By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
Efforts continue to spruce up Waterford’s downtown district in the aftermath of a Main Street Program grant awarded to the village last fall.
Members of the village Plan Commission met last month with organizers of Absolutely Waterford, a non-profit group spearheading the effort to redevelop the downtown area.
The crux of Absolutely Waterford’s efforts have centered on façade improvements to the historic section of the community.
Most discussion at last month’s meeting focused on the actual implementation of an Absolutely Waterford Design Committee to be charged with reviewing façade improvement applications.
Like all committees within the purview of the Village Board, the full scope of the design group’s responsibilities will have to be incorporated into Village Code.
Officials said it would be prudent to include a cross-section of professionals on the committee, including realtors, architects and representatives within the financial industry.
“We have to actually set this committee up so it has a place within our ordinances,” said Village Attorney Marcia Hasenstab. “The committee won’t exist until it’s created by ordinance. Statutorily, terms will have to be set for the members on the committee.”
Before the façade improvement program gets under way, a set of procedures also needs to be put into place. In some instances, applicants might be required to come before other appointed bodies besides the Absolutely Waterford Design Committee. The Building Board and Plan Commission are among those possibilities.
For instance, “if somebody only wants to change the color of their building, and they meet all of the guidelines, would they need to go to the Plan Commission?” Hasenstab said.
Village officials are in the process of creating a draft ordinance, and Hasenstab has been directed to review how other municipalities have governed similar issues pertaining to downtown historic districts.
Creation of the Absolutely Waterford Design Committee will require a public hearing at an upcoming Village Board meeting. Plans call for having a full policy and ordinance for the committee in place by late May.
Tina Chitwood, the executive director of Absolutely Waterford, said there has been an eagerness to get the initiative up and running. A resource packet is being created for all businesses within the downtown area, which is formally designated as the Heritage Overlay District.
“Absolutely Waterford is absolutely ready to market this,” Chitwood said.
The Wisconsin Department of Commerce awarded the Main Street Program grant to the village last year. The effort is expected to pump $125,000 worth of resources into the revitalization efforts within the do
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Unless this is a loan to those businesses, then the idea is totally offbase and once again burdens the taxpayers. The big problem is 1/2 of the downtown needs to be set back 1/2 to 1 block to reduce traffic congestion at 20 and main. Sad to say but historic is going to have to go because of the river and total lack of proper planning decades ago. Building that new library in is current location was a very bad idea. Rochester is acting no better. They should be putting their city hall next the fire station where they already own a nice big flat parcel of land. Instead they want to build in a valley and have parking on a hill all because they think city hall has to be downtown.