Scottsdale wants to link Old Town, Civic Center
A proposal to create a “gateway” from Old Town Scottsdale to the Civic Center Mall to encourage more foot traffic between the two could be a boon to area businesses and the arts scene, city officials say.
“This whole entry area (on the east side of Brown Avenue at Main Street) is going to be redesigned. For people in the Old Town area, we want to create a gateway that draws their attention to the mall area,” said Doug Makinen, city project manager. “There’s nothing right now that draws them over here.”
One way to do that is to open up the lines of sight from Old Town to the west entry into the Civic Center Mall, he said. The mall is a large outdoor public space with grassy areas and public art, bordered by the Mondrian Hotel, the Scottsdale Center for Performing Arts, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and numerous restaurants and bars.
Area businesses and arts boosters have welcomed the gateway proposal. Paul Martinez, manager of AZ 88, a bar in the mall, said better integration between the mall and Old Town is a positive step.
“Any foot traffic in here is going to help our business. We’re very much a visual place,” Martinez said.
The proposal for a gateway between the mall and Old Town arose as one of the concepts in the Downtown Plan, a long-term growth management document the city is drafting for the downtown area.
When the plan is finished, it is to be included in the citywide general plan.
Other components of the gateway proposal include plans to remove a temporary metal handicapped access ramp bridging the sidewalk along Brown Avenue and the mall area with a permanent ramp. The brick walkways could be redesigned and new public art and lighting introduced, as well. The ‘Yearlings’ sculpture of three running horses there could be moved but will remain on the site, and the water features will be replaced with new versions that would use less water and require less maintenance.
Many of the large trees would remain, including a decades-old Indian Banyan tree that provides ample shade. Environmentally friendly materials would be used in the renovations, Makinen said.
The project could be broken into two phases, with utility work being done first. Actual construction might not begin until 2010.
Read full story at East Valley Tribune
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