A public workshop tonight at the Clover Island Inn will reveal ideas on how Kennewick's oldest real estate and business district fronting the Columbia River can be made new through piecemeal revitalization.
The session is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. in the fourth floor conference rooms of the hotel, where consultant Tom Beckwith and Associates will show schematics about roadway changes, walking and bicycling trails, projects and suggestions for the target area between the cable and blue bridges and the river and railroad.
Called Bridge-to-Bridge and Rail-to-River, the revitalization plan incorporates suggestions gleaned from seven neighborhood meetings, said Ferdouse Oneza, Kennewick's planning manager.
"The plan is not a forced redevelopment. It is a revitalization plan that uses the market forces to reshape the area," Beckwith said.
Beckwith gave a preview of the concepts Wednesday at a task force meeting at Kennewick City Hall.
Several road extensions are recommended, including West Deschutes Avenue going east toward Duffy's Pond.
Beckwith also proposes a network of walkways and on-road bikeways that crisscross the target area in all directions.
Other suggestions include removing portions of existing railroad tracks and creating a system of off-road multipurpose trails to provide continuous access and views of the river between the bridges.
Beckwith said other ideas proposed by citizens include extending the Columbia Park excursion train to the east as far as the cable bridge, creating a gondola ride linking Duffy's Pond and Clover Island, and trying to establish Kennewick as a destination for a dinner or mystery train. Such a train might be a tourist attraction for people interested in the region's wineries, he said.
Tonight's public open house will include information about streetscapes, new signage based on a theme for the area, shoreline enhancements and proposed parks.
Beckwith said proposed public facilities include ideas for a performing arts center, amphitheater, Imax theater, a children's museum and an interpretive center that would focus on Native American culture.
There also will be discussion about land use and how mixed use can have commercial and residential activities side by side or one atop the other.
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