Drury students propose new Downtown Design Guidelines

The city initiated the project, called Downtown Design Guidelines, to focus on the structural and operational function of common elements found in public rights of way, including awnings, signs, lighting, sidewalks and “street furniture” such as benches, planters, trash receptacles, utility boxes and meters, city bus benches, street lamps, overhanging lamp fixtures and newspaper stands.

The students incorporated suggestions from the city and from downtown businesses at a meeting held April 9 at Riad. Students also got ideas during visits to Nashville, Tenn., and Evansville, Ind., to look at downtown districts in those cities.

Shayna Steffan was one of the four students assigned to the project, along with Mike Henzlik, Reade Ferguson and Brian O’Hagan.

The team, now in its fifth and final year of studies, prepared a questionnaire to gather suggestions from downtown business owners and asked them to take photographs of what they liked and didn’t like around the square.

Jim Kochs, bar manager and co-owner of The Rockwell, participated in the April 9 meeting. Kochs photographed trash dumpsters around his business at 221 South Ave.

“My biggest concern was the trash receptacles,” Kochs said. “I can’t pull them in because of health code violations. There’s really nowhere else I can put them. They just look like crap.”

The students’ results are being studied now by city officials, who expect to make recommendations for changes in October. City and school officials declined to releasing specific findings from the study, pending recommendations.

The students presented their findings to Hillary Taylor, senior planner, urban design for the city of Springfield in May.

“They were able to gain a lot of information from the community,” Taylor said. “Since then, staff has been in a five-month-long review process to review student work and community comments.”

The committee plans to announce its recommendations, based on the study, in October.

In addition to Taylor, the committee comprises Mitzie Zeer, City Utilities; John Simmons and Barb Baker, Urban Districts Alliance/Downtown Springfield Community Improvement District; and city employees Nick Heatherly, Building Development Services; Jason Haynes, Public Works/traffic; Phil Broyles, Public Works/operations; David Hutchison, Public Works/traffic; Ann Razer, comprehensive planning, Planning and Development; and Vern Morgan, economic development, Planning and Development.

Kochs is anxious to see if his suggestions were taken to heart.

“We brought up the idea of building some sort of fence and fencing them in so they wouldn’t be in view of anything,” he said. “Maybe the city (could put) up trash receptacles that all the businesses on the square can share.”

Aurora Robinson, professor at the Hammons School of Architecture, said the project was beneficial for the students on multiple levels.

“It immediately makes the students aware of the realities associated with working in this profession,” she said. “It makes them aware of the players associated with getting a job done and the realities of getting a job done. In the school setting, it’s fictitious.”

Steffan, who graduates in May, is pleased with her part in the project.

“I think we did a good job for what we were working with,” she said.

“It’s a small area and we were trying to find a common ground between too modern and too traditional. We all felt good when it was done.”

Simmons, UDA executive director through Oct. 14, said he has a good feeling about the study, but wasn’t able to share any of the committee’s recommendations at this point. The guidelines, he said, won’t require rights of way to express a certain time period.

“We’re not trying to say this is the 1920s and we want to go with that look and feel,” said Simmons, who has resigned his post and will be undertaking a venture in the private sector.

“It’s mainly what you’re doing in front of your building, if you’re going to have an encroachment on the public right of way as long as it matches the character of your building, I think would be the direction. But as far as public amenities … we want it to have a look and feel, a sense of history that relates to the history of the area,” he said.