Downtown group feels study proposal is an insult

In a guest column published Dec. 30 about Galveston’s downtown redevelopment project, David Stanowski, co-founder of the Galveston Open Government Project, suggested that the city hire Gibbs Planning Group to do a complete urban retail study.

What a clever and cunning suggestion to this city council. Spend taxpayer funds to study a study!

This might be a first for Galveston. Most often, Galveston city councils “receive” a study and put it on a shelf or in a drawer somewhere in city hall to gather dust. In our previous experience both inside city hall and observing it for years, we’ve never heard of condemning a report to oblivion by hiring another professional to study a professional report already completed.

If this council wants to kill the Downtown Redevelopment project this is an effective delaying tactic and a unique way to do it. Then if the new study doesn’t please, there always will be more tax dollars to hire another professional to study that one, and further delay the redevelopment; all while existing businesses and residents lose out.

In case anyone has forgotten, the Historic Downtown Strand Seaport Partnership raised $280,000 from private foundations and an additional $80,000 from the County and $50,000 from the city. Both the city and county’s share came from community development block grant funding. This is not and never was intended to be merely an “urban plan.” It is a comprehensive look at Galveston’s downtown and the region, economically and in terms of retail opportunities.

Dr. Stephen Fuller conducted the Regional Economic Analysis. He is the Dwight Schar Faculty Chair and University Professor and director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University.

John Millar, who prepared the comprehensive retail analysis for downtown, is the executive vice president of Divaris Real Estate. When he was executive vice president of General Growth, he managed over 50 million square feet of retail.

Burrell Saunders was the consulting architect for the project. Saunders has emerged as one of the leading experts in planning and designing vibrant, livable, mixed-use communities.

Specializing in the creative assembly of a variety of spaces, Saunders understands that cooperation between civic leaders, residents, and investors is fundamental to the success of any comprehensive plan.

Saunders dedicates his energy to shaping public initiatives that will produce longterm benefits for communities. He takes on the role of adviser as well as designer through collaborations with developers and city management, helping to bring prosperous livelihoods to a community’s vision.

Saunders has planned and designed major town centers and over 50,000 acres of mixed-use properties that are transforming communities across the mid-Atlantic.

Recognized as an authority on the creation of town centers and New Urbanist principles, Saunders has conducted lectures and seminars for several organizations and community groups including the Urban Land Institute and the American Institute of Architects. He has published several articles in Urban Land, the monthly journal of Urban Land Institute, on the planning and design of several town center projects.

If there really are serious questions about any of the three parts of this redevelopment project, let’s ask the consultants who prepared them. That will save both time and money and show an earnest concern on the part of council to move Galveston forward.

This article was written by Joyce Calver, Barbara Crews, Craig Brown and Lesley Sommer, representing the Historic Downtown Strand Seaport Partnership.