A volunteer group is working this week to remove brick planters from the Vieux Marche in an effort to spruce up the area and provide a clear line of sight through the heart of the downtown area.
Seven of the nine planters, which range from three to four feet tall and six feet wide and six feet long, are being removed and will be replaced with ground-level landscaping.
“We’re trying to remove these planters because many of them are broken from where cars have hit them, and quite frankly, we feel as they are remnants of the ’70s urban renewal project and block the sight line through that area,” said Kay Carter, a city employee who also serves as director of Main Street, the downtown merchants group. “We’re sprucing up the area. We have increased traffic in there because of new businesses, and we may even want to have some street parties in there in conjunction with the baseball stadium just a block or two away.”
The brick planters are being removed by Women in Construction, a training program based at Moore Community House. The city’s Parks and Recreation Department is also assisting in the endeavor.
Said Miller: “They’re working for three days this week, and may be back next week. We’re sort of in uncharted waters. We know that we’re not removing two of the planters – a huge one in memory of Leo Crapo, a former downtown business leader, we’re also not removing a nearby one that has underground water connections. Other than that, we’re doing what we can do spruce up the area as we go along.”
See a gallery of photos on the city Facebook page
News and notes
Council meetings: Councilmembers will follow up their 1:30 meeting this afternoon with a budget meeting immediately afterward. To see the agendas for the meetings, click here.
Traffic update: To see the status of street work underway throughout the city, as well as the weekly police radar schedule, click here.
