Carrollton workshop discusses rehabilitation of square

By Editor | July 20, 2022 |

By Carmen Ensinger

Carrollton City Council held a special workshop recently with the main item on the agenda to discuss the issues related to rehabilitating the Carrollton Square.

Mayor Mike Snyder specifically invited business leaders and community members to this meeting to discuss possible changes to parking on the square.

“While there have been no complaints about our current parking situation, the purpose of inviting you to this workshop is to seek public comments and suggestions on this subject,” Snyder said.

The city has applied for a $2 million grant from the Rebuild Illinois Main Street and Downtown program to help with improvements around the city square. Snyder stressed that it is important to plan ahead for items that need to be addressed.

“Our goal is to make this city more attractive for the community and supportive of local businesses, both the ones we have now and ones that might want to locate here in the future,” Snyder said. “Things that have been discussed in the past include the need for more parking on the square and the need for more handicapped parking spaces on the square.”

Because the square is bordered by two state highways, (Highway 67 and 108) there are some challenges to be faced, especially along the east side of the square (Highway 67). Currently, cars can parallel park along the right side of the road.

“The state will not allow cars to back out onto a highway,” Snyder said. “So, angle parking cannot replace parallel parking in that situation.”

One comment from the public was that another consideration is that some people do not want to give up some of the green space currently available in the yard surrounding the county courthouse.

Snyder said that they are working on ideas that would avoid losing current parking spaces so that any changes would keep as many spaces as possible and that any changes would increase rather than decrease the parking spaces.

“It is actually a good thing that the city is facing a need for redesigning our parking areas,” Snyder said. “Because that indicates that there is business growth and that community use of the square is also growing. We are fortunate to be the county seat with the state and federal highways and the county courthouse. We are a host to others and it is important to project an image of friendliness and wanting to serve the regional area.”

The city is still waiting to hear about its status regarding the Main Street and Downtown grant application and hopes to hear something this fall. In the meantime, the goal is to be proactive and continue to seek input from community members as well as the businesses on the square.

One approach to community outreach could be to conduct city workshops on a regular basis in order to encourage more citizen involvement in improving the community. The public is invited to attend all council meetings, city committee meetings and special workshops. Residents are also welcome to come and share their ideas and opinions on matters important to the city.

Also discussed was the new city water tower. The city is focusing on dedicating and naming of the water tower park.

“This new water tower looks awesome and reflects well on our city,” Snyder said. “The city wants to recognize the contributions of the Meek family in connection with developing the land for the water tower. The Meek family has generational ties to the city and have been very supportive of this city’s growth so we are planning a dedication ceremony for hopefully sometime in October.”