Quincy council approves downtown revitalization plan
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 1 month AGO
A framework for revitalization projects in downtown Quincy (pictured) was approved by the Quincy City Council this week. Parking was a concern for at least one council member and city officials said parking planning included in the document is not finalized.
R. HANS MILLER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | July 27, 2022 5:04 PM
QUINCY — A plan that provides a framework for possible improvements to downtown Quincy was approved by the Quincy City Council on July 19. The downtown revitalization plan was approved on a 5-1 vote, with Councilmember Dave Dormaier voting no.
“Each of the projects will still have to be vetted again to go out for design and construction,” Municipal Services Director Carl Worley said. “We would look at things again, and if there was something that just wasn’t going to work, if it was identified in the plan, that doesn’t mean we have to do it. It’s not anything in concrete.”
Worley said the plan doesn’t have any timeline for projects nor for obtaining funding. Any project proposed would have to be evaluated on its own merits, whether it was in the plan or not, he said.
Dormaier said he was concerned about the way the report addressed parking.
“A lot of the parking that is planned is planned on private property that the city has no control over,” Dormaier said.
Worley said via email to the Columbia Basin Herald that how parking will be handled is still to be determined.
“In the plan, those areas identified on private property are just potential areas for parking,” Worley wrote.
The problem has historical roots, he said.
“Downtown parking has always been an issue,” he wrote. “Each business is required to provide off-street parking based on the use or activity. These standards were not likely in place at the time the original downtown was developed, which brings us to the situation we are in today.”
There is parking within walking distance of downtown, he said, and one of the recommendations in the plan is to improve signage directing people to the areas where parking is available, such as city and Quincy School District property.
During the meeting, Dormaier suggested one possible solution would be one-way streets in the downtown area.
Worley said one-way streets had been considered, but the conclusion was they weren’t the best option.
“We tried to keep it from becoming a maze of one-way streets,” Worley said. “Or (one-way streets) were an option, but it was not necessarily what people would desire.”
ARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Road projects on hold for Labor Day weekend
MOSES LAKE — With Labor Day weekend dead ahead, drivers will be able to move freely about the state. Most road projects are on hold for the holiday weekend. Nobody will be working on the Hansen Road overpass on Interstate 90, but the lane restrictions that are in effect will continue through the end of the project.
Cost estimates for water source alternatives given to Moses Lake City Council
Protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, efforts are ongoing to keep it self-sufficient
MOSES LAKE — It’s going to cost a lot of money to provide alternative water sources for the city of Moses Lake, but some of the possible alternatives will cost more than others. City officials provided the Moses Lake City Council with costs for various alternatives Tuesday.
Dryer vent cleaning is important -- but often overlooked
MOSES LAKE — Not all the maintenance a house needs is visible. Sometimes a potential problem just goes unnoticed until it causes trouble, sometimes serious trouble. But a lot of potential problems give off warning signs. Clothes dryers often do when they need a good cleaning.