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DNS FOG Temp: 34 °F Wind: N at 4 mph Sunday, December 8, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend November 17, 2002 MURA was responsible for Medford's award-winning downtown parking structure at Sixth Street and Riverside Avenue. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell A project-by-project progress report What progress has the Medford Urban Renewal Agency made with respect to the original projects outlined at its inception in 1988? South Gateway Center: 80 percent complete. Total completion of the retail center at Barnett Road and Center Drive is expected by 2008 when the new interchange is complete. Off-street parking: 45 percent complete. The parking structure at Sixth Street and Riverside Avenue is complete; the parking structure planned for Main and Fir streets has been put on hold by a lawsuit; and MURA has revamped lots near Rogue Community College. Putting pole-mounted utilities underground: 20 percent complete. After finding that it’s very expensive to bury the lines, the agency has decided to focus on the most visible utilities in the core area. Streetscapes: 55 percent complete. Reconstructing curbs, gutters, sidewalks and installing pedestrian amenities like lights and trees in the downtown core. There will be new streetscapes in front of the new library when it’s completed. Concrete paving stones for crosswalks: 15 percent complete. The agency considers this to be a low priority. Concrete paving stones for alleys: 25 percent complete. Middleford Alley next to the Sixth Street parking structure is complete. Also on the list are alleys behind U.S. Bank, the old Woolworth’s, Mellelo’s coffee on Main Street, the Chamber of Commerce, and completion of the alley adjacent to C.K. Tiffin’s. Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater: 85 percent complete. Vogel Plaza: 85 percent complete. To complement the Craterian. Riverside Avenue sidewalks and pedestrian amenities: 1 percent complete. Along Riverside Avenue from Sixth Street to McAndrews Road, any improvements will be made by the property owners, not urban renewal. Growers Market: 1 percent complete. Find a permanent site for the grower’s market. The newer Saturday market has been using the parking lot across from the new library site. Bear Creek improvements: 80 percent complete. Improve stream flow in Bear Creek, including modifying the dam structure. Main/Sixth Street conversion: 15 percent complete. At one time the agency had talked about making Sixth Street one-way, and changing Main Street to two-way. While it’s still under consideration, it is a low priority right now, because of the expense and lack of public support. Improvements were made to the Main Street bridge across Bear Creek. Site improvements adjacent to the Sparta Building (Las Margaritas, 12 N. Riverside Ave.): 0 percent complete. Part of the conversion of Main and Sixth streets included a tie-in from Main to Sixth that would have gone around the Sparta Building. It is a low priority. Front/ Central conversion: 25 percent complete. The plan was to convert Front Street to one-way and Central Avenue to two-way, but this is unlikely because of the cost and lack of public interest. The agency helped acquire property that’s being used as a parking lot. Traffic signals and railroad crossings: 60 percent complete. The agency has improved the railroad crossings for car traffic downtown. The 40 percent remaining will occur with the creation of Evergreen Way, a street that will run from 10th to Fourth streets, adjacent to the railroad tracks opposite Front Street. Public parking lot resurfacing: 25 percent complete. The agency has resurfaced the lot behind the Mail Tribune, and has others on the list. Upgrading utilities in conjunction with other projects: 5 percent complete. This may include things like sewers, storm drains, water mains, curbs, sidewalks and landscaping. Beatty/Manzanita park: 0 percent complete. Acquiring property and preparing the site for a new west Medford park. Urban renewal is waiting for the city to decide on the park location. Property rehabilitation loans: 55 percent complete. Establishing low-rate loan programs for rehabilitation, such as fa�ade renovation, of buildings within the urban renewal district. Some of MURA’s success stories MURA’s life span is from 1988 to 2013. Following are some projects MURA has been involved with. 1990 — City Center Revitalization Plan adopted. 1992 — South Gateway Center. 1991-92 — Sidewalks on Main Street bridge. 1997 — Craterian Ginger Rogers Theater and Vogel Plaza. 1998 — Parking structure at Sixth Street and Riverside Avenue and Middleford Alley. 2000 — Rogue Community College. 2002 — Ongoing streetscape and parking lot projects along Central Avenue. 2002 — Rough draft of the 2050 plan. The seven MURA board members are appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council and serve for the life of the agency. The board hired Don Burt as director. Two City Council members serve as liaisons. Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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