Visioneer’ fulfills Design Center’s goal of developing a downtown master plan By David Little davidl@wctrib.com Nov 9, 2006

The three-section brochure is the result of work by volunteers, organizations and architect Tom Ososki 

WILLMAR — Willmar Design Center board members are pleased with an architect’s vision for future development in and around the downtown area.

The “visioneer,’’ as it’s called, fulfills the Design Center’s first goal of developing a downtown master plan.

“This is what we need,’’ said Design Center board member Al Juhnke after he and other board members received the visioneer from Tom Ososki, an architect from Lauderdale who’s under contract as Design Center urban planner. The visioneer is updated from a preliminary concept presented by Ososki in August.

Ososki was a member of the Minnesota Design Team that worked with local citizens in 2004 and 2005 to develop goals and plans for improving the downtown and the community as a whole. The threesection brochure is the result of work by volunteers, organizations and Ososki, and is loaded with colorful drawings, graphics and succinct text.

“I think it’s bold and it’s progressive, and for a small community to produce something like this and to have something visionary like this, I think, is really impressive,’’ said Ososki.

“I talked to a lot of colleagues in the cities and they’re all really quite impressed with this as a product, a master plan, a vision.’’

The visioneer proposes four strategic actions, centering on 16 to 20 blocks in the downtown area:

• Restoring Litchfield Avenue. The U.S. Highway 12 bypass created in the 1970s solved downtown traffic congestion. But downtown promoters and supporters say Litchfield Avenue — the traditional main east-west thoroughfare — must be restored to create more private investment downtown.
• Establish a downtown commons. The city owns the parking lot to the south of Bethel Lutheran Church. During Design Team visits, citizens said they wanted more common space downtown.
• Urbanize First Street. The Design Center believes First Street between Trott Avenue and Benson Avenue has tremendous opportunity for private redevelopment. The proposal envisions canopied storefronts or mixed-use buildings along tree-planted sidewalks and center medians to blend with the downtown’s pedestrianfriendly environment.
• Connecting the downtown area to the lakes and neighborhoods to the north by means of a pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks. The visioneer says providing a connection to the Glacial Lakes Trail would create economic and recreational opportunities.

In an interview, Ososki said many of the visioneer’s concepts resulted from suggestions by citizens during the Design Team visits.

He said the visioneer will help the Design Center communicate its goals with officials, citizens, developers and others. Hundreds of visioneers will be printed for distribution.

Ososki said many of the recommendations will occur through public-private involvement — “hopefully minor public investment.’’

He said a parking structure would be needed because development of the block behind Bethel Lutheran Church into a multi-use commons or plaza would remove about one-third of the parking that’s there now.

Ososki said discussion about a downtown parking ramp is nothing new; a parking ramp was included in the 1989 comprehensive plan.