Downtown Transit Oriented Development Plan for 'Bethel Forward' to be Presented

BETHEL, CT-- After more than a decade of planning, officials have drafted a master plan for a revitalized downtown.

Economic Development Director Janice Chrzescijanek recently announced that a public presentation of the Bethel Forward Draft Master Plan will take place on April 27, 2016 from 7 - 9 p.m. in the Municipal Center's General Purpose Room.

The consulting firm the Town hired, DPZ Partners, "a worldwide leader in the field of urban planning and design," the group said, has been selected to oversee the project and will present the plan on April 27. There will be an opportunity for public comment and questions after the presentation.

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Bethel Forward was formed to create a transit oriented design district that will encompass 130 acres of industrial property surrounding the the downtown train station. Last fall Bethel's Economic Development commission held a week-long series of workshops that allowed residents to voice their concerns and share ideas about the project.

Some of those ideas were:

• Enhance the pedestrian friendly qualities of Bethel by improving sidewalks throughout, adding bike lanes and paths, using the wetlands for exercise trails and recreation, and connecting different parts of downtown.
• Create a major “community gathering” place as well as distinctive smaller open spaces.
• Maintain and enhance Bethel’s character, streetscapes, and visual appearance.
• Add downtown housing.
• Attract and strengthen retail, restaurants, and other businesses by leveraging Bethel’s arts and events and marketing the town’s unique assets.
• Improve the flow of traffic and parking.
• Address infrastructure and regulatory issues.

A state grant of $100,000, combined with $150,000 from the Town's Affordable Housing Fund will finance the project.

According to the study and report from DPZ Partners, "the plan vision is to build on these assets to re-energize the village center as a distinctive healthy, vibrant, dynamic, pedestrian friendly community by adopting regulatory and procedural changes to incentivize redevelopment by allowing higher densities of housing within the newly designated TOD area – the area within about ¼ mile walking distance of the train station."

"Focusing on the restoration of existing historic buildings in the heart of the downtown to enhance community character, while incorporating new, complimentary multi-level, mixed-use buildings, so that the downtown will include an eclectic mix of shops, offices, restaurants, and entertainment; Creating new cultural and social opportunities and building unique public and recreational spaces; Making the necessary infrastructure improvements to our roads, sidewalks, streetscape and downtown parking to provide connections and create a more pedestrian/bike friendly environment to accommodate such growth; and providing marketing assistance and financial tools to support and foster existing business growth and drive new business start-ups."

To read the full master plan, click here.