What Would You Change About Downtown Racine? City Wants To Know

RACINE, WI —The face of Downtown Racine has changed over the years, and city officials are inviting the public to several design meetings to help plan future designs for Monument Square, local traffic patterns and parking.

City officials will be hosting a series of public meetings, workshops, open design studios – all leading to final recommendations for what to do next. For example: residents with concerns over traffic patterns at Main and State Streets, or those who hate those sidewalk bump-outs, residents who can't stand those parking meters, or members of the public who wish Monument Square had more greenspace, power outlets or a permanent performing arts stage are all welcome to share their ideas.

Of course, those are just a few examples of suggestions Patch has heard over the years from members of the community.

Meetings will be held the week of July 8-12 and again the week of July 29-August 2. All meetings will be held at The Johnson Bank building so that the workshops are proximate to Monument Square, Main Street, and downtown parking facilities.

“I am excited about the opportunity for the public to participate in these workshops. Our historic downtown is a part of Racine’s DNA. We all have some connection to the downtown and feel invested in its success, so it is important to me that we make sure that the community is an active participant in visioning its future,” said Mayor Cory Mason in a prepared statement.

The events are part of a larger, open and collaborative community engagement process led by Toole Design (tooledesign.com) and Walker Consultants (walkerconsultants.com), both nationally recognized design firms. The project team includes notable engineer Ian Lockwood, a nationally recognized leader in sustainable transportation policy and urban design and Harvard Loeb Fellow, and Raj Mohabeer, a landscape architect with expertise in transportation solutions.

Monday, July 8 7:00-8:30PM

WORKSHOP: VALUES & ISSUES CONVERSATION

Everyone’s invited to this workshop to identify both top Downtown values and major issues.

Tuesday, July 9 4:00 -6:00PM

INTERACTIVE DESIGN SESSION #1

Pop in to help steer the design of streets, the Monument Square, and the parking system with the designers and planners.

Thursday, July 11 7:00-8:30PM

PRESENTATION: PROJECT UNDERSTANDING & VALIDATION

You won’t want to miss making sure your voice was heard and the consultants have a clear project understanding.

Tuesday, July 30 4:00-6:00PM

INTERACTIVE DESIGN SESSION #2

City officials say they need your contribution to the design conversation related to downtown.

Thursday, August 1 7:00-8:30PM

PRESENTATION: FINAL PROJECT DESIGNS & OUTCOMES

This is the final presentation of ideas and designs for streets, Monument Square, and the parking system.