Cudahy to Hold Public Workshops on Creation of Design Guidelines for Commercial and Industrial Properties
The City of Cudahy is beginning work on a Design Guidelines Manual for commercial and industrial properties. The manual will present a set of general design guidelines for new construction in downtown and key corridor areas of Cudahy. It will also provide rehabilitation design guidelines for historic properties.
Three workshops are planned, beginning in July, to gather input from Cudahy residents and business and property owners. An advisory committee will assist in the process.
“It is very important that the design manual be the product of a collaborative effort among the city, business and property owners and the community,” said Mayor Ryan McCue. “Their needs and concerns will be considered as we move forward over the next six months.”
Design guidelines will be developed for portions of the Downtown Lakeside Commons District, the Layton/Pennsylvania Gateway District, the South Packard Avenue Corridor, the Lakefront Corridor and the South Pennsylvania Corridor.
The downtown guidelines will be used in conjunction with Cudahy’s façade grant program for the downtown area, ensuring that new construction or rehabilitation of existing structures will preserve the character of the architecture, building materials and urban design features.
The design guidelines for Cudahy’s key corridors will ensure that new construction will be enhanced and reflect the vision for those areas.
“Property owners will be able to use the manual to help them plan projects that will improve the quality and character of Cudahy,” said Economic Development Director Lara Fritts. “In some cases, the Department of Economic Development, the Community Development Authority and the Design Review Board will use the guidelines to make sure building projects meet the design objectives of the city.”
The first workshop will be held Thursday, July 9th during the day, with separate sessions for downtown business and property owners and corridor business and property owners. A session for interested Cudahy residents will be held Thursday evening. A complete schedule can be found on the Economic Development website, www.cudahy4business.com or at City Hall, 5050 South Lake Drive.
Additional public workshops will be held in September and November. The city expects to have the design guidelines completed by December so that implementation and training sessions can begin in January and February of 2010.
Winter & Company, based in Boulder, Colorado, is facilitating the development of Cudahy’s Design Guidelines Manual. Winter & Company is one of the country's leading consulting firms in the creation, review and implementation of urban design guidelines.
