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VISION FOR THE CITY OF Buena Vista and Marion County
The municipal leadership in Buena Vista chose to focus on two main items: (1) restoring and preserving their downtown square, streetscape, and park infrastructure, and (2) highlighting the community value of the Marion County Courthouse as a centerpiece of revitalization efforts. These priorities put into action the community’s vision for a lively, entertaining community hub that offers expanded shopping, dining, entertainment, and recreation options. These amenities are aimed at making Buena Vista and Marion County a better place to live for its existing residents and more attractive to visitors to boost the local tourism economy. The designs and plans that follow outline concepts to revitalize the downtown.
A variety of restaurants and shopping opportunities exist within the historic downtown square, with event space at Moon Family Theater and one-of-a-kind experiences at Swamp Fox Distilling Company. Additionally, the city contains multiple civic spaces. Working with Downtown Renaissance Fellow Franco Conocchiari-Scherer and design professionals from the RVCCD team, community leaders outlined local priorities, including improving streetscaping, developing a more accessible community park, and assisting downtown business owners with façade renovations. More details about these concepts are available in the report published for the Renaissance Fellowship, which can be found at this link: issuu.com/rsvpstudio/docs/buenavista2022
Downtown streets currently emphasize vehicular travel. Opportunities therefore exist to improve safety by expanding sidewalks, adding safe pedestrian crossings, and making other accessibility improvements to help establish a more walkable and attractive downtown. The desire to concentrate development close to the city center could be addressed by creating a more central community park. Many commercial properties around the courthouse square would benefit from beautification and updating, which could boost tourism and encourage economic growth.
As Buena Vista looks ahead to grow the local economy, local leaders have not forgotten to look down. A community’s streets and sidewalks help make the first impression of the community for visitors and residents. Buena Vista is known for being the commercial center of Marion County and the meeting point of multiple state highway routes. Commercial trucks and through-traffic continually pass through the heart of downtown. While creating a source of business, this traffic volume also comes with challenges, including heavy truck traffi c, dangerous speeding, unsafe pedestrian crossings, and unorganized parking opportunities. Citizens see these conditions as issues that must be addressed to grow downtown, support local businesses, and create the active local destination desired by residents. The following designs focus on encouraging safer vehicular speeds, creating accessible pedestrian walkways and destinations, and improving downtown commercial streets through more efficient on-street parking.
The plan for downtown Buena Vista extends attractive streetscaping elements throughout the area. Expanded sidewalks throughout the historic square area improve pedestrian safety and could encourage additional outdoor seating and other uses. Large-canopy street trees shown throughout the plan bring muchneeded shade and enhance the appearance of the area. Formalized on-street parking throughout the square ensures easy accessibility for business patrons.
Buena Vista
PROPOSED STREETSCAPE PLAN: The improvements to McDuffie Street create a more pedestrian-friendly experience in downtown Buena Vista. The streetscape plan shows a new sidewalk encircling the courthouse square, bump-outs with large-canopy street trees, formalized on-street angled parking, EV charging spaces, RV parking, new crosswalks, and expanded sidewalks. Together, these improvements make exploring downtown safer and more inviting for pedestrians.