Revitalization of Westlock’s downtown core is still on the agenda and a three-dimensional digital model of the proposed changes will soon be available.
The key features of the proposed change will be new light standards, repaving and widening the sidewalk, and putting in boulevard trees CAO Darrell Garceau told the Westlock and District Chamber of Commerce members at their meeting last week, and the model will help residents and council visualize the changes.
“What we’ll see is a 3-D virtual tour of downtown,” he said.
Depending on the features council chooses to go with, the improvements along Main Street could cost as much as $700,000 per block, and Garceau suggested the project could come with a $2.4 million price tag.
The 3-D model, which he said should be completed and available to view within a few weeks, will help council to determine how they will proceed with the project.
“The undertaking is to review the proposed design and vet out what these costs estimates will be,” he said. “Everything is in the preliminary stages.”
The revitalization plan is in line with the recommendations in the 2009 report Retooling Downtown Westlock, which was prepared by Avi Friedman. It recommends the steps needed to overhaul the downtown core to make it more appealing to residents and businesses.
Some of the recommendations in the report have already been followed, Garceau said. The town will pay 50 per cent of the cost, up to $10,000, for businesses that want to put up a new façade. The town also offers three-year tax breaks for new builds in downtown, or for additions to existing buildings.
“In the Friedman report, he made reference to jurisdictions giving tax concessions and other things,” he said. “Council is committed because they know we need these improvements done.”
Garceau also discussed some ideas he has had, which do not necessarily reflect council’s intentions, about the future of the town’s administration building.
He is currently looking into the possibility of converting the vacant SAAN store into a new administration building and council chambers, while turning the current administration building into a business incubator — an office space where up and coming entrepreneurial organizations share support services.
Garceau said he thinks this idea would be a good fit in the town, and has been working with the Northern Alberta Business Incubator to determine if it’s viable. He will look into the possibility, review the costs, and present the information to council.
Ultimately, the goal is to get more people and businesses into the downtown core and to improve the first impression people have.
“When you have vacant space or buildings that are boarded up, it doesn’t present itself very well,” he said.
