Newsletter
What’s happening in Downtown Midland? Here’s a brief summary.
If Momentum Midland had to make a prediction, we would bet that 2017 is going to be a big year for downtown Midland. From the Main Street Streetscape Project to improvements on the South Riverfront, downtown is seeing a resurgence of investment in its public spaces.
To keep things simple, we have highlighted a few of the projects underway in Downtown. Keep scrolling below for more details.
1. South Riverfront Restoration Project
On Monday, February 13, Midland City Council unanimously voted to accept the South Riverfront Restoration Project proposal presented by Momentum Midland.
The approved project will convert the former Oldcastle and 4D Brick property into a 14-acre public, wetland, and recreation site that will seamlessly connect with the non-motorized trails on the south sides of the Tittabawassee River, as well as connect to 23 acres of land that was recently converted into wetlands by The Dow Chemical Company. Together, the two parcels consisting of 37 acres will become an ecological playground for the community to enjoy. The project brings together Momentum Midland, The City of Midland, Dow, local conservation organizations and foundations who share a vision to preserve and restore an important downtown landscape, while creating an expansive and attractive public use area.
Momentum Midland, in partnership with design firm AECOM, outlined desired features for the 14-acre site which include elements like riverfront overlooks, fishing piers, non-motorized trails, additional canoe/kayak launches, and eventually a pedestrian footbridge.
With City Council’s approval secured, Momentum Midland will begin working on the first of two phases of the project. The first phase includes securing necessary approvals from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and State of Michigan Agencies. With approval, Momentum Midland will progress on all ground work on the southeast riverfront such as land excavation, non-motorized pathway linkages, riverfront overlooks, canoe/kayak launches, and natural wetland restoration. Pending funding commitments, the second phase of the project will include the construction of a pedestrian footbridge linking the north and south riverfronts. Upon completion of both phases, the South Riverfront Restoration Project will convert, link, and transform the currently unusable, 14-acre project site into a 37-acre network of recreational wetlands in the heart of downtown Midland. The goal is to begin construction on this phase in summer 2017.
The South Riverfront Restoration project would not be possible without funding support from local foundations and partners. The first phase of this project is funded by the Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation, the Charles J. Strosacker Foundation, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and includes in-kind support from The Dow Chemical Company, Chippewa Nature Center, and Little Forks Conservancy.
For other articles about the project, click here. To stay up-to-date on project happenings, please consider signing-up for an email version of our newsletter here.
2. Bike Midland — Bikeshare Program
The Momentum Midland Program Office has raised 64% of the total cost to bring a three-year, 30 bike, bikeshare system to Midland.Cities across the nation, both large and small, are implementing similar programs. We think Midland will be the next success story. The target launch for the program is spring 2017. Stayed tuned for further updates!
3. Main Street Streetscape
In Nov. ’16, The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) received the “green light” from City Council to begin working on the next phase of the Main Street streetscape project. Currently, the DDA is drafting design documentation. They plan to send out construction bids for the project within the next two months. For a rough project timeline, please check out the infographic below.
Another important note, the DDA wants to ensure that the streetscape updates are well communicated to the public; therefore, they have hired the Ann Arbor based advertising firm Q+M. The firm will manage all of the projects communications — including creating a streetscape website. For more information on this project, please click here.
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See something we might have missed? Share your Downtown Midland project with us at info@momentum-midland.org.
