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Complex gets Medford hearing Completed plans for a proposed commercial center in southeast Medford will get a public airing Monday. Consultants who designed the 46-acre Village Center off North Phoenix and East Barnett roads will present their preferred alternative at noon at City Hall council chambers. The concept is a throwback to pre-World War II developments in which commercial districts served as the center of a neighborhood, architects say. The Village Center is meant to be the heart of the ambitious Southeast Plan, which aims to reduce traffic and make better use of the 1,000-plus acres set aside in the urban growth boundary by blurring the lines between commercial and residential neighborhoods. The proposed commercial district would funnel into the still undeveloped hillsides to the east, where more than 10,000 people are expected to live in the next 20 years. Developers who own land in the area have been working with consultants to design the commercial district. A state grant was awarded to the project. A team from Lennertz Coyle & Associates, project consultants, will present four design alternatives Monday. The preferred alternative features a "main street" design along Barnett Road that calls for mixed use of buildings, a series of boutique-type shops and a few larger retail sites and wide, tree-lined sidewalks. Architects also propose creating a "greenway" along Larson Creek with a covered bridge and bike paths. At the creek�s intersection with Barnett, the consultants envision cafes and restaurants that take advantage of the greenway with patios and decks. The preferred alternative also calls for realigning Barnett Road through the Village Center to offer commercial zoning on both sides of the street. Once developers sign off on the plans, the project will be presented to the Medford Planning Commission for its approval. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA