08-03-09 Special Called Regular Meeting of the La Porte Development Board of Directors

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E july 28. 2009 " r r , Mr. john Joern Assistant City Manager Mr. Tim Tietjens Planning Director City of La Porte 604 West Fairmont Parkway La Porte, Texas 77571 Re: Downtown Plan, Code and Sylvan Beach Implementation Initiative (, ( Dear Messrs. Joerns and Tietjens: (, v We appreciated the opportunity to serve on the Avalanche Consulting Team for the Economic Development Plan. Knowing that a vital downtown is a center piece of the new economic development strategy, we are proposing a downtown planning initiative as requested. This initiative includes harnessing the redevelopment of Sylvan Beach by leveraging the County's park strategy, as well as activating and connecting the key corridors identified in the initial economic development plan to link not only historic Main Street but also the retail opportunities down Fairmont and across the highway to the west. (~J o ,- F We propose in this implementation initiative to not only develop a detailed building and block plan to pull together the development opportunities for a walkable mixed use downtown; but also to once again reactivate Sylvan Beach as a regional draw fully integrated into downtown and not just as an isolated recreation park The key will be to translate a detailed mixed use plan into a prioritized capital program through the utilization of a new form-based code and an infrastructure phasing program. The detailed scope and budget below sets forth the tasks to accomplish this work plan. I" " C \' (; > " Jon Hockenyos of TXP will remain involved with this new phase of work. His involvement will facilitate the translation of this implementation initiative back into the ED Plan. This will enable the most efficient use of the City's fiscal capacity for needed infrastructure improvements to implement the downtown plan. You and your colleagues are familiar with me, but you are not with the remainder of our planning team that will join the effort: Jay Narayana, Senior Planner-Jay joined Gateway Planning after serving as chief planner for Southlake, Texas. There, she oversaw the second phase development of Town Square, one of the most successful new downtowns anchored by retail and a new city hall. With her MBA in real estate, Jay also understands the critical needs of project investment as phasing and use evolution are considered to position downtown environments for sustained Investment. Milosav, Cekic, Senior Urban Designer-a Fulbright Scholar. former Chairman of the Austin Design Commission, UT Faculty Member and former Town Architect from Nis, Serbia, Milosav served for more than 20 years as the architect of record for the San Antonio Shoe (SAS) Company. His retail experience in urban design and architecture as well as his urban park planning has made him invaluable to the Gateway Planning design process. He is practical yet creative in integrating entertainment, parks and urban living. www.gatewayplanning.com