Belleville Commons Open House sparks strong public interest

Discovering what the community wants to see done with Market Square and the riverfront was the theme of an open house held at the Belleville Public Library on Thursday night.

The idea was to get people to take a look at their short-term concept and long-term concept and get people talking.

The short/medium term concept plan for the Belleville Commons. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The long-term concept plan for the Belleville Commons. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

City of Belleville Director of Recreation, Culture and Community Services Mark Fluhrer says the gallery at the library was packed when the open house began.

He estimated over 100 people had been through in a two hour period, with people still consistently walking through with an hour to go.

The theme according to Fluhrer was people, bringing people to the downtown and giving them things to do.

Fluhrer says some of the ideas will provoke thought and other new ideas, and that will be reflected in the feedback collected. He said so far they’ve received quite a number of comments.

He says of the ideas presented, you want to make sure everything is consistent.

Belleville Commons is the name proposed for the area surrounding City Hall. Commons have a historical context as being social spaces where people gather for celebrations, special occasions and general relaxation. They are at the core of many downtowns and mark the city centre as a vibrant cultural and financial centre while providing a sense of place.

The Belleville Commons area as presented during the City of Belleville Open House at the Belleville Public Library. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The riverfront land is ideal for developing a major pedestrian friendly green space, stated the background notes package available to those who attended the open house.

The planning consultants noted it would be a ‘celebration park’ with City Hall on one side and the Moira River on the other.

According to the consultants, residents felt Belleville doesn’t celebrate its natural assets such as the Moira River, and the parking lots along the shore are a waste of valuable land and parking should be relocated.

In front of the reclaimed brick and stone arches across from City Hall, the consultants proposed a riverfront park with a summer fountain and a winter skating rink.

The summer view of Riverfront Park. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The winter view of Riverfront Park. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The Events Building proposed to be constructed for year-round use at Riverfront Park. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

A year-round events building was proposed as the consultants feel the park will be a central gathering place. The building would house a visitor’s centre, a cafe, public washrooms, security station, storage and skate rentals in the winter. It would also have dining and a licensed patio on the ground level and on the roof top. The roof deck would be accessible to allow people to look down on the park and offer views along the river.

At the junction of the Riverfront Trail and the events building, the designs show a pedestrian bridge connecting downtown east with downtown west.

When it comes to Market Square, they want to provide indoor spaces that will provide comfortable shopping environments that could be open longer than the typical Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The four enclosed units could be used for a coffee and snacks cafe, an artisanal shop selling local meat, fish, poultry, cheeses and preserves, a bakery shop or an arts and crafts boutique.

One of the biggest challenges with the Belleville Commons area is dealing with Memorial Arena.

Fluhrer says the consultants are going to have to look at what they believe will be the best use for that property that strikes a nostalgic chord with many Belleville residents.

Ideas for the Memorial Arena were inspired by Toronto’s Distillery District, the Wychwood Barns and Evergreen Brickworks.

Inspiration and vision ideas for the future use of the Memorial Arena property. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The “Belleville Town Centre” would include a Belleville McFarlands history display, the Allen Cup Brew Pub and Patio, specialty retail opportunities and a local food mart.

A conceptual plan for the Memorial Arena property was on display at the Belleville Commons Open House. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

Fluhrer says this is just one stage of the process. From here the consultants will look at the comments, they’ll reconsider some of the drawings and plans and reflect those in any future developments.

The City of Belleville is also conducting a feasibility and economic impact study for the entire area around the Belleville Commons to determine what kinds of businesses will do well, and what complementary businesses and activities will be consistent with where they want to be as a city.

One of the major things Fluhrer wants people to keep in mind is that this is the beginning and not the end of the process. He says you are always tweaking your urban space and public space and this will be a fluid process.

Information gathered will be taken into consideration prior to a presentation to council on March 25.

The panorama view of the Belleville Commons Centre Block. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)

The site plan for the Belleville Commons. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)