Town of Basalt: Midland Avenue Streetscape - Resilience, Sustainability, and Environmental Design Award
The Midland Streetscape Project represents a community vision that pairs placemaking and pedestrian-centered design with economic opportunity all while adhering to tangible goals in Basalt’s 2020 Master Plan.
This project grew out of a stated need by the local business community to reduce the impact of many longtime businesses that were moving to Willits, a new development that featured modern and anchor commercial spaces including grocery stores, doctor’s offices, and increased potential to expand into a lively commercial hub.
The need to address the economic impact of the loss of businesses and keep the community identity founded in the historic downtown area alive as well as make downtown attractive to current and future businesses was imperative. It was clear that a solution had to honor Basalt’s historic, quaint, and small-town character while also modernizing infrastructure and accessibility.
Infrastructure addressed in the project included sanitary sewer, water, electric, communications, stormwater, irrigation, sidewalk construction, parking, pedestrian safety, crosswalks, bicycle amenities, and landscaping.
Town policies and special programs, like free concerts, community art programs, and financial support for businesses through vouchers, were implemented during the design and construction phase of this project, to not only ease the construction impacts, but to initiate a renaissance which would revive historic Basalt into a dynamic and lively community asset.
The result is comfortable accessible pedestrian access, more sidewalk space for businesses to interact outside, and space flexibility to host community events such as Merry on Midland, a free holiday festival, and Motors on Midland, a classic car show.
Implementing a pedestrian oriented design in a historic downtown brought access and innovation to downtown and offered a new vision for the residents and businesses.
A major ethic for the project was to highlight that Midland Avenue is more than a main street in a central part of town – it is literally the epicenter of Basalt’s history, predating the incorporation of the town itself in 1901. In Basalt’s railroad heyday, the railroad tracks ran through the center of town, where Midland Avenue is now. Downtown features now include historic inlaid markers, brick pattern to denote historic railroad tracks that shaped the development pattern of this railroad town, and interpretative signage for a historic walking tour.
In concert with the new design, the Town completed its first Capital Improvement Plan which communicates a belief that public art can enhance the identity Basalt and offers a sense of place. Midland Avenue is listed as a priority location for public art with two installations placed less than a year of the project’s completion.
The street-level and utilities infrastructure improvements significantly increased the Town’s resiliency and curbed the potential for emergencies with upgrades to water, stormwater, electric, communications, sewer, street lighting, and bicycle and EV parking infrastructure, contributing to climate resiliency.
The Midland Streetscape is a vibrant, buzzing space where new businesses are opening, people are gathering downtown, and the word creativity is synonymous with the Town of Basalt.
