‘Building on momentum’ – East Moline revitalization plans on display

East Moline is making big plans for the future, and the city’s mayor loves what he sees. “This is progress. … It brings us into the 21st century and creates greater interest in the city,” Mayor Reggie Freeman said after looking over plans to improve and update major portions of the city in the next […]

East Moline is making big plans for the future, and the city’s mayor loves what he sees. “This is progress. … It brings us into the 21st century and creates greater interest in the city,” Mayor Reggie Freeman said after looking over plans to improve and update major portions of the city in the next few years.

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Many of those plans were looked over by business and community leaders and many members of the public on Wednesday, Feb. 21, during an open house to showcase planned improvements to The Bend, Rust Belt and downtown areas of East Moline About 100 people got a look at those plans during the first public meeting for the Greater Downtown East Moline Revitalization Project held at The Bend Event Center. The goal of the almost $30 million project is to make improvements to East Moline so the city is more walkable, bike-friendly and beautiful. The project – which could start construction next year and be complete in 2027 – will include new landscaping, more outdoor event space, improved railroad crossings and much more. Mr. Freeman said the project will help build “better connections” in East Moline to provide more outdoor space for people visiting the city and help local businesses thrive. (Go here to see maps of the areas covered in the plans, and more on the proposed improvements.) Wednesday’s open house was held to let the public view plans for streetscaping improvements to The Bend, which consists of the area north of 12th Avenue between First Street and Seventh Street. (There will be a series of additional public meetings held later this year to discuss improvements to 15th Avenue, 12th Avenue and Seventh Avenue near the Rust Belt and the eastern part of The Bend.) “We want to get as much from the public as we can get,” said Tim Kammler, director of engineering for the city of East Moline, during a news conference held shortly before Wednesday’s public open house. “East Moline’s residents are the foundation of our community, and their input and involvement throughout this project are of utmost importance. This investment has the potential to transform our downtown, and all residents and business owners are encouraged to weigh in on the details of these exciting improvements,” said Mr. Freeman in a statement before Wednesday’s open house. During that event, hundreds of people looked over 12 boards showing plans for improvements to The Bend. Attendees were given Post-it Notes, stickers and cards to write their opinions and place them on the 12 boards or turn them in at the meeting. Scott Runde, a landscape architect at SWT Design, one of the firms helping with the project, was one of those officials showing people the proposed designs on Wednesday. At 5 p.m., when the open house officials started, Mr. Runde had already fielded many questions and comments about the plans. Many of those plans that were on display could face small or big changes after public comments are received. “That’s really why we are here tonight. (These designs) could all change after the public sees them,” he added. During the news conference before the open house, Ally Fields, a manager with Crawford, Murphy & Tilly (CMT), an engineering firm helping with the project, said she hopes to get some directions from public comments to better fine tune improvements.  For instance, part of the project calls for more and better lighting in East Moline. Public comments from Wednesday’s meeting could direct (or change) the specific locations of the lights, she added. By 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, some of the display boards already had comments and notes of support and criticism. For instance, one board featured the question: “How do you want the greater downtown to look and feel?” and had this note: “Mix of shops, restaurants, bars, more parking.” Some of the other notes included: “Require better signage for businesses. Very bad now,” “Needs more activity” and “Connect downtown to the river, maybe a trolley.” Attendees also were also given comment forms to express their views on the projects. (People may also make comments online by going here.) Many people at the open house said they liked what they saw. “It’s wonderful. It’s good to see East Moline doing so much. … This is just building on the momentum that is already happening in the city,” said Chad Pregracke, founder and president of Living Lands & Waters, as he looked over some of the planned improvements on Wednesday. Tim Knanishu, executive vice president of Revitalize and Develop East Moline (REDEEM), also viewed the plans on Wednesday. He said he was pleased to see a large crowd take interest in the project and hopes even more people get engaged as the planning moves forward. “This is going to be good. … We need to connect the riverfront to the downtown,” he said. Several officials said they were happy with the meeting turnout and the comments from the public. “The comments we received were very positive. There was a lot of enthusiasm for the proposed greater downtown branding to create a cohesive look and feel to the area. Attendees shared that it is important to preserve and highlight the area's unique character, diverse culture, and historic buildings as part of the branding. Many people mentioned the necessity of establishing a distinct identity for 15th Avenue,” said Kristina Kuehling, an official with Images, Inc., one of the project teams working on the East Moline plans, in an email to the QCBJ on Thursday. Ms. Kuehling added: “We received great ideas about where to place wayfinding signage to help people navigate The Bend as well as get to The Rust Belt and 15th Avenue. There was also a lot of support for expanding bike route connections throughout greater downtown.” Here are some of the details of the plans and the process:

• Main goals : Enhance connectivity between three districts of the city; support continued economic development; and facilitate safe pedestrian and bicycle traffic between the riverfront and 15th Avenue residential areas. Other goals include: creating a strong community brand; create improvements to make it easier to get to The Bend’s entertainment, businesses and riverfront; create new pedestrian-friendly connections, landscaping and directional signage at The Bend.
• Project scope:  Planned improvements include streetscaping and Bend Boulevard extension. Improvements to the Rust Belt area include 12th Avenue work and Seventh Street railroad crossing work. Improvements to downtown include 15th Avenue streetscaping.
• Next steps: Gather feedback from the public meeting; finalize designs, prepare designs for 15th Avenue; present design for 15th Avenue at a public meeting this summer.
• Construction targets: Streetscaping at The Bend is scheduled to start in 2025. Rust Belt work will start in 2026. Bend Boulevard extension work will start in 2027.

• Funding: Most the the multi-year project will be funded by a $23.7 million federal RAISE grant. The city of East Moline will kick in $5 million for the work as required by the terms of the federal grant.
• Project team: The teams working on the plan include the City of East Moline; Crawford, Murphy & Tilly (CMT) engineers; Image, Inc.; SWT Design; Hutchinson Engineering, Inc.; Terracon; and American Surveying & Engineering, Inc.