Augusta Downtown Street Redesign Wins MAP 2020 Project of the Year
The 2020 Project of the Year is awarded to the Augusta Downtown Street Redesign. This project converts an historically important small city corridor from one-way to two-way traffic flows as a strategy for improving access and returning this area to former economic prosperity. Small cities across Maine and the US are facing similar challenges of adapting central business districts to the era of cars and SUVs.
“Converting a major commercial corridor from one-way to two-way after 70+ years in order to enhance vibrancy, and create a familiar, comfortable, human focused environment for pedestrians and residents is creative and innovative. Joined with a complete reconstruction and redesign of the adjacent leg of the one-way couplet created a more complete project that makes the downtown feel like a- downtown, not a thoroughfare.” (Nomination Document)
The process for achieving the downtown redesign is a model for other communities. The planning team worked simultaneously on several fronts. They coordinated public outreach, professional engineering studies and landscape design to create a solution that worked technically, aesthetically and politically.
Partners in the Augusta Downtown Street Redesign include:
- City of Augusta Development Services, Public Works and City Manager’s Office
- Maine Traffic Resources - Completed a detailed feasibility analysis
- Desman Design Management - Completed a Downtown Parking Study
More information on the Augusta Downtown is available online at: augustadowntown.com/.