The Journal
HARRINGTON — Changes coming to downtown Harrington
An effort to improve the look of the city’s downtown and encourage new business to locate there is gaining momentum.
The City of Harrington’s Downtown Revitalization Committee formed three years ago and recently partnered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Main Street program.
The city’s ultimate goal is to become a Main Street City — but it has much work to do along the way. There are currently 1,800 Main Street Cities and towns nationwide.
The national initiative began in the late 1970s to help towns save their downtown areas.
The program helps cities organize their revitalization efforts by providing training, support and access to funding sources.
The DRC recently helped the city obtain $300,000 to improve the look of downtown; and led the city in approving a tax incentive program so downtown business owners can improve their buildings.
Businesses in the downtown corridor, Del. 14 from U.S. 13 to western city limits, have access to tax incentives to improve their storefronts.
The program has four-phases — people and money, design, promotion and economic restructuring.
Harrington is currently in the middle of the first two phases.
On Nov. 12, the committee took the next step with its Main Street Partners.
Diane Laird, state coordinator and small business outreach specialist, with Rick Ferrell, principal of Retail market Answers, LLC. reported to the committee the results of an evaluation the duo made of the city’s downtown and addressed some of the groups goals.
"Buildings give you a sense that there is more here than actually is," Mr. Ferrell said.
In the first phase, Mr. Ferrell and Ms. Laird will help the city organize and recruit people and guide the city in its fundraising efforts.
Mr. Ferrell’s background is in retail property development, he specifically has built malls in the northeast region of the country.
He now uses his experience in the private sector to help towns improve their business districts.
He will work with the city to develop a plan to retain and recruit businesses in the downtown corridor.
The committee also began the preliminary plans on the design phase of the downtown area.
Harrington City Engineer Scott Adkisson, showed the committee a draft of what downtown could look like.
The plan includes improving sidewalks in the area by adding accents with stamp decorated concrete. The designs would extend to the streets replacing plain painted crosswalks and large defined garden areas sweeping out from the sidewalk. The plan could potentially include benches, new street lighting and trash receptacles.
The city plans to begin at the corner of Clark and Commerce Streets and spread out along the corridor.
"This is just a preliminary plan," Mr. Adkisson said.
Mr. Adkisson will now go back and price out how much the proposed change will cost. The committee will then come up with a design plan to submit to City Council.
The committee will continue working at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 10 when they will walk the corridor with Mr. Ferrell and discuss ideas for the areas future.
