Downtown Odessa completes first master plan for reinvestment, redevelopment
In 2015, I was hired as the City of Odessa's first Downtown Odessa Director to lead a strategic and in-depth repositioning of Downtown Odessa's development potential to diversify the city's economy and dependency on oil, and catalyze on the regional economic momentum that was experiencing an uptick in growth.
Initially, we defined the boundaries of Downtown Odessa to include both regional medical centers, small businesses, and government buildings that create a workforce population that expands by more than 8,000 individuals a day.
The main corridor thorough the center of Downtown Odessa is one of the Top 5 major traveled thoroughfares in the City of Odessa, according to a 2013 Texas Department of Transportation Traffic Study. More than 17,000 vehicles travel the Grant Avenue corridor daily.
Downtown Odessa map.
The strong potential for a reposition was based on several historic and
community factors.
Downtown Odessa's connected street grid, regional medical facility anchors downtown, strong community engagement, successful robust festival programming, and invested local leadership were factors coalescing into recent downtown progress and reinvestment.
In 2016, I hired Gateway Planning Group, a Dallas-based urban planning consulting firm, to help lead the community through the design of a master plan for Downtown Odessa.
The six-month consulting contract resulted in Downtown Odessa's first community charrette, various public input meetings, and the Downtown Odessa Design and Implementation Plan.
Downtown Odessa Hotel and Convention Center along 5th Street. Rendering by Gateway Planning Group
Building on Momentum
The Downtown Design and Implementation Plan and the proposed companion Downtown Overlay Code serve to unify private investment, public investment and development activity for business owners, landowners, potential business owners, interested investors and developers.
It was critical for the redevelopment and revitalization of Downtown to be integrated and aligned with the upscale convention center and hotel. The new plans for the anchor destination brought investment and business to the downtown community and sets the City apart from its reliance on Midland amenities.
In particular, an implementation plan with a clear governance approach enabled coordinated improvements and elevated design standards to catch up to the market demand for Downtown.
In that regard, façade and building improvement standards, properly interpreted building codes and future streetscape enhancements will encourage property owner reinvestment and show stability to the regional market that Downtown Odessa is open for business and ripe for new development.
The Outcomes
The project team was asked to develop the following outcomes
for the initiative:
1. Identification of catalytic development potential and a
merchandising strategy that be translated into recruitment
and marketing;
2. Prioritized infrastructure to support that catalytic
development, focusing on streets and public spaces;
3. Creation of a unified design strategy for Downtown; and
4. Design and regulatory tools that can be used to implement
the opportunities in a sustainable way
The Downtown Odessa Design and Implementation Plan kick-started city-generated infrastructure and façade incentives, building and fire code policy revisions, building abatement review process, purchase and tear down of unsafe buildings, and a subsequent uptick in business.
View the Downtown Odessa Design + Implementation Plan.
Downtown Odessa Design + Implementation Plan
For more feature stories on my work in Downtown Odessa, visit the following media links:
Post a comment