Slides from the Macon Action Plan Open House

1. OPEN HOUSE
GEORGIA SPORTS HALL OF FAME

2. WELCOME TO THE MACON ACTION PLAN OPEN HOUSE!
We need your observations and ideas for how to improve the heart of Macon

4. THE “URBAN CORE” IS DEFINED BY DOWNTOWN AND SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOODS… FROM I-75 TO 7TH STREET, LITTLE RICHARD PENNIMAN BLVD TO EMERY HIGHWAY

5. WHILE THE URBAN CORE IS OUR FOCUS, WE ARE KEENLY INTERESTED IN WHAT HAPPENS IN THE TRADITIONAL DOWNTOWN CORE – ROUGHLY FROM PINE TO WALNUT, 5TH TO NEW STREETS.

6. WE’VE BEEN AT WORK SINCE THE SPRING, COLLECTING DATA AND REACHING OUT TO RESIDENTS, BUSINESS OWNERS, EMPLOYEES AND LOCAL LEADERS.

7. MaconActionPlan.com & Online Collaborative Map LAUNCHED
WE LAUNCHED THE MACONACTIONPLAN.COM WEBSITE IN JUNE AND SET UP A FACEBOOK PAGE, INSTAGRAM AND TWITTER ACCOUNTS

8. Second Sunday Concert Series
WE’VE ALSO BEEN AT EVENTS TO ASK YOU ABOUT YOUR BIG IDEAS – WE’VE LEARNED A LOT ALREADY

9. now is a chance to share with you some of what we learned
Let’s start with a brief story about Macon’s urban core…

10. Macon grew from its location next to the river and a lot of rail lines
This map is from 1889. For reference, here is Cotton Avenue.

11. MACON WAS A BOOM TOWN

12. walkable, with a mix of uses…
essential to daily life

13. this brought entertainment – downtown was THE center

16. The legacy of what was built lives on today.

17. Few cities can rival this. And yes, we care about other cities because all cities compete for jobs and talented workers

18. unfortunately, like many cities, folks started moving out in the mid to late 1900s
the suburbs were too easy, attractive and inexpensive to pass up for many. the loss of people meant…

19. …the loss of businesses

20. “MACON HAS NO KILLER LOFT OFFICE SPACE.”
with all that loss of residents and businesses, there’s just a lot of space to fill…

21. And not just in downtown Macon but surrounding neighborhoods…
These neighborhoods have very high poverty rates and low incomes

22. A LOT of space to fill, but also the need to address deteriorating streets

23. so how much space? based on a survey of all properties, vacant land and buildings totals 328 acres

24. just the empty land equals:

25. Macon struggles with this every day. How do we activate our streets, ones that were once filled with people willing to shop at local stores…and work / live downtown or nearby?

26. so what can be done?
luckily, Macon already has a track record of overcoming some tough challenges

27. the work completed as a part of the College hill initiative shows that not only can Macon take on tough challenges, but that it can also raise the expectations of what can be done here…

28. NEW MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT
NEW HOUSING
NEW ARTS SPACE
CEMETERY MASTER PLAN
In just a few short years, College Hill resulted in new development, neighborhood housing, arts space, improved parks and safer streets
NEW PARKS

29. “HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION WITH THE NEW HOUSING GOING IN. WE NEED PEOPLE WHO DON’T LEAVE WITH THE SUN.”
Good things aren’t just happening in College Hill. Downtown is also experiencing a boost in activity. New lofts are transforming downtown into a more lively place. People we’ve talked with express genuine hope that things are indeed really improving.

30. there’s certainly more of a night life

31. In fact, there are recent and proposed projects across the area – this is real progress!

32. The problem remains - one store or restaurant opens…another around the corner closes

33. it kind of feels like this. how do we get that rock to the top of the hill so it has its own momentum?

34. so what’s holding us back? it’s important to understand what the challenges are so we can work to overcome them
here are a few of those challenges…

35. SCALE
1.
the urban core and downtown is a large area with very different conditions from one neighborhood to the next

36. the urban core and downtown is a large area with very different conditions from one neighborhood to the next

37. This map summarizes the key uses in the area. We have a bit of everything here which means sometimes there are conflicts

38. for instance, industrial uses need materials and truck access so we have this condition on MLK

39. But there is also a wide range of housing conditions in the area

40. from mansions…

41. …to blight…

42. …and everything in between. it means each neighborhood needs its own playbook for how to improve

43. POPULATION &
2.
it took a long time for residents and businesses to leave the urban core, it will take some time to recover
JOB LOSS

44. DID YOU KNOW? the urban core finally saw a population increase between 2000 & 2010?
this chart shows nearly 50 years of population loss

45. but we need to grow a lot more. why?
>> MORE PEOPLE MEANS WE CAN SUPPORT MORE RETAIL
>> MORE DEVELOPMENT PROVIDES MONEY TO IMPROVE OUR STREETS AND PUBLIC SPACES
>> WE WANT PEOPLE TO BE CONFIDENT THAT MACON IS MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION – CONFIDENT ENOUGH TO INVEST HERE

46. Many have said they’d like more services downtown – services like:
>> breakfast / lunch places are open on the weekends
>> multiple mini-markets
>> CVS / Walgreens urban format model (includes fresh food)
>> neighborhood restaurants with neighborhood price points
>> dry cleaners / laundries spread throughout and open on weekends
>> public space for residents and visitors
so how do we get these things? we need more people. downtowns around the country demonstrate that with about 12,000 people living downtown, these services are possible.

47. today we have almost 9,000 people in the urban core, only a fraction of which live downtown

48. but as we said, there are new lofts and new housing in and near downtown. the question is, how many could be built and successfully sold / rented?

49. Rental & For-Sale Lofts/Apartments
For-Sale Townhouses/Live-Work
For-Sale Urban Houses
according to our economist, the urban core could support approximately 1,100 new housing units over the next 5 years. Units like:
sounds like a lot right?

50. Here’s the challenge: even if we could create 1,100 new homes, this development would occupy less than 15% of empty land in the area –
WE NEED TO BE STRATEGIC IN WHERE WE BUILD NEW HOUSING

51. EVEN WITH 1,100 UNITS OVER THE NEXT 5 YEARS, THE URBAN CORE WILL HAVE ABOUT 11,000 RESIDENTS…IN AN AREA ABOUT TWICE AS BIG AS OTHER DOWNTOWNS – WE ALSO NEED TO FOCUS ON BUSINESS ATTRACTION AND JOB CREATION

52. DID YOU KNOW?: THERE ARE 24,990 EMPLOYEES IN THE URBAN CORE
THIS AMOUNTS TO ALMOST HALF OF THE CITY’S JOBS AND OVER A QUARTER OF THE JOBS IN THE REGION
Source: Claritas

53. MORE THAN HALF OF THE JOBS IN THE URBAN CORE ARE HEALTH CARE RELATED:
Source: Claritas, LEHD
>> 52% healthcare & social assistance
>> 13% public administration
>> 8% educational services
>> 6% professional, scientific & technical services
*rest of sectors are less than 3% each
The urban core generates
$3,470 per acre in tax revenue
(this is nearly 5 times the rest of the city-county)

54. despite all of the jobs downtown, we’re not spending much money there. the ( ) means there is TOO MUCH retail for what we spend
It’s these numbers that scare off potential retailers from opening here

55. but we know that some retail, restaurants, etc can, and have been successful here. it’s about a creative idea finding the right location and space

56. PUBLIC SPACE
3.
safe streets, attractive parks and programming are key ingredients to improving the quality of life for existing residents and in attracting new talent to Macon

57. “IT’S A PERCEPTION ISSUE, PEOPLE FEEL LIKE IT’S NOT SAFE… IF PERCEPTION IS IT’S DANGEROUS, PEOPLE WILL BELIEVE THAT REGARDLESS OF STATS.”
Unfortunately, there are some negative perceptions about downtown crime
DID YOU KNOW?: total crime has dropped in the urban core by 20% since 2011

58. on the flip side, there is a wonderful riverfront trail that is helping to reconnect the city with its river

59. It’s a growing network of trails (shown in yellow) that Macon should be proud of

60. Better visibility and better connections with the river is important for the future of the urban core
But be careful, if you’re not paying attention, you might miss the locations where you can access the trail

61. Open space analysis
DID YOU KNOW?:

62. These medians are harder to program than parks or plazas

63. FOR INSTANCE, WHERE CAN THIS HAPPEN ON A DAILY BASIS?

64. OR THIS?

65. up the hill we have washington square – wonderful for 2nd Sundays
for downtown to thrive, it too needs this kind of space that can be regularly programmed with events that bring people together

66. Open space analysis
But if you look at who has access to public parks (yellow), there are areas like East Macon and parts of Beall’s Hill and Pleasant Hill that do not have enough park space

67. And those neighborhoods have a lot of kids – they make up more than 40% of the residents

68. TRANSPORTATION &
CONNECTIVITY
4.
how we design our streets and how we get around matters…a lot.

69. THE MAJORITY OF COMMUTERS LIVE WITHIN 10 MILES OF THE URBAN CORE
(each dot represents a commuter)

70. BUT 85% of those commuters DRIVE ALONE

71. “LOTS OF PEOPLE STAY ACROSS THE RIVER AT THE MARRIOTT. MANY PEOPLE’S FIRST IMPRESSION IS NOT A GOOD ONE.”
and whether you are a commuter or visitor, are we sending the right messages when you enter the urban core? here is what it looks like to enter downtown from one location

74. almost there…

75. welcome to downtown

76. even beyond the gateways to downtown, there are too many barriers between major amenities. Just like with the river, we need better connectivity between downtown, surrounding neighborhoods and major assets

77. PARKING!
5.
“every city believes it has a parking problem”

78. “THE PARKING SITUATION IS THE MOST FRUSTRATING ASPECT OF LIVING DOWNTOWN.”

79. “IF PARKING WAS A BLOCK AWAY, IT WOULD BE A PROBLEM.”
We’re not sure parking lots are enhancing the historic district

80. DID YOU KNOW?:

81. DID YOU KNOW?:
“peak” is around noon – there is plenty of parking supply downtown. it just needs more management

82. DID YOU KNOW?:
So what does this mean? There is not enough turnover with on-street parking – i.e., many park for a long time in spaces that should be for 2 hours. This is why you can’t find an on- street space on certain blocks downtown

83. INACTIVE
6.
what’s an “inactive street” – a street that’s not comfortable to walk along. These streets have blank walls, fences, empty storefronts and parking
STREETS

85. “THE WHOLE WORLD OF RETAIL WAS DOWNTOWN – A GENERATION GREW UP WITH THAT. BUT THEN THE MACON MALL OPENED, AND WE ARE STILL HOLDING A GRUDGE.”

86. “DOWNTOWN IS PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY, BUT MANY RETAIL SPACES ARE DARK. THAT’S A DETERRENT.”
“IF IT ALL BECOMES LOFTS IN GROUND FLOOR (WITHOUT RETAIL SPACE), IT’S GOING TO CHANGE THE VIBE.”

87. We have 163 empty storefronts, that’s almost half of the total downtown

88. What does this mean? Between parking lots / ramps and empty storefronts, almost half of downtown is inactive (red) – this is why it often feels unsafe to walk around

89. so what do you think? this initiative is so important to make sure we coordinate our actions to transform the urban core.

90. We know you love Macon, now help us improve downtown and surrounding neighborhoods
We need your input!

91. This is your checklist of activities, the more you tell us, the better this strategy will be and the more impact it will have. Have a question? Ask anyone with a MAP shirt on. Thanks!