss the future of the Capitol Park Neighborhood and the role Site
13 would play. The participants discussed their favorite Central City neighborhoods,
what types of housing and commercial services are needed in the Capitol
Park Neighborhood, and open space needs.

Workshop Themes
Workshop participants worked as members of 11
planning teams to address planning issues for the Capitol Park Neighborhood
and Site 13. As each team presented their efforts, several important themes
became apparent.
Favorite Neighborhoods: Green Neighborhoods
The teams identified Fremont Park, Boulevard Park,
and Midtown most frequently as their favorite neighborhoods. The "greenness"
of neighborhoods was viewed as their most desirable feature. In addition,
the pedestrian scale, small local shops, historic homes, and accessibility
were seen as important features contributing to the livability of Central
City neighborhoods.
Housing Needs: Housing Variety
The teams felt there is a variety of housing needs
in the Central City. The needs of working families, singles, elderly and
others were underscored by the workshop participants. Housing solutions
stressed preservation of existing housing stock; infill housing at the
scale of the neighborhood; affordable housing in a variety of forms; loft
and live-work units; and higher density housing near transit. Most teams
wanted to see pedestrian friendly mixed-use projects with ground floor
commercial to provide both housing and additional commercial services.
Commercial Services: Small Scale Neighborhood
Serving Shops
The workshop participants preferred commercial
services that served local neighborhoods. Small locally owned businesses
were preferred over "big-box" stores that would attract traffic.
Gas stations and hardware stores were mentioned as desirable services that
are missing from the Central City. Additional good restaurants and a fresh
produce market were identified as other uses that the neighborhood would
benefit from. Many of the teams suggested the greatest need for a grocery
store was in the southwest quadrant of the Central City and not in the
Capitol Park Neighborhood.
Open Space: Community Gardens
Overall, participants felt the Central City and
Capitol Park Neighborhood should be greener with more community gardens,
natural landscaped areas, and bikeways. The workshop participants felt
community gardens are an important type of open space to include in neighborhood
planning. They stressed gardens should be integrated into the community,
such as through educational programs in schools. In addition, participants
felt active recreational sports parks were needed in the Central City.
Click here to see the March 23,
2000 workshop planning team summaries.
Click here to see the summary
of the workshop "issues bin" of discussion.