Seeking inspiration

Officials look to FAU students for ideas to upgrade complex

LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA — When it comes to redevelopment, town officials believe in giving it the old college try.

Five years ago, they tapped University of Miami students to help create a new vision for Commercial Boulevard. Now they’re teaming with Florida Atlantic University’s school of architecture for fresh ideas about redeveloping the governmental complex.

The property on Ocean Drive, a few blocks north of Commercial Boulevard, includes Jarvis Hall, the municipal services garage, the development services offices, the fire department and public safety building.

Possibilities for the overhaul include more public parking, adding commercial uses to the site or tying nearby Friedt Family Park into the overall plans. Also up for discussion: potential building designs and howbest to connect to the town’s midcentury modern architectural theme.

Town officials aren’t sure how many years it will be before a transformation takes place, but they’re counting on the students for inspiration.

The FAU graduate students will be on hand Thursday for a public workshop on the future of Town Hall and surrounding government buildings, giving residents and business owners a chance to share their ideas about what to dowith the site.

The design workshop is from 6 to 9 p.m. at Jarvis Hall, 4505 N. Ocean Drive, next to TownHall.

“I don’t expect to get a plan that we say, ‘We’re ready to build this plan.’ That’s not the intent,” said Linda Connors, the town’s development services director. “We’ll get the creative juices flowing so that we visualize some creative ways to use property thatwe never thought of.”

The FAUcontract is for $17,535, Connors said.

During this year’s town elections, Mayor Scot Sasser said one of his priorities was to have a clear plan in place for the complex— not the actual construction — before he leaves office. ViceMayor ChrisVincent said construction could be five to 10 years down the road.

Any design ideaswill have to be followed by a long-term financial strategy to get the work done, but Sasser said he hopes the site’s redevelopment “becomes part of our DNA that this is somethingwe are going to do.”

For additional information, call the Development Services Department at 954-640-4210. can the