Downtown food truck plaza coming to Waupun with help from WEDC grant

Brandon Reid, Fond du Lac Reporter
·2 min read
Conceptual view of the downtown food truck plaza in Waupun, Wisconsin.
Conceptual view of the downtown food truck plaza in Waupun, Wisconsin.

WAUPUN – Waupun will use a $45,000 Vibrant Spaces grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation to create a food truck plaza in an underused space on East Main Street downtown.

A news release said the plaza will be a dedicated space for four food trucks and outdoor dining and will increase foot traffic to local businesses.

Work done in 2019 to create the city’s streetscape plan provided the needed information for the grant application, WEDC said. Community feedback during that process found there was a lack of public space to gather in the downtown and the plan envisioned activating city-owned green space in the 400 block of East Main Street for that purpose.

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Kathy Schlieve, city administrator and director of economic development, said in the news release: “The City of Waupun has invested in building physical assets such as bike trails, an aquatic center and ball diamonds to strengthen quality of life. Those things matter, but are only possible if we have a vibrant economy.

“Today, there is noticeable investment happening by businesses across the community as the private and public sectors collaborate on these types of improvements with the long-term goal of attracting residents and visitors alike to Waupun,”  Schlieve continued. “This award helps us continue to move forward together and we thank WEDC for their support of our vision.”

FILE - A look at downtown Waupun's Main Street in 2015.
FILE - A look at downtown Waupun's Main Street in 2015.

The Vibrant Spaces Grant program is designed to help cities and towns revitalize underused spaces to build community and attract future residents. Through the grant program, communities across the state invest in their workforce attraction and small business development by creating inviting, walkable spaces in their downtowns, arterial districts and economic centers.

The Vibrant Spaces Grant program is an initiative within WEDC’s Community Development and Investment grant program. Projects were evaluated based on their ability to create visible and pedestrian-oriented public spaces that attract and accommodate multiple users and activities. Successful projects demonstrated they would benefit the local district, nearby businesses and the community as a whole, the news release said. Communities were required to match grant funds and begin construction this summer.

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Contact Brandon Reid at 920-686-2984 or breid@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @breidHTRNews.

This article originally appeared on Fond du Lac Reporter: Waupun downtown food truck plaza gets boost from WEDC grant