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Charm goes a long way

Sunday, September 24, 2017
Julian Emerson | Leader-Telegram

Altoona adds waterway to River Prairie development
Altoona hopes to draw millennials

ALTOONA - A man-made waterway traversing River Prairie's public space is the most recent sign of the importance of creating attractive amenities to spur continued development. 

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The new waterway, which resembles a creek, was up and running Friday. Much of the waters were bordered by stone banks, while in other portions small sand beaches formed its edges. 

The waterway - churning in parts and flowing calmly in others - winds past newly seeded green space, trees, pavilions and then a community center. 

It is bordered in places by landscaped spots populated by a variety of plantings.

 A playground lies along its banks, and small pedestrian bridges and logs cross it.

"It really is a defining feature of this park," Altoona city Administrator Mike Golat said Friday morning shortly before helping workers ready the location to host a kickoff event for the "Fireball Run" TV show that started its 11th season on Saturday in downtown Eau Claire. "We think this river adds a distinctive feel to this location."

The waterway is not connected to the nearby Eau Claire River but instead has its own sanitized water source that is circulated by a pump. The system has a filtration system to ensure it remains clean. 

The "river," as Golat calls it, is the most recent addition to River Prairie's public space, a necessary part of that development, he said. He hopes that feature serves to highlight a location that also will boast of an amphitheater designed to accommodate as many as 4,000, another more central performance site designed for about 2,000, a couple of smaller performance sites, sculptures and other amenities.  

"This water is another attractive piece to what we're doing at this site," said Golat, Altoona city administrator since 2006.  

The new waterway adds to the attractive nature of River Prairie's public space, he said. Making that location attractive makes it the kind of site where people want to put on weddings, outdoor fitness classes, craft fairs, farmers markets and music and theater performances, Golat said. Work on the River Prairie public space is scheduled for completion later this fall.

"People want to attend events at places that are scenic, that offer a sense of beauty," he said, "and that's what we're trying to create here."

Public space important

That development approach - including attractive spaces and venues among more traditional development - isn't just an attempt to add flair, Golat said. 

Instead, making public spaces a part of such development is a necessity in today's world, he said. 

Nowadays, development involves more than simply making spaces building ready and hoping companies locate there, Golat said. 

It's about creating spaces that will attract people, locations that include scenic vistas, green space, attractive plantings and spots that can host artistic performances or public art.

"That is really the name of the game," Golat said of creating scenic public spaces with such amenities as trees, shrubs and flowers, paths interspersing those sites pavilions and other attractions. "That is the new reality of economic development. You have to create quality of place, not just flat green space with infrastructure."

Such development includes risk. Paying for improvements to make sites not only buildable but attractive requires costs that add to the price tag of tax increment financing developments like River Prairie, in which taxpayer money is invested in the hope that such investments will pay off in the form of additional future tax collections on new buildings. 

But that approach is necessary, Golat said, to finance attractive public spaces necessary to attract not only people but businesses to those sites. 

"Millennials are choosing where they work rather than who they work for now," Golat said, noting technology advances allow many people to work remotely. "That means we have to create the kinds of amenities that add to quality of life if we want to attract them."

Such a development approach has proven successful in Eau Claire, where public investment in making Phoenix Park an attractive site set the stage for a downtown revitalization that is prompting attention across the U.S. The park hosts numerous gatherings throughout the year, from summertime music concerts to a thriving farmers market.

Eau Claire economic development administrator Mike Schatz said investments in Phoenix Park, made possible by a downtown TIF, helped kickstart the downtown renaissance since. Plans call for including that public space concept in the Confluence Plaza and the Cannery District.

"Public spaces have proven to help create civic identity, character, culture and attachment," Schatz said, noting sometimes people find good uses for public spaces beyond their original intent.

'Life better'

One new building after another has sprung up in River Prairie during the past couple of years as Altoona adds a new identity to its railroad past. The development on Altoona's northwest corner along U.S. 53 continues to build out rapidly and is home to such businesses as Oakleaf Surgical Hospital, Chippewa Valley Orthopedics & Sports Medicine, Woodman's Market, Staybridge Suites, Cowboy Jack's restaurant and others. Several new buildings are currently under construction, and plans call for more.

That construction helps ensure the River Prairie TIF will one day recoup its public investment, Golat said. Besides spurring that kind of construction, there is another benefit to including quality public space in the development, Golat said. 

"This is our one opportunity to create something amazing for the people of the Chippewa Valley," he said. "We want this to make life better for people here."

Contact: 715-830-5911, julian.emerson@ecpc.com

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