November 19, 2014 - Riverfront Fort Wayne consultants are drawing up their final proposals and offering one last opportunity for public input. A Riverfront Improvement Priorities survey is now online and will take residents just minutes to complete.

The survey can be found at www.RiverfrontFW.org; the link is on the right side of the home page. The survey asks people to prioritize the riverfront elements that are most important to them based on the latest plans presented at public meetings on October 29 and 30. For example, residents are asked to choose among elements such as a promenade, entertainment areas, urban ecology center, outdoor adventure area, historic steam locomotive attraction, recreation activities and more. 

“We are now starting to consider costs and feasibility,” said Pam Holocher, deputy director for planning and policy. “We won’t be able to implement everything that’s being proposed in the short term, so we need to hear from citizens about their priorities for the overall plan, as well as the potential phase I area.”

The survey will be available online through December 12, 2014. The final proposals from the consultants are expected to be unveiled in February 2015.

In November 2013, the City contracted with SWA Group to complete the Riverfront Study, which is the first comprehensive look at enhancing the use of our city’s downtown riverfront; it is intended to provide the road map to a world class investment.

The latest version of the draft plan calls for a focus on nature, recreation and development. The draft proposal calls for a riverfront promenade to be located on both the north and south banks of the St. Marys River and be connected to shopping, dining and residential areas along Superior Street.  Lawton Park could be expanded into an active adventure area for all ages. The confluence of the St. Marys, St. Joseph and Maumee rivers could be emphasized with lighting and pedestrian bridges, and the Guldlin and Bloomingdale parks area could focus on connections to nature.