After visiting with some folks last week, it appears I need to clarify my position on the awnings downtown:
I am neither in favor of nor against the awnings coming down; I believe we need to forget about the awnings for the moment and get all parties back to the table to decide TOGETHER how to proceed with downtown renovation.
Pardon the pun, but the awnings are shading the REAL issue here – which is that the City Council, the downtown business owners, and the Downtown Improvement Committee are all in disagreement about how to proceed with the downtown improvement guidelines as they are currently written. We need at least three things for successful downtown renovation:
1) We need a clearly identified goal and a fully researched, comprehensive plan to get us there. I’m hoping the DREAM initiative will guide this process.
2) All affected parties – the city, the downtown business owners, the downtown TIFF Commission, the Downtown Improvement Committee, and the citizens of Kirksville – need to believe in, invest in, and promote this plan. All parties need to be involved in every step of the process so there is 100% buy-in.
3) All parties need to work together to execute this plan, keeping lines of communication and goodwill open.
A few naysayers have told me this will never happen – that “you can never get people to agree on anything.” Well, I don’t believe that. With the right attitude, the right leadership, and clear communication throughout, it can and will happen. If the citizens of LaPlata can rally around a dream, so can we.
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