All hands on deck for Streetscape Project

By: Linda Gross

The streetscaping project taking place on the north end of Broad Street had a “Paver Party” this weekend. Over thirty volunteers showed up in the early, frosty hours of the morning to lay thousands of concrete pavers which will create a broad expanse of pedestrian-friendly space which the City will beable to use for community events and will help pull walking traffic from one end of Broad to the other. Volunteers included Globe’s Mayor, the City Manager, the Fire chief, Building Inspector, Public Works department and many local business people and residents showed up in jeans and knee pads to lay pavers over a 1/4 mile stretch of North Broad. Those who couldn’t ‘schelp’ pavers or help out, stopped by to bring tangerines, donuts, water and offer a “thumbs up” to those who were working.

A recent article in the CopperCountryNews by writer Ed Kuhneman last week, lead off with the headline, “Nice, but can we afford it.”  This shows clearly that neither the writer or some local residents are aware of the fact that this project has been paid for by a $98,000 grant which was awarded to the City and Main Street specifically for Street scaping. Although this fact has been reported several times since it’s award last June, there appears to be some mis-information about the costs.  At a time when the economy is putting big strains on both local and state governments, and the City has announced cost cutting measures such as a hiring freeze, and going to a 4-day work week it is understandable to question City expenses.

However, the streetscaping project represents a real bonus to the City in these tough economic times. It came at a time when communities everywhere are struggling to make ends meet and do anymore than tread water. The grant made it possible to actually implement the many action items on a list developed by a small group of citizen-volunteers and City leaders who looked at what kinds of things could be done downtown to enhance both local and tourist experience. It included better signage to identify the historic district as people zoomed by on Hwy 60, and gateway enhancements to both the North end of Globe and the Hill street entrance. The opportunity to keep moving forward, as this Mayor and Council and our Main Street Director have done with grant monies and volunteer labor is a huge feather in their cap and one which will pay dividends to the community in the future. It says that our leadership cares about our community.  And about taking care of business. And about putting our best foot forward.

So,does any of that translate into $$$. You betcha!

When you talk about economic development, or the health of your tourism industry, or the business climate in your area, you come back to the issue of investment. Are there signs of investment to the area? Or does it look like people are treading water and facilities are decaying. One sends a message which encourages others to invest both time, energy and money into the area which supports our tax rolls, allows for future planning  and sustains our own small town ways and that of our neighbors. The other sends a different message; to move on and look for more fertile ground to buy a home, start a business or linger for a weekend. In this economy it is more important, not less, to address this

issue and do what we can to attract others to invest in this community.

Instead of questioning whether we have enough money to water a few more trees on Broad, we might be thankful that the community even got a $98K grant to invest in streetscaping (thanks to the foresight of those who applied for this grant 3 years ago). Or, that we have a growing cadre of dedicated city employees and local residents who are willing to volunteer their time and talents to make whatever monies are available stretch as far as possible. Or that we have the kind of  leadership which looks to the future and isn’t afraid to roll up their sleeves to make things happen.

MOB, has invested approximately $70,000 of the grant in (1) signage identifying the historic district (a key point which was identified in a ’95′-96 study on tourism)  (2) Replacing street lighting which originally existed on North Broad, with APS historical light posts (using energy efficient lighting), (3) creating a paved, tree-line section of Broad which can be used for community events, as well as a public-space for pedestrian traffic; including electrical and water  (4) and a brick-like crosswalk between Yuma Street and El Ranchito which ties the East and West side of Broad Street together and makes crossing pedestrian-friendly.

Other improvements, including bollards, which are small scale street lighting to define curbs and public spaces, are being done through volunteers and sponsorships. The MOB committee found the cost on  commercial bollards to be prohibitively expensive with costs ranging from $1500 and up. Luckily, MOB member and local contractor, Jim Ohl, came up with a design which he could fabricate for the City for half the cost. These are now being offered to those who would like to “sponsor” a bollard in downtown Globe.

So, we’d like to hear from you.  Please let us know if you have questions or comments on the new street scape improvements.

Please post a comment here. We want to hear from YOU! Thanks, L