WXXI: ARTWalk Solicits Public Input (2009-07-13)

Residents of the "Neighborhood of the Arts" will get a chance to reshape their neighborhood Tuesday night.

Project planners for ARTWalk 2 are holding a public input session at the Visual Studies Workshop on University Avenue.

William Cochran is an artist who's helping to gather input about expanding the public art and embellished sidewalks that comprise ARTWalk. He says the project initially evolved out of residents collaborating to reshape the neighborhood - and Tuesday night's input session will continue that tradition.

"It has a very strong public participation component at its core. The community itself makes key decisions about what the project is, what it will be, what it includes. There's a lot of art work to come and a lot of urban design improvements throughout the whole corridor. And we're asking the public to weigh in on what they want to see, what those should be, to help make decisions, prioritize areas, and generally give their input."

The original ARTWalk runs along University Avenue, east of Goodman, and includes sculpture, decorative sidewalk treatments, and create seating and bus shelters. ARTWalk planners say the improvements have increased housing values and brought business to the area.

The streets that are set to get a new treatment as part of the second round of ARTWalk are Goodman between Village Gate and the Rochester Museum and Science Center, and University Avenue between Goodman and the School of the Arts.

The City of Rochester applied for state funds for ARTWalk 2, and because the project was "shovel ready," it receive stimulus funds. But Cochran says those dollars force an aggressive time line onto the project, so public input is needed now.

To comply with the stimulus rules, the project has to break ground by the middle of next year - and construction drawings have to be complete by February or March.

Cochran says collaborators on ARTWalk 2 are hoping that the project will foster more economic development by creating jobs, boosting the housing market, and strengthening the community. Designers are also hoping the area will become a regional draw for people seeking creative activities.

The public brainstorming session at the Visual Studies Workshop runs from 6 to 9 p.m. on July 14.