Laserfiche WebLink
4,2,5 Caltivate ongoing partnership for "Signuture Street" along University Wcty to <br />emp h asize C entr ul I( as hin gto n Univ er sity. <br />Siglificant redevelopment is expected over the next five years along University Way between <br />Main Street and Chestnut Street. Central Washington University has already constructed very <br />attractive signs along the coridor. Over tirne, the City of Ellensburg should contemplate an <br />ongoing partnership with Central Washington University to create a strong streetscape along the <br />road and reinforce the intersection of Main and University Way as a gateway to downtown. <br />4.2.6 Consider community center in the city center. <br />The YMCA was once a major attractor in downtown Ellensburg for recreation and activities, <br />which have now moved elsewhere in the city. Ellensburg should explore the long term <br />possibility of a multi-use community center in the core of the community. Downtowns are <br />always the best location for community centers for several reasons. These centers create <br />economic spin off of having activities inanarca where people can 1. walk to the location,2. <br />spend money in the arca afterward, 3. share parking resources, and 4. serve as an attractor for <br />additional investment. Several of the vacart or underutilized sites identified in Figure 10 would <br />be ideally suited for a community center that could host meetings, events, the arts, and other <br />'nL:^ +-*^ ^f *-^i^^+ ",;lt *^^";-^ o ^^n^a.qfirra affn# or.r{ chnrrlr{ he flevihle cnnrroh fnu59D, IlIrD LJPV Wr PTVJWWI vVrlr rwYu[v s wvvyvrslrYv vrrvr! <br />handle a variety of uses. <br />4.2.7 Consider un employer-assisteel housing fund <br />Employer-assisted housing programs provide incentives for employees to live within designated <br />places near their place of employment. There are many benefits to such a program including <br />reducing commute times, pollution, and stress; increasing employees' loyalty to the locale where <br />they work; and providing a sustainable program to ensure that housing stays stable in a local <br />markct. Typically,largc cmploycrs such as univcrsities, hospitals, and govemments create these <br />funds to foster investment in the community they call home. <br />Often times these incentives are as simple as a small rlown payment assistance program in a <br />targeted area, reduced fees in a highly targeted area, or a suite of benefits through a public- <br />private partnership. This program could continue to keep neighborhoods between downtown and <br />Central Washington University stable, as well as encourage investment in more housing <br />downtown and more upper floor conversion. <br />7n