What's needed to transform Downtown West? Lakeland is planning a second public meeting
LAKELAND — Lakeland residents are being asked for their input on what the future of Downtown West should look like and what obstacles will need to be overcome.
A public forum on the Downtown West Action Plan will be held July 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Lake Hollingsworth Room of the RP Funding Center by engineering firm GAI Community Solutions Group. The consultant was hired by the city in February 2022 to study the Downtown West area and suggest ideas to improve the housing, infrastructure and economic development of the area.
The Downtown West area runs from Florida Avenue west to around Lake Beulah, from Memorial Boulevard south to north of Lime Street. It's about 1,140 acres.
"The Lakeland CRA is committed to revitalizing and improving the overall quality of life in our three districts,” Valerie Ferrell, Lakeland's Community Redevelopment Agency manager, said in a statement. “The Downtown West Action Plan serves as a blueprint for turning the community's vision into tangible outcomes, guaranteeing that gradual measures are being implemented towards achieving long-term transformation."
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Key landmarks in the area include Bonnet Springs Park and the former Florida Tile site, where construction has begun on the Prospect Lake Wire apartment complex. It covers the North Lake Wire, Crescent Heights, Lake Bonnet, Lake Beulah and Westgate Center neighborhoods.
Blake Drury of GAI Consultants gave a brief presentation to the Lakeland CRA in January talking about the consultant's early impressions of Downtown West. Drury said it's easy to see how the railroad, Sikes Boulevard and Kathleen Road divided the city's western communities. Some of the biggest changes have included the dismantling of the Moorehead community, once located where the RP Funding Center is now, and the creation of the In-Town Bypass for U.S. 98.
“Public engagement and input in development of the Downtown West Vision is critical to GAI’s completion of the plan, and no less critical to the City’s implementation of the plan," Brian Rewis, Lakeland's director of the Community and Economic Development Department, said.
One previous public meeting was held at The Yard on Mass in mid-February. The timeframe for community input and feedback on this project is expected to end this summer.
Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on Twitter @SaraWalshFl.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Lakeland plans second public meeting on Downtown West's future in July
