Bangor is turning to its residents to find ways to improve the look and function of key downtown areas.
The city launched a study to identify changes it could make downtown to improve safety, reduce congestion and make the area more exciting and enjoyable. Projects could include adding infrastructure for bicyclists and pedestrians, revamping landscaping and sprucing up lighting.
Bangor gathered concerns and ideas from residents about what they’d like to see change downtown at a public workshop Wednesday night. Those concerns and ideas ranged from highlighting intersections they feel are unsafe for pedestrians to applauding new public art.
“I was really pleased with the turnout and how engaged everyone was,” said Jessica Kimball, Viewshed’s landscape architecture director. “It’s exciting that the city is thinking holistically about the downtown and making improvements.”
Some key ideas that Kimball heard from multiple people on Wednesday include closing Broad Street to vehicle traffic, improving or adding more park space around the Kenduskeag Stream and Penobscot River, and rethinking on-street parking.
Closing Broad Street to traffic could improve pedestrian safety in the area and help draw people exiting the Pickering Square Parking Garage into downtown, Kimball said.
More green space around the Penobscot River and Kenduskeag Stream could also help mitigate flooding before the water hits nearby buildings.
“When you look at the water, it’s a rich space and it’s wild that the downtown developed around the water, but without a focus on it,” Kimball said. “It’s a rich, natural feature in the center of this urban core.”
Kimball said she heard concerns from residents about the multiple forms of on-street parking available in downtown Bangor, though no one presented clear ideas for what they’d like to see change.
“On some streets, you have angled parking on one side and parallel parking on the other, which causes confusion and congestion when people are looking for a place to park,” Kimball said.
The study is part of the Maine Department of Transportation’s Village Partnership Initiative, which allows the state to partner with communities to spruce up their downtowns using federal funding.
The city is working with the Bangor Area Comprehensive Transportation System; MaineDOT; Sewall, a Bangor-based engineering firm; and Viewshed, a landscape architectural company from Yarmouth, to make the project possible.
A website is also available for residents to learn more about the initiative, take a short survey to share their thoughts on the downtown, and submit their ideas for specific locations using a digital map. Residents can interact with those features until mid-July, Kimball said.
In September, Sewall and Viewshed will present preliminary ideas, based on residents’ concerns and ideas, to the city for feedback.
