Downtown Muskegon Blog

Behind the Scenes – Promenade Progress

It’s hard to remember what the Third and Western intersection looked like just two short years ago. To refresh your memory there is a picture to the right. A three way intersection surrounded by mall surface parking lots about sums it up. From that to a restored street grid, to an attractive round-a-bout finished with a 3 story sculpture, to three infill buildings, to public plaza space lining the Third St; the make-over has been tremendous. Though not obvious to most, the plaza space lining Third St, is private property, owned by the commercial condo association that governs the four block area bordered by Third, Morris, First and Clay. The finishing touches on this space are just about complete and Muskegon Main Street caught up with Gary Post, DMDC Condo Association No. 1 President, to hear how this development took place.

MS: Gary, what area does the condo association oversee along Third St, what has been accomplished, and what is underway?

GP: One of the key items identified several years ago by the Imagine Muskegon committee was the importance of creating a strong pedestrian corridor down Third Street – with a goal to eventually connect the downtown to Muskegon Lake at the end of Third Street. The DMDC honored this request and set aside as much as 60’ of additional space along the Third Street right-of-way all the way from Morris to Clay Avenue. This space was designated as General Common Area and fell under the responsibility of the Site Condo Association to develop and maintain. To date we have completed what we refer to as Alcoa Square, which includes the raised stage area and the rain garden immediately outside the Hines Building. We have also completed what we refer to as Sidock Square across Western Avenue and are now working on the Olthoff Stage and the Baker Square portion, which completes the improvements all the way to Clay Avenue.

MS: Well it looks great, and all this space is open to the public?

GP: Yes, all this space is open to the public. In fact, the Condo Association wants to encourage public use of this space as much as possible. We do, however, need to retain some control over the space for appropriate use and scheduling reasons. But, a simple request and brief form are all that’s required to ‘officially’ use this space. Of course, we anticipate regular and frequent ‘unofficial’ use of the space, as well.

MS: How did the condo association fund these improvements?

GP: Although the Condo Association is the fiduciary for the development of the space, we relied primarily on donations solicited by the Chamber and the Community Foundation to fund these improvements. These organizations were able to solicit gifts, large and small, from community-minded benefactors, both corporate and personal, with the largest gift coming from Mike and Kay Olthoff to fund the Olthoff stage, currently under construction. Condo Association dues also were used to round out some of the funding required.

MS: Are there ways that people can still participate to help pay for these improvements?

GP: Certainly! A call to the Chamber or Community Foundation will let people know what they can do to help out. There are major features that people could still underwrite. Also, we are still receiving gifts for pavers and benches that can be inscribed with the donors name and placed permanently on the site.

MS: How does the association envision these spaces being utilized now that they are complete?

GP: The design of the spaces complements the previous work on Western Avenue and the three buildings that border the promenade – the Hines Building, the Sidock Building and the Baker / Michigan Culinary Art Institute. There is a raised area in front of the Hines Building for announcements and news releases of importance to the business community. The Olthoff Stage will provide a great venue for outdoor theater performances, musical performances, street performers, and a host of other possibilities limited only by our community’s creativity. Who knows? Maybe Santa Claus even shows up here for Christmas. There will be outdoor seating and some tables that will complement the outdoor seating areas on the Sidock and Baker Buildings. It should be a great place just for people to come and sit, enjoy a cup of coffee or a pastry from the Sweet Spot, and take in all that downtown has to offer. Finally, we are hoping that pieces of public art, such as the soon to be installed Hackley Bench, donated by Peter Turner, find homes within the space.

MS: Well, thanks for your association’s, and its partners, dedication to public space creation. We are sure public spaces, like those you have created, will draw people downtown and lead to increased downtown vitality.

GP: You are welcome! That’s part of the goal – give people a reason to come downtown and enjoy what’s happening here.

Check it out on the web

Promenade Fundraising Contribution Link
Promenade Construction Cam

Labels: Downtown Muskegon E-News

posted by Dan & Sarah @ 7:44 AM