A bigger and better downtown

With all of the new housing construction taking place downtown and with the increased number of restaurants, bars, and retail establishments opening in the city’s center, I’ve started thinking about the future of downtown Grand Forks. Slowly, empty properties and parking lots downtown are starting to be redeveloped (Flood Memorial Park turned into “Elite Brownstones” development, North Third Street parking lot turned into “The Current” apartments) and empty buildings are being filled. I’m crossing my fingers that this is a trend which will continue.

With new construction and more people coming downtown, we are going to start to run out of room for new developments. Maybe not this year, maybe not five years from now, but eventually we will run out of room, in my opinion. In the few blocks that currently constitute the existing downtown core, there are increasingly fewer and fewer empty areas that can be developed. So, if downtown continues to grow and if developers continue to show an interest in developing new properties in the city center, things are going to have to change downtown. In my opinion, we are going to have to redefine the geographic area we think of as downtown. To put it simply, downtown is going to have to get bigger in size.

My proposal...
I would like to see an effort made to redevelop several city blocks which sit west of the immediate downtown area. The area I’m referring to is bounded on the east by the downtown commercial area, on the north by University Avenue, on the west by North Washington Street, and on the south by the rail yards. I think that this area is a long-term solution for the fact that downtown, as it currently exists, may be too small for the Grand Forks of the future.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not proposing that every property in this area be bought out and demolished. That would be akin to the urban renewal of the 1960s and 70s and that is not what I have in mind here. Instead, I would like to see an entity (be it the city of Grand Forks or private investors/developers) buy properties in this area as they become available. Then I would like to see the properties thoughtfully redeveloped into new uses which will compliment and add to what we already have downtown.

Think about the possibilities that such an area could hold for downtown. These city blocks could be redeveloped with apartment buildings, office buildings, mixed-use developments, and retail/entertainment ventures. This area currently houses a small amount of commercial property, some light industrial uses, and a couple of blocks of older housing. In my opinion, this area is filled with low density developments which could potentially be replaced with higher density developments. With proper planning, we could essentially double the area that we think of as the immediate downtown area and downtown could stretch from the Red River to North Washington Street.

A gradual redevelopment like the one I’m proposing would have to be done very thoughtfully and great attention would have to be paid to detail. Clearly, there are several properties in the area (Warehouse and Freight House Apartments, etc.) which already add to the historic downtown area and I would never want to see buildings like those demolished. Also, the proper density would have to be achieved in this area. I wouldn’t want to see any one-story buildings here. They should be a minimum of two stories and, ideally, I would also like to see a few taller buildings. Another important aspect of any such redevelopment that comes to mind is that the new developments would have to be built to closely match the style of downtown. Buildings should come right up to the sidewalk...that should be enough of a setback and would help the new area blend in with the old part of downtown. Also, obviously the architecture of new developments should compliment what we already have downtown.

Let's think about it, ok?
So there it is…my proposal for a future downtown twice the size of the existing one. This area could hold huge potential for more downtown residents, more downtown employers, and more downtown retail and entertainment opportunities. If we really want to grow into a great “destination city” we need an active, growing downtown and I think this is the most logical way to take downtown Grand Forks to the next level. You’re probably bored after reading this, but I really wish that you - as well as those people in places of power - would at least think over my ideas. I think this could work and I think it would be a phenomenal addition to downtown and the city of Grand Forks.