Location: 5th Avenue between SW 1st Street and Martin Luther King Blvd.
Architect/Engineer: Engineering - CH2M Hill; Artistic Consultant - Gary Moore.
Contact: Elizabeth Butler, CRA Marketing & Grants Coordinator, 276-8640

Project Description: This project called for the beautification and revitalization of the three commercially zoned blocks of NW/SW 5th Avenue. In the City's first official collaboration between engineers and artists working in concert with the local community, a new streetscape design was developed that reflects the uniqueness and character of the area's history. From the strategic placement of on-street parking and landscape nodes shaping gentle curves in the road, to the bright terrazzo sidewalks with bronze inlays commemorating the various historic neighborhoods, 5th Avenue is poised to reclaim its former standing as a prominent commercial and cultural corridor.

Other improvements included specially designed streetlamps to complement the sidewalk design colors, the removal of the trees in the sidewalks to conform to handicap accessibility standards, and the relocation of several back-out parking spaces to the alleyways. Commemorative banners designating Historic 5th Avenue, the West Settler’s District, Frog Alley and the Sands hang from the streetlamps, identifying the area’s historic neighborhoods.

The project was completed in late 2006, and the official ribbon cutting ceremony was held on Sunday, February 25, 2007, in conjunction with other Black History Month festivities.