4/3/01 Meeting Held to Discuss Livable Communities Plans

A Lively Discussion Gave Way to Good Ideas/Input

The Livable Communities project gave way to a lively question and answer session where some old issues were further reviewed and new ideas came about. The reason for the advertised public forum meeting was to inform the stakeholders of the history of the project, the plan, budget and funding update, project schedule/timelines, a description of the design process and the outline of the public information program. 

Questions and Answers were a major part of the meeting.

Barry Goodman, President of the consulting firm The Goodman Corporation, answered many questions including the usage of The Panama Hotel as a transportation hub for downtown Galveston that were raised by City Councilperson, Lyda Ann Thomas. Ms. Thomas' concerns were regarding the proposal for the City of Galveston to purchase the building and then give to a development firm for improvements. Goodman responded by advising Ms. Thomas that the plan was "just one of the options that the RFP (Request for Proposal) would be addressing when it will be sent out later this month. Nothing is set in stone regarding the transportation Center," he said. "The Transportation Center can be located at another site and that is certainly an option that will be further researched."

There were also questions with concerns from a business owner about the disruption of bus traffic and noise around the Center but Wayne Cook, Director of Transportation for the City of Galveston quickly pointed out that there would be minimal disruption with the newer buses. The benefit of having a business located that close to the transportation hub would benefit from the added exposure and foot traffic that came in contact with the front of her business each day. "The exposure to these tourists using the transportation center will far outweigh any negatives."

There was a suggestion made that the LCI Committee make contact with the Arts Commission to get additional input for improving the livability of the Historic Downtown area. 

The meeting closed with the Chairman Fred Wichlep thanking the attendees for their time and input. There will be another public forum meeting planned before the September 1 groundbreaking with announcements posted on the web and advertised elsewhere.

Archives:

News 4/3/01;News 7/17/02;News 8/21/02;News 9/24/02