High hopes for streetscape
DANBURY — New sidewalks, planters and freshly planted trees now line some of the city’s downtown streets.
It’s that $1.9 million investment that city leaders hope will breathe life into a downtown they say has the potential to become a destination for business, housing, transportation and entertainment.
“It shows the city’s commitment to its downtown by continuing to invest in its infrastructure and creating comfortable places for people to congregate and for events to happen,” said Sharon Calitro, the city’s planner.
Construction started in the spring to redo the Danbury Green and install streetscape on Delay Street, National Place, Railroad Place, Ives Street, and parts of White Street and Post Office Walk. A second phase and “river walk” along the Still River are being designed.
Work on the first phase is substantially complete, although supply chain challenges have delayed the arrival of banner poles and parking kiosks, despite being ordered “months and months ago,” Calitro said. She hopes they’ll arrive and be installed in the first quarter of the new year. The planters were delayed too, but are now installed.
“It looks awesome,” Danbury Mayor Dean Esposito said. “It was a total success of what we were trying to do down there.”
Phase one and two are roughly $12 million, paid for through a grant and a $62 million borrowing package that City Council
approved in spring 2020.
What this means for downtown
The project is meant to make downtown more “walkable,” Calitro said. The sidewalks hadn’t been upgraded since the 1990s and were in poor shape.
The idea is that businesses will see the city cares about its downtown and want to invest there, too, she said.
The Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce moved to the Danbury Green before phase one started to show its support for the project. It was a good choice, said P.J. Prunty, president and CEO.
“The chamber is completely overwhelmed with how beautiful it looks,” he said.
The Ives Street area used to be the entertainment and dining district and hopefully will become that hub again thanks to the project, he said.
“It’s heading in the right direction,” Prunty said.
In fact, one new restaurant — Los Rivera Cafe — has already opened at 1 Ives St., serving traditional Mexican food. Owner Diana Rivera said she moved to that spot because she already knew the landlord. The new sidewalks are an added bonus.
“That’s going to help the business and attract people in the summer,” she said.
Savings Bank of Danbury plans to open a four-story office building at the corner of Main and White streets that officials pitched as a “gateway” to downtown.
Esposito said he’s talking to downtown property owners about additional projects.
“We’re really on the verge of making new investments down there,” he said.
The city still plans to purchase the First Congregational Church of Danbury on Deer Hill Avenue and turn it into an entertainment venue. That deal has been held up due to COVID. The Palace Danbury theater will also play a role in live entertainment, Esposito said.
“I’m hoping to see a lot of new types of businesses roll into the city, to have more people on the streets, utilizing our stores and our restaurants,” Esposito said.
The project comes as the city and the world drudges through the coronavirus pandemic. The hope is that this project could be part of that recovery.
“We know in light of everything going on, just the ability to be outside is important to people,” Calitro said.
About 10 to 12 different species of trees were planted with barriers so that the roots will grow downward, rather upward, ruining the new sidewalks, she said.
The city picked different species of trees in case a disease or virus killed off one type. Officials looked for trees that would be “tolerant” to the snow and plows in an urban environment, Calitro said. They
considered the flowers and colors.
“We looked at what it’s going to look like in the spring, what it’s going to look like in the fall,” Calitro said.
Large trees on the Danbury Green were protected. Improvements to the Green will allow more activities to be held. With more hardscape, there will be “more surface to set up on” for events, Calitro said.
There’s a “great lawn” in front of the stage, while the pathway has been moved so pedestrians will no longer block the view of the stage, she said. It’s a “nice space” for pedestrians to walk from the nearby parking garage to businesses and shops.
Next steps
The city is designing the project’s second phase, which will take streetscape down both sides of part of Main Street, as well as Patriot Drive, Independence Way, Liberty Street and Kennedy Park . The streetscape will look similar to the first phase, Calitro said.
Officials are also designing a “river walk” along the Still River. Sidewalk from White to Crosby streets along Lee Hartell Drive would be widened to 15 to 18 feet, she said.
This would create a “more pleasing walk” and link residents at Kennedy Flats and the apartments under construction at the old News-Times building to the Green, Calitro said.
“Right now it's just a five-foot sidewalk and a lot of unused grass,” she said. “Our intent was to minimize the grass area and provide a wider sidewalk that could be used for various things.”
That could include events and art, she said. The Still River is about 12 feet below grade, so “access to the river is probably limited,” she said.
“But you can still see the water, hear the water,” Calitro said.
That project will cost roughly a half million dollars and will also be paid for through the $62 million borrowing package.
Calitro hopes both projects could start construction sometime in the new year.
But the second phase of the streetscape requires Connecticut Department of Transportation approval because Main Street is a state road and the project is being paid for through a state grant, she said. The river walk doesn’t require state approval.
Calitro said city officials plan to get the design to the state in the new year, but she isn’t sure how long it’ll take for the project to be approved. The city would bid out the second phase afterward.
She expects there will be “lane modifications” once construction begins. Work will be broken up into areas of the street.
“We want to minimize disruption as much as we can,” Calitro said.
Meanwhile, officials are conducting a study to try to create a faster train from Danbury to New York City. That project would take several years to come to fruition, but initial findings suggest reopening the old Union Station on White Street.
“That’s a huge asset to the downtown,” Esposito said.
Danbury envisions creating a transportation hub around the train station and moving the bus station closer to the train.
“We’re preparing for a lot more activity,” Calitro said. “The fact that the train would come there means there’s more people out on the street and you want them in a safe, updated pedestrian environment that entices people to be there and ... provides opportunities to activate the street.”
Prunty said he hopes to see more residential development to spur other investments.
“That we believe is going to be a huge catalyst toward continuing to see smaller, private envelopment come in, like the restaurants, like the shops, like the entertainment destinations,” he said.