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The plan to transform the Playland Park area into a magnet to live, work and play is gaining ground.
The Council Bluffs Planning Commission unanimously approved the plan at its monthly meeting this week, and the issue will now go before the City Council on Monday evening. . . .
Residential housing and smaller neighborhood-styled parks would be the theme on levee's dry said, said Douglas Bisson, an urban designer for HDR Engineering Inc. of Omaha.
The northern edge of the area would feature single-family detached homes in which the residents would come and go in their vehicles from alleyways.
"This would make the front yards more pedestrian friendly," Bisson told the commission.
Situated to the east of these homes would be a 3.5-acre active park with playground and a half-court basketball area, he said. On the west side, resident would enjoy a more formal green area.
"It could be a key area for public art," Bisson said.
In the middle of the residential neighborhoods, live/work buildings would be complemented by a grand boulevard, he said. These buildings, perhaps three floors tall, could be ideal units for accountants or architects, Bisson said.
Town homes and a possible 10-story condo tower could be built south of the formal green space. The tower could be constructed on top of a parking structure and designed with street-level commercial shops, like restaurants or bike shops that front onto the formal green.
Altogether, there would be 219 residential units in that area, Bisson said. . . .
Town homes and a possible 10-story condo tower could be built south of the formal green space. The tower could be constructed on top of a parking structure and designed with street-level commercial shops, like restaurants or bike shops that front onto the formal green.
So I guess I am confused. Â Is this the same place where Renaissance Place was going to be? Â If so, I would take this mixed use neighborhood over that any day of the week.icejammer wrote:At this stage, I would still call it conceptual, yes, but I wouldn't anticipate much deviation from this "conceptual" plan to anything that's built. Â The only exception might be the 10-story tower. Â We'll see how the private side responds with proposals to build.
As far as riverfront, nothing will get built on the river side of the levee, no way, no how.
Future renovation plans for the Playland Park area are on the Council Bluffs City Council agenda Monday evening . . .
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A public hearing on the plans will be held beginning at 7 p.m. This will come after the council hears a presentation on the plans at the afternoon study session. If the council members approve the plan, they will request Mayor Tom Hanafan to begin the process to solicit interest to complete the private development of the project according to its Master Plan. . .
icejammer wrote:Council to discuss Playland Park
Future renovation plans for the Playland Park area are on the Council Bluffs City Council agenda Monday evening . . .
A public hearing on the plans will be held beginning at 7 p.m. This will come after the council hears a presentation on the plans at the afternoon study session. If the council members approve the plan, they will request Mayor Tom Hanafan to begin the process to solicit interest to complete the private development of the project according to its Master Plan. . .
For the most part, Council Bluffs City Council members like what the future holds for the Playland Park area.
The council Monday night voted 4 to 1 to move ahead with plans that would create acres and acres of both green space and residential living. The council's action followed that of the city's Planning Commission last month. . . .
Councilman Scott Belt was the lone dissenter, believing there were too many residential units proposed.
"I like the wet side, but it's a little dense for me on the dry side," Belt said.
The council's vote requests that Mayor Tom Hanafan begin the process to solicit interest to complete the private development of the project according to the Master Plan.
icejammer wrote:Council gives green light to Playland
For the most part, Council Bluffs City Council members like what the future holds for the Playland Park area.
The council Monday night voted 4 to 1 to move ahead with plans that would create acres and acres of both green space and residential living. The council's action followed that of the city's Planning Commission last month. . . .
Councilman Scott Belt was the lone dissenter, believing there were too many residential units proposed.
"I like the wet side, but it's a little dense for me on the dry side," Belt said.
The council's vote requests that Mayor Tom Hanafan begin the process to solicit interest to complete the private development of the project according to the Master Plan.
COUNCIL BLUFFS - Nearly a year after plans for the former Playland Park were unveiled, Council Bluffs will begin asking developers to come up with proposals.
The Bluffs City Council voted 4-1 Monday to give final approval to the park's master plan, developed by HDR Engineering of Omaha.
Councilman Scott Belt voted against it.
"I don't like the density of the dry side of the levee," Belt said. "I have no problem with the river side of the levee, (but) that urban development is way too dense."
Land west of the Missouri River levee will be developed into a regional park and a riverfront drive, while about 23 acres east of the levee will be transformed into a walkable urban neighborhood. The east side will have a 2-acre neighborhood park with playground equipment, half of a basketball court, garden areas and open space.
The west side of the levee will have a 3-acre green space for formal gardens, open space and a spot for public art. That side of the levee, about 93 acres, will connect directly to the Missouri River pedestrian bridge, scheduled for completion in November 2008. The landing, where the bridge meets the levee, will be marked by a tall architectural structure, which officials hope will draw people.
Plans call for the pedestrian bridge to link the regional trail system on both sides of the river and provide a direct pedestrian link to downtown Omaha and the revitalized riverfront.
Along with the open space, the neighborhood will be made up of residential and commercial buildings.
Plans call for a 10-story tower to be built in a later phase and possibly house a restaurant with patio seating and a view of the Omaha skyline. The rest of the site would consist of houses, town houses, condos and apartments. Officials envision a neighborhood of about 200 residences.
The Playland Park plan was a deciding factor in the city's designation in October as one of this year's Iowa Great Places.
TDN--"I don't like the density of the dry side of the levee," Belt said. "I have no problem with the river side of the levee, (but) that urban development is way too dense."
"I like the wet side, but it's a little dense for me on the dry side," Belt said.
. . . "A $2 million grant to assist the city of Council Bluffs with redeveloping the area at the foot of the Missouri River pedestrian bridge is an exciting step in connecting our community to the riverfront and the metropolitan area," said Todd Graham, executive director and CEO of the Iowa West Foundation.
Graham said that plans for the riverfront and the former Playland Park area call for a large park, a mixed-use neighborhood of housing and businesses and pedestrian-friendly amenities. He said that the Iowa West grant is for "preparation of the site," including extension of infrastructure and park development. . . .
The city's plan to improve public access along the Missouri River by Playland Park was one of seven statewide projects selected last October as part of Iowa's Great Places, a state and local partnership for securing funds and other assistance for completing those goals.
A completed, formalized work plan for the local project is expected to be wrapped up next week and then sent off to the state, said Rose Brown, who is overseeing things for the Community Development Department.
"It is moving forward," she said of the project.
Gov. Chet Culver formalized things on the state end Monday when he signed a memorandum of understanding with Council Bluffs and the other communities. . .
The estimated cost of this project, apart from the residential/commercial plan, is around $20 million, Brown said.
ANDDaily Nonpareil wrote:The Council Bluffs City Council Monday evening approved the acquisition of property north of 23rd Avenue as part of a federal requirement to make up for green space lost in Playland Park development plans.
Monday's action involved two half blocks north of that avenue between South 19th and South 21st streets. This follows two other acquisitions of land for the same purpose, those being at 850 West Graham and at North 13th Street and Avenue B.
Back in the late 1970s the city received federal conservation money to help develop 8.83 acres of green space in Playland Park, according to City Attorney Richard Wade. In recent years, plans have been made to convert 7.26 acres there into private development. The use of this conservation money required green space to be purchased to replace that park land that was assisted by this money. The appraised value of the land north of 23rd Avenue is $215,000.
Daily Nonpareil wrote: . . . Gross said plans for the Playland Park area also are progressing. With the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge now open, local developers have expressed interest.
He said a statement of interest has been prepared and probably will be circulated seeking requests of interest from developers between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Gross said the city will look for developers with experience in building projects similar to what is planned for that area.
Land west of the Missouri River levee will be developed into a regional park and a riverfront drive, while about 23 acres east of the levee will be transformed into a pedestrian-friendly urban neighborhood. The east side will have a two-acre neighborhood park with playground equipment, garden areas and open space. Gross said the subdivision plan for the east side of the levee probably will come up for council approval late next month.
Indeed, just look on earlier pages of this thread for some illustrations, there should also be some links to City of Council Bluffs websites with more info as well.windsor wrote:I read somewhere that there was to be a riverfront drive and riverfront park.
JASON KUIPER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER wrote:COUNCIL BLUFFS — The new neighborhood is to be called River's Edge, but access to the river is not yet clear.
The neighborhood is part of redevelopment planned near the Iowa landing of the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge. Master plans originally called for a road to run from the neighborhood and cut through the levee just south of the bridge's landing.
Concerns have been raised about whether access to the river should be done by breaking through the levee for a road. City officials will meet this week with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to look at the levee and other options as well as various design issues.
The Council Bluffs Planning Commission will look at the preliminary plan and rezoning for River's Edge at its Wednesday meeting. That name plays into the "Iowa's Leading Edge" slogan for the area.
JASON KUIPER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER wrote:The master plan for the development also calls for river access several blocks to the north at Avenue G and to the south at Ninth Avenue. Those connectors were planned for later on in the development but may have to be done sooner if the break through the levee does not happen.
Brown said it is preferable that traffic for events in that area not go through the neighborhood.
JASON KUIPER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER wrote:The planning commission will review the requests for River's Edge, then make a recommendation to the Bluffs City Council.
Before requests for proposals are taken, companies must submit their qualifications this fall. Demolition and grading could possibly start in the spring.
Future development of the Playland Park area took a big step forward Wednesday evening.
Just a year after the city approved a Playland Park Master Plan, a general view of future goals there, the city's Planning Commission unanimously approved the preliminary plans for the area, which involved more specific details.
"This was the first local regulatory review of the project since the Master Plan," said Rose Brown of the Community Development Department. . .
The grading of the land should start in the spring, Brown said, along with street and sewer construction during the warm-weather months. The single-family homes would probably be the first units to be built after that, she said. . .
The Daily Nonpareil wrote:The Council Bluffs City Council Monday evening set a public hearing for Dec. 8 on preliminary plans to redevelop Playland Park.
The project, to be known as River's Edge, would be made up of eight blocks on 23 acres north of Interstate 480 to Avenue B and from 41st Street on the east to the Missouri River. In total, there would be 280 units of housing, including single-family homes, attached town homes and two multi-story buildings for apartment and/or condominiums. The first floor of those buildings would be set aside for commercial and retail space.
Plans for redeveloping a riverfront area near the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge have run into rough waters.
Direct access to the Missouri River from the planned River's Edge neighborhood would be dropped from the plans, according to a city department's recommendation to the City Council.
Some City Council members have raised concerns over whether that change would hurt access to the development. They also question what kind of interest the project will draw with much of the planning already in place. . . .
Rose Brown, an urban planner with the city's Community Development Department, said it could take six to nine months for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to review a plan for cutting through the levee. She said approval would be very difficult to obtain and expensive, based on recent meetings with local Corps officials.
Brown said the engineering plans alone - which must be submitted to the Corps - would cost $350,000, and cutting through the levee would probably cost more than $1.2 million. . . .
The council will also consider changing some zoning in the area, as well as a preliminary plan for the subdivision.
Now comes the start of the physical development of Playland Park.
Expect to see the demolition of trees and re-grading of the land within six months for developers to begin work on a new housing/commercial project, according to Don Gross, Community Development Department director.
This comes after the Council Bluffs City Council Monday evening approved the preliminary plans for a development to be known as River's Edge that would consist of eight blocks on some 23 acres north of Interstate 480 to Avenue B and from 41st Street on the east to the Missouri River. The vote was 3 to 1 with Councilman Scott Belt voting in opposition. Councilman Darren Bates was absent. . . .
In his opposition of the plan, Belt said the plan was premature, especially with access that could be impacted by future reconstruction of the nearby interstate highway.
Requests for developers to submit their qualifications for the project are to go out this week, Gross said.
