Hayden looks to the future

HAYDEN - The Hayden Urban Renewal Agency and city of Hayden are hosting an open house tonight to gather public input about redevelopment plans for the city's central business district.

The open house runs from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at City Hall.

Colorado-based urban design firm Winter and Co. was hired to create a plan to assist the redevelopment.

At tonight's meeting, the preliminary design concepts will be presented, along with case studies of peer communities, an economics white paper and a design framework map.

"We have been working on this since fall of 2014," said Connie Krueger, the city's community and economic development director.

She said a Hayden-specific economic study will also be reviewed. The study looks at what types of economic activity are most likely to occur downtown in the future.

"We will also be reviewing different approaches as to how to break the downtown up so that instead of one long, linear strip along Government Way, we are able to establish focused areas with a mix of uses - such as residential, retail and restaurant, mixed-use commercial and retail-office space," Krueger said.

Bicycle and pedestrian connectivity to and from downtown will be discussed, too, she said.

"This meeting will also be used to focus on where a community center might be located, along with an event area for community festivals and the like," she said. "There will also be a discussion on those properties and projects where the Hayden Urban Renewal Agency should focus future public dollars."

Pizza and refreshments will be provided.