Some People Who Live in the Vicinity of Central Park in Petersburg VA: Downtown Petersburg, Inc. Sponsors Public Meeting

Please see announcement below regarding the next meeting focused on gathering your input.

Please feel free to respond to us with feedback, as representatives of our neighborhood. HPLA will have someone there to represent Poplar Lawn.

Also, please post thoughts on the project in the comments section.

~Mady

For Immediate Release

Downtown Petersburg, Inc. Sponsors Public Meeting: Countdown to the Downtown Harbor Initiative

Petersburg, VA - June 20 - Downtown Petersburg Incorporated and the Downtown Harbor Initiative steering committee will sponsor a town hall meeting, Tuesday, June 27, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., to offer details of the organization's efforts as the November initiative approaches. DPI has been active for approximately one year pursuing this initiative, which seeks to create a working master plan for the downtown area of Petersburg with special emphasis on the harbor.

Mayor AnnIe Mickens will welcome attendees for what will be the first meeting focused on gathering citizen input through a town hall type of discussion. The meeting will be held on the main floor of the Petersburg Regional Art Center, 132 N. Sycamore Street, in Petersburg. This meeting is open to the public and citizens of Petersburg and surrounding communities are invited to attend.

At the meeting, DPI Steering Committee members will provide a schedule of upcoming initiative efforts as its November planning session approaches. Committee chairpersons will also be on hand seeking volunteers from the public to assist the organization moving forward. Following the presentation, the steering committee will host a public discussion regarding the project during which citizens will be invited to voice their ideas, comments and concerns as they relate to the Harbor area and Petersburg's Downtown. Nearly 300 citizens attended the January meeting held by DPI, and support for the initiative remains robust.

Terry Ammons, Executive Director of the Downtown Harbor Initiative, believes it is crucial that Petersburg's citizens have a voice in city planning, specifically Petersburg's downtown. "The Harbor project will be the most important downtown project we will undertake in the next decade," he says. "We need to be ready and we need to present a shared vision for its development as a key to Petersburg's future."

The Downtown Harbor Initiative was established to spearhead a public planning process addressing the Harbor and Downtown areas of Petersburg, Virginia. The process, known as a R/UDAT (Regional Urban Design Assistance Team) program, has been implemented with great success in more than 100 towns and communities across the country. Originally developed and managed by the American Institute of Architects, the process has been successful developing effective and inclusive public planning processes since 1967. The Downtown Harbor Initiative steering committee was formed to begin working with the AIA to create a public process that will help define and propel the Downtown Harbor Initiative.

Refreshments will be served, and the organizers encourage citizens to share their ideas and thoughts at the open meeting. For more information contact Terry Ammons, Co-Chairman of the Downtown Harbor Initiative, at 722-1667 or go to our website at www.petersburgharbor.org for additional information. To be put on the mailing list, please send your contact information to: petersburgharbor@aol.com