arkadelphia streetscape

arkadelphia, ar

overview:

In 1997, A tornado struck downtown Arkadelphia, destroying much of its downtown area and several adjacent residential areas. FEMA provided immediate planning assistance in the form of a Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) and a master plan was developed to help guide the redevelopment process throughout the city.
Land Design Studio was consulted to develop the primary component of the DRP, the Downtown Streetscape plan. Initially, the client group could not come to agreement regarding where available funding for improvements should be focused. To resolve this, LDS and the City hosted a one-week long workshop geared towards exploring multiple alternatives and developing consensus among city administrators and the residents. The outcome of the workshop was a Streetscape Master Plan for the first phase of the project. Valued at almost $1 million, the project encompassed two blocks of Main and Clay Streets and a full city block of new parking adjacent to the CBD. Design scope included a complete re-design of on-street parking (to include new angled and parallel parking), resurfacing of streets, drainage improvements, new curb extensions and pedestrian crossings at intersections, sidewalks, street and pedestrian lighting with underground wiring, and new landscaping.