A two-week public consultation on improvements to Moorfield Park play area in Grimsbury, Banbury, began on Tuesday.

An exhibition of planned improvements is on display in the town hall for two weeks to enable residents and park users to comment on the proposals and put forward their own ideas on the £100,000 update.

Moorfield is the latest Banbury park to be given a makeover by Banbury Town Council, and chairman of the council’s general services committee, Councillor Colin Clarke said the council needs to make sure children have a safe place to play.

He said: “The town council has a responsibilty to ensure that parks and play areas are fit for purpose. This means making sure that playground equipment is modern, safe, and meets the expectations of today’s young people.”

He added: “The public consultation will give people the opportunity to express their views and the council will take into account what residents say.”

The exhibition will be open until August 9 from 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday, and from 10am to 4pm on Saturday.

The most recent Banbury play park improved by Banbury Town Council was completed in September 2012. Pupils from Queensway Primary School held a celebration to mark the opening of the revamped Browning Road Park after they helped design the new play area.

The £120,000 refurbishment was commissioned and overseen by the town council and the facelift included the installation of new play equipment – to meet current health and safety standards.

Landscaping and improved drainage work was also carried out after consultation with residents.

We’re in that special time of year when kids are trying to squeeze in the last bit of vacation before heading back to school.

I’m hoping that 17-year-old Kresten Thorndahl makes the most of it.

Thorndahl spent nearly all of his summer vacation toiling in the world’s largest software factory.

Not on the Microsoft kitchen or landscaping crews, where you might expect to see a high-schooler.

No, Thorndahl spent six of his eight weeks of school vacation working alongside executives and others in Microsoft’s global education sales group. Among other things, he helped them tailor products for students and improve their “innovative schools” program.

Thorndahl was a newcomer to Redmond — and America — but not Microsoft. He has been working at the company’s Denmark headquarters in Copenhagen since he was 15, first as an intern and then a full-fledged “blue badge” employee while still in middle school. That made him perhaps the youngest European employee, but Microsoft declined to discuss worker ages with me.

Either way, Thorndahl’s success and the influence he’s had on co-workers make you wonder why there aren’t more opportunities for students to engage with big companies before college, when most internship programs begin.

In Denmark, he is allowed to work six to eight hours a week through a program the company originally set up for college students. He generally goes to the office four days a week after school.

“They just made an exception for me,” he said, as we chatted on a bench next to Microsoft’s soccer field last week.

Teens do occasionally find summer jobs at Microsoft, especially programming prodigies or those with family connections.

The record for youngest Microsoft employee appears to be held by Zillow co-founder Lloyd Frink, who started at 14 back in 1979. Frink’s mom and Mary Gates, Bill’s mother, introduced their boys at a Lakeside School auction since both were interested in computers.

That led to a lunch in Bellevue, after which Frink was offered a summer job that continued for 10 summers, through his graduation from Stanford. Frink eventually became a Microsoft group program manager and helped start Expedia.

Frink is all for bringing teens into companies, especially because they’re becoming computer savvy at younger ages.

“A little bit of it is giving back to the community, but you learn from it as well,” he said. “If you find the right people, they can add value.”

“Innovation and new ideas”

Thorndahl isn’t sure where his career will take him, but he expects to work at Microsoft through college, where he plans to major in business and minor in computer science. When he graduates from college, he would have 10 years at the company and experience that would make some chief executives jealous.

Asked about long-term plans, he smiles and shrugs a bit.

“Three years ago I wanted to be a chef,” he said. “I really can’t say what I want to do in 10 to 15 years because I’m still only 17. I don’t know how it’s going to evolve and all that, but I know that it’s going to be in a tech company with innovation and new ideas.”

How the doors opened

Thorndahl is more than lucky. Drive and personal character opened one door after another for the teen, whose story may inspire job hunters of all ages.

It started when he was 13 and elected president of the student council at his K-9 school in Ordrup, a suburb of Copenhagen. That connected him with a nonprofit organization supporting Danish students, where he was elected to a board position handling its technology policies.

That same year, Denmark allocated $100 million for education technology and sought guidance on how it should be invested. This is similar to the process school districts here and around the U.S. are going through as they modernize their systems and prepare for new curriculum and testing requiring more computer use.

At 14, Thorndahl was invited to an education technology conference with teachers groups, government agencies and companies, including Microsoft Denmark.

“At this conference I bump into a guy who asked me what the hell a young kid like me was doing at that kind of conference,” Thorndahl recalled. “I told him … and told him my story and some of the ideas that I had and some of the policies that the organization had for students and how we would use the money and (technology) in education.”

It must have been quite a first impression. The Microsoft rep suggested a partnership with the Danish students organization. The partnership didn’t pan out at first, but three months later Microsoft offered him a weeklong internship.

Again, he made a good impression. “After that week he asked me whether I wanted a job,” he said.

Changing perspectives

Once on board, Thorndahl sorted out the partnership. He set up a program of student-led tech “patrols” that manage schools’ technology and help teachers use equipment. It has since expanded to 100 schools and has $30,000 in federal funding.

After his sister spent time in Australia studying law, he was inspired to pursue work abroad with Microsoft, perhaps at its Europe headquarters in Ireland.

Summer internships are usually for software developers, which Thorndahl isn’t, but his request came through at the start of this summer: He was invited to work at global headquarters in Redmond, with two weeks’ notice.

Thorndahl had never traveled abroad alone or to the U.S., but he booked a flight and found lodging with a Danish family in Kenmore. Then he moved closer, to the Bellevue home of Steve and Rebekah Jenkins, current and former Microsoft employees.

“Kresten very quickly impressed all of us that he came into contact with,” Jenkins said. “He’s this really interesting mixture of young, enthusiastic, bold, selfless thinker and individual — and then he’s part kid still.”

At work, Thorndahl changed the perspective of Jenkins, a 15-year veteran and senior director of government partners. The teen reminded Jenkins “to be bold and think broadly.”

“You sometimes apply constraints to your thinking and then you come into contact with one of these people who just doesn’t do that. They have a good idea, they think it’s a good idea and they push that idea or work on that idea,” Jenkins said. “That’s where Kresten really struck me in my work.”

Making himself an asset

One day during their commute, Thorndahl turned to Jenkins and said, “I did something bold today.”

Thorndahl had sketched out a concept for the Internet Explorer business. He caught a shuttle across campus to the IE team’s building and stuffed it in the inbox of the group vice president.

“I just put it in his box, so he can see it when he gets back,” Thorndahl told me. “That was just a little idea and I thought, why not?”

Another bold moment came at an employee meeting where Thorndahl took the opportunity to introduce himself to a few people in the room: Chief Executive Steve Ballmer, Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner and Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood.

“That was because I was in that internal meeting and I was just like, ‘I have to meet them, I have to say hi and shake their hand,’ ” he told me.

Thorndahl was also getting things done, according to Anthony Salcito, vice president of worldwide education.

“He did real work like an employee would do,” he said, adding that Thorndahl “was actually an asset to the team.”

Looking ahead

The team took the opportunity to expose Thorndahl to how things work at headquarters, since relatively few Danish employees get that chance.

“Not only can he learn that for his own benefit, but he can bring it back to the local subsidiary,” Salcito said.

The education group also provided an internship this summer to a San Diego teen heading to college this fall.

Salcito said he was inspired to continue bringing in high-schoolers. He expects Thorndahl to keep the ball rolling when he returns to work in Copenhagen.

“I said ‘Kresten, get me a program in place to help do this going forward. I want to have interns rotating through Microsoft every summer,’ ” Salcito said. “He’s working on the plan.”

Brier Dudley’s column appears Mondays. Reach him at 206-515-5687 or bdudley@seattletimes.com

We’re in that special time of year when kids are trying to squeeze in the last bit of vacation before heading back to school.

I’m hoping that 17-year-old Kresten Thorndahl makes the most of it.

Thorndahl spent nearly all of his summer vacation toiling in the world’s largest software factory.

Not on the Microsoft kitchen or landscaping crews, where you might expect to see a high-schooler.

No, Thorndahl spent six of his eight weeks of school vacation working alongside executives and others in Microsoft’s global education sales group. Among other things, he helped them tailor products for students and improve their “innovative schools” program.

Thorndahl was a newcomer to Redmond — and America — but not Microsoft. He has been working at the company’s Denmark headquarters in Copenhagen since he was 15, first as an intern and then a full-fledged “blue badge” employee while still in middle school. That made him perhaps the youngest European employee, but Microsoft declined to discuss worker ages with me.

Either way, Thorndahl’s success and the influence he’s had on co-workers make you wonder why there aren’t more opportunities for students to engage with big companies before college, when most internship programs begin.

In Denmark, he is allowed to work six to eight hours a week through a program the company originally set up for college students. He generally goes to the office four days a week after school.

“They just made an exception for me,” he said, as we chatted on a bench next to Microsoft’s soccer field last week.

Teens do occasionally find summer jobs at Microsoft, especially programming prodigies or those with family connections.

The record for youngest Microsoft employee appears to be held by Zillow co-founder Lloyd Frink, who started at 14 back in 1979. Frink’s mom and Mary Gates, Bill’s mother, introduced their boys at a Lakeside School auction since both were interested in computers.

That led to a lunch in Bellevue, after which Frink was offered a summer job that continued for 10 summers, through his graduation from Stanford. Frink eventually became a Microsoft group program manager and helped start Expedia.

Frink is all for bringing teens into companies, especially because they’re becoming computer savvy at younger ages.

“A little bit of it is giving back to the community, but you learn from it as well,” he said. “If you find the right people, they can add value.”

“Innovation and new ideas”

Thorndahl isn’t sure where his career will take him, but he expects to work at Microsoft through college, where he plans to major in business and minor in computer science. When he graduates from college, he would have 10 years at the company and experience that would make some chief executives jealous.

Asked about long-term plans, he smiles and shrugs a bit.

“Three years ago I wanted to be a chef,” he said. “I really can’t say what I want to do in 10 to 15 years because I’m still only 17. I don’t know how it’s going to evolve and all that, but I know that it’s going to be in a tech company with innovation and new ideas.”

How the doors opened

Thorndahl is more than lucky. Drive and personal character opened one door after another for the teen, whose story may inspire job hunters of all ages.

It started when he was 13 and elected president of the student council at his K-9 school in Ordrup, a suburb of Copenhagen. That connected him with a nonprofit organization supporting Danish students, where he was elected to a board position handling its technology policies.

That same year, Denmark allocated $100 million for education technology and sought guidance on how it should be invested. This is similar to the process school districts here and around the U.S. are going through as they modernize their systems and prepare for new curriculum and testing requiring more computer use.

At 14, Thorndahl was invited to an education technology conference with teachers groups, government agencies and companies, including Microsoft Denmark.

“At this conference I bump into a guy who asked me what the hell a young kid like me was doing at that kind of conference,” Thorndahl recalled. “I told him … and told him my story and some of the ideas that I had and some of the policies that the organization had for students and how we would use the money and (technology) in education.”

It must have been quite a first impression. The Microsoft rep suggested a partnership with the Danish students organization. The partnership didn’t pan out at first, but three months later Microsoft offered him a weeklong internship.

Again, he made a good impression. “After that week he asked me whether I wanted a job,” he said.

Changing perspectives

Once on board, Thorndahl sorted out the partnership. He set up a program of student-led tech “patrols” that manage schools’ technology and help teachers use equipment. It has since expanded to 100 schools and has $30,000 in federal funding.

After his sister spent time in Australia studying law, he was inspired to pursue work abroad with Microsoft, perhaps at its Europe headquarters in Ireland.

Summer internships are usually for software developers, which Thorndahl isn’t, but his request came through at the start of this summer: He was invited to work at global headquarters in Redmond, with two weeks’ notice.

Thorndahl had never traveled abroad alone or to the U.S., but he booked a flight and found lodging with a Danish family in Kenmore. Then he moved closer, to the Bellevue home of Steve and Rebekah Jenkins, current and former Microsoft employees.

“Kresten very quickly impressed all of us that he came into contact with,” Jenkins said. “He’s this really interesting mixture of young, enthusiastic, bold, selfless thinker and individual — and then he’s part kid still.”

At work, Thorndahl changed the perspective of Jenkins, a 15-year veteran and senior director of government partners. The teen reminded Jenkins “to be bold and think broadly.”

“You sometimes apply constraints to your thinking and then you come into contact with one of these people who just doesn’t do that. They have a good idea, they think it’s a good idea and they push that idea or work on that idea,” Jenkins said. “That’s where Kresten really struck me in my work.”

Making himself an asset

One day during their commute, Thorndahl turned to Jenkins and said, “I did something bold today.”

Thorndahl had sketched out a concept for the Internet Explorer business. He caught a shuttle across campus to the IE team’s building and stuffed it in the inbox of the group vice president.

“I just put it in his box, so he can see it when he gets back,” Thorndahl told me. “That was just a little idea and I thought, why not?”

Another bold moment came at an employee meeting where Thorndahl took the opportunity to introduce himself to a few people in the room: Chief Executive Steve Ballmer, Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner and Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood.

“That was because I was in that internal meeting and I was just like, ‘I have to meet them, I have to say hi and shake their hand,’ ” he told me.

Thorndahl was also getting things done, according to Anthony Salcito, vice president of worldwide education.

“He did real work like an employee would do,” he said, adding that Thorndahl “was actually an asset to the team.”

Looking ahead

The team took the opportunity to expose Thorndahl to how things work at headquarters, since relatively few Danish employees get that chance.

“Not only can he learn that for his own benefit, but he can bring it back to the local subsidiary,” Salcito said.

The education group also provided an internship this summer to a San Diego teen heading to college this fall.

Salcito said he was inspired to continue bringing in high-schoolers. He expects Thorndahl to keep the ball rolling when he returns to work in Copenhagen.

“I said ‘Kresten, get me a program in place to help do this going forward. I want to have interns rotating through Microsoft every summer,’ ” Salcito said. “He’s working on the plan.”

Brier Dudley’s column appears Mondays. Reach him at 206-515-5687 or bdudley@seattletimes.com

Do you want an amphitheater? Fountains? What types of businesses should be encouraged to be opened in the city’s downtown?

The Margate Community Redevelopment Agency wants to know.

It’s hosting a workshop at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Margate City Hall, 5790 Margate Blvd.

Residents will be encouraged to come up with suggestions, and offer feedback on ideas that will be presented by Madison Marquette, a development firm that hasn’t been officially hired by the CRA yet, but is the only contender to become the agency to develop the downtown.

The downtown is 38 acres of property at Margate Boulevard and State Road 7.

The city for years has said it envisions the corridor as a mecca of culture and entertainment.

The ideas over the years have included construction of new housing built on top of new retail and office space.

Over the past nine years, the city has spent $30.3 million to buy 38 acres consisting of a bank building, shopping centers, a former 50-room motel on State Road 7, a former 17-acre flea market and other buildings, and more on other improvements such as a four-face, 26-foot-high, green metal clock tower and landscaping.

“I’m curious to see what the residents suggestions are,” said Commissioner Lesa “Le” Peerman. “We want to build the downtown so the residents will enjoy it. It’s not just our idea, it’s the whole town’s. The idea is for Margate residents to have a place to come down to and Coconut Creek residents and North Lauderdale residents because it’s a great place to hang out: ‘Meet me in Margate!'”

“I envision it as being great. The sky is the limit.”

lhuriash@tribune.com or 954-572-2008

Do you want an amphitheater? Fountains? What types of businesses should be encouraged to be opened in the city’s downtown?

The Margate Community Redevelopment Agency wants to know.

It’s hosting a workshop at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Margate City Hall, 5790 Margate Blvd.

Residents will be encouraged to come up with suggestions, and offer feedback on ideas that will be presented by Madison Marquette, a development firm that hasn’t been officially hired by the CRA yet, but is the only contender to become the agency to develop the downtown.

The downtown is 38 acres of property at Margate Boulevard and State Road 7.

The city for years has said it envisions the corridor as a mecca of culture and entertainment.

The ideas over the years have included construction of new housing built on top of new retail and office space.

Over the past nine years, the city has spent $30.3 million to buy 38 acres consisting of a bank building, shopping centers, a former 50-room motel on State Road 7, a former 17-acre flea market and other buildings, and more on other improvements such as a four-face, 26-foot-high, green metal clock tower and landscaping.

“I’m curious to see what the residents suggestions are,” said Commissioner Lesa “Le” Peerman. “We want to build the downtown so the residents will enjoy it. It’s not just our idea, it’s the whole town’s. The idea is for Margate residents to have a place to come down to and Coconut Creek residents and North Lauderdale residents because it’s a great place to hang out: ‘Meet me in Margate!'”

“I envision it as being great. The sky is the limit.”

lhuriash@tribune.com or 954-572-2008

 

Johannesburg – Eleven designer gardens and a recreation of South Africa’s 2013 Chelsea Flower Show exhibit are open to the public at the Garden World Spring Festival in Muldersdrift.

The show ends on September 1.

The highlight of the festival is a recreation of the South African exhibit, which recently won a 33rd Gold Medal at the 100th Chelsea Flower Show (May 21-25) in London. Sponsored by the Department of Trade and Industry, Mogale City and Clover Mama Africa, this year’s garden exhibit celebrates 100 years of Kirstenbosch as a world famous national botanical garden.

Designed by David Davidson and Raymond Hudson, the garden is a circular, walk-through exhibit that features Kirstenbosch’s dell and cycad amphitheatre on one side, and the protea garden and mountain skyline on the other.

Various historic landmarks, still to be found in the gardens at Kirstenbosch, including Colonel Bird’s Bath, are to be found in the garden. The exhibit also includes representations of several centenarian species that were introduced during the first five years (1913-1917) of Kirstenbosch’s existence and are still in the gardens today.

 

Designer gardens

Under the umbrella theme, “Celebration”, the 11 designer gardens created by top landscapers will offer a host of planning ideas for your spring garden.

The overall winners and the team honoured with the title Best Garden on Show were Grant Gove and Claire Slabber, who received a platinum award for their collaboration with vegetable expert Jane Griffiths on the garden entitled, “A Delicious Cottage Garden”.

The winning garden highlighted how to create a fruitful food garden that sustains your family. Overflowing with fruit, vegetables and flowers, “the garden is a living ode to a time we once knew,” says Griffiths.

“Drawing on the ideals of the traditional cottage garden, all available space is filled and everything is recycled, re-used and re-invented. Slate walls, gravel and log paths, wooden fencing and rustic elements suggest a garden that has developed organically over decades”, says designer Gove.

Strawberries drip from an edible roof, while vegetables and herbs hang from vertical gardens and flourish among annuals. This delicious garden is a vibrant reminder that the beauty of nature can be celebrated on our own doorstep.

Two other platinum awards were presented to Sonita Young of Young Landscape Design Studio for her oriental-inspired feng-shui garden entitled “Elemental Chain”, and to Damon Johnson from Terra Firma for his garden, “Celebrations”. Johnson’s tropical garden features the ultimate in outdoor living with a splash pool spectacular waterfall.

Gold awards went to Werner Botha of Apple Landscape, Lana Marais and the Tshwane University of Technology, JJ van Rensburg and the team from Vukascapes, as well as Johan Coertze Erika Frost of Blue Fig Landscaping.

Parents of schoolchildren also flock to the show each year to see the children’s and schools’ gardens. This year, there are also a number of little box gardens that create a world in miniature and spectacular floral art displays by the Gauteng Flora Union.

An indigenous educational exhibit has been mounted by the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden and Rand Water’s “Water Wise” exhibit will highlight how to zone your garden with one, two and three drop plants.

A programme of catered events runs through the spring festival:

August 9: Attend a talk on organic vegetable gardening by Jane Griffiths at 11am. R110.

August 10: A talk on healthy herbs by Lizette Jonker at 10am. R100.

August 17: Brunch with Charles Barnhoorn (bulbs), Leon Hefer (floral art) and Margaret and Sandy Roberts who talk herbs, bulbs and flowers at 10am. R120.

August 17: How to make bird feeders at a kids’ craft workshop with Lizette Jonker at 10am. R80.

August 24: “In Tune with Nature” is a spring music concert with Richard Cock and Tanya Visser at 11am. R100.

August 31: Lizette Jonker demonstrates how to use grasses, veggies and herbs as table arrangements at 10am. R70.

Visit the Garden World Spring Festival and see 11 designer gardens till Sunday September 1, 8am – 5pm. Garden World, Beyers Naudé Drive in Muldersdrift. Entrance to the Designer Gardens is R20 and children under 12 free. Booking for the talks, workshops and music is essential. Contact Magriet on 011 957 2545 or 083 997 6142. Visit www.gardenworld.co.za

 

GENERAL TIPS

* No winter garden is complete without pansies and violas. Whether you prefer to grow old favourites or try some of the latest introductions, all will add colour to your winter and spring garden.

* Indoor plants can become dusty. Clean leaves with Wonder Wipes or use a damp sponge on smooth leaves, and a soft brush on hairy leaves. Fires and heaters tend to make the air dry and brown tips on leaves can be an indication of low humidity. Mist foliage to help increase humidity.

* When buds on fruit trees appear in early spring, apply fertiliser granules for fruit trees, 500g per year of the age of the tree, maximum 4kgs. Always extend the fertiliser to the drip line of the branches and water thoroughly. Also fertilise citrus trees, keeping granules away from the stem and extending to the drip line of the branches, then water thoroughly.

* Leave damaged and withered leaves on plants until all danger from frost is over. Even though these leaves may not look attractive, they help protect the crown of plants and any emerging new shoots from frost damage. – Saturday Star

FORT WAYNE – Nearby residents called it the ugliest stretch of road in the city. It looked more like an airport tarmac lined with nondescript outbuildings than a business district.

But neighbors and business owners thought North Anthony Boulevard between Crescent Avenue and St. Joe River Drive could be more – much more – and pushed city officials to make changes so it could achieve its potential.

“I was told they used this area as an example of what not to do in urban planning,” said Mo Palmer, who lives nearby and owns Cultured Gardens landscaping firm. “But I just knew it could be so much more.”

It was hard to see how: North Anthony widened to six lanes of traffic, with three lanes in one direction, two in another and a center left-turn lane. There were 24 curb cuts in one block, few if any trees, and no character.

“It was just designed for traffic – as much and as fast as you could do,” Palmer said.

But that changed dramatically in 2009, when city officials spent about $700,000 to remove one lane from the street, install an 8-foot-wide trail, plant trees and install planted medians where the left-turn lane wasn’t needed. Since then, a half-dozen businesses have received facade grants, in which city money helps business owners make improvements to the exterior of their properties, fixing up amenities such as lighting, signage, awnings, parking and fencing.

Today, there are several new businesses, and new ones seem to keep appearing, despite the closure of the Scott’s grocery store that anchored the area. Many feared the closure would hurt the corridor, but it continues to thrive.

“The improvements that have been made to the corridor have definitely helped the area,” said Sandra Wharton, co-owner of Vanilla Bean Unique Cookies and Cupcakes, which opened after the project was complete. “I’d describe it now as the Broadripple of Fort Wayne – it’s more like an artsy, collegey area.”

Palmer said residents didn’t want to change the area’s identity, they wanted to find it and embrace it. That can be easier in classic, older areas like Wells Street, she said.

“But this has funky, funked-up architecture and a big cow (on the Jameson’s Meats sign),” she said. “It’s some weird, eclectic stuff.”

City officials said having neighbors willing to work for what they wanted, and who wanted things that were reasonable, made the project happen.

“The residents in the area really wanted to improve what they considered their neighborhood commercial area. This was a place they wanted to spend their money and time,” said Pam Holocher, the city’s deputy director of planning and policy. “They had a lot of ideas and sweat equity.”

Among the ideas was turning abandoned playground equipment into works of art. The old, painted concrete turtle, helix and dolphin had been pulled out of playgrounds years before and were languishing in a maintenance storage area of Franke Park when Palmer saw them and thought they’d perfectly match the 1970s-era vibe of the buildings on North Anthony. When the trail was built, they were installed along it like public art.

Now, those sculptures are becoming real works of art: The helix and turtle have been removed so they can be sandblasted and painted white, and the helix, which sits in front of Belmont Beverages, will be decorated in Sharpie Art by local artist and Memorial Park Middle School art teacher Amy Clark. Sharpie Art uses permanent markers to decorate objects; the helix will get a grapevines and wine theme, with Clark’s time and materials paid for by Belmont.

“I think it will be perfect for this area because it’s really eye-catching,” Clark said. The turtle is being prepped now but will be decorated at some point in the future.

Businesses have been key to much of what has happened: When officials proposed dramatically reducing the number of driveways, business owners balked at losing direct access.

“It took time to negotiate with businesses – we had to work with them to realize the value in creating a sense of place,” the city’s Holocher said. “But after we spruced up that corridor, they really responded by investing in their buildings.”

Mike Vorndran, the former president of the North Anthony Neighborhood Association and now the group’s treasurer, said the project shows that a relatively small investment can create huge improvements in the quality of life.

“It’s not a crutch, it’s just a little help,” Vorndran said. “The bike path along there has really helped … you can get places without risking your life now. I see a lot of young people over there walking, shopping and catching the bus, and I love it.”

dstockman@jg.net

FORT WAYNE – Nearby residents called it the ugliest stretch of road in the city. It looked more like an airport tarmac lined with nondescript outbuildings than a business district.

But neighbors and business owners thought North Anthony Boulevard between Crescent Avenue and St. Joe River Drive could be more – much more – and pushed city officials to make changes so it could achieve its potential.

“I was told they used this area as an example of what not to do in urban planning,” said Mo Palmer, who lives nearby and owns Cultured Gardens landscaping firm. “But I just knew it could be so much more.”

It was hard to see how: North Anthony widened to six lanes of traffic, with three lanes in one direction, two in another and a center left-turn lane. There were 24 curb cuts in one block, few if any trees, and no character.

“It was just designed for traffic – as much and as fast as you could do,” Palmer said.

But that changed dramatically in 2009, when city officials spent about $700,000 to remove one lane from the street, install an 8-foot-wide trail, plant trees and install planted medians where the left-turn lane wasn’t needed. Since then, a half-dozen businesses have received facade grants, in which city money helps business owners make improvements to the exterior of their properties, fixing up amenities such as lighting, signage, awnings, parking and fencing.

Today, there are several new businesses, and new ones seem to keep appearing, despite the closure of the Scott’s grocery store that anchored the area. Many feared the closure would hurt the corridor, but it continues to thrive.

“The improvements that have been made to the corridor have definitely helped the area,” said Sandra Wharton, co-owner of Vanilla Bean Unique Cookies and Cupcakes, which opened after the project was complete. “I’d describe it now as the Broadripple of Fort Wayne – it’s more like an artsy, collegey area.”

Palmer said residents didn’t want to change the area’s identity, they wanted to find it and embrace it. That can be easier in classic, older areas like Wells Street, she said.

“But this has funky, funked-up architecture and a big cow (on the Jameson’s Meats sign),” she said. “It’s some weird, eclectic stuff.”

City officials said having neighbors willing to work for what they wanted, and who wanted things that were reasonable, made the project happen.

“The residents in the area really wanted to improve what they considered their neighborhood commercial area. This was a place they wanted to spend their money and time,” said Pam Holocher, the city’s deputy director of planning and policy. “They had a lot of ideas and sweat equity.”

Among the ideas was turning abandoned playground equipment into works of art. The old, painted concrete turtle, helix and dolphin had been pulled out of playgrounds years before and were languishing in a maintenance storage area of Franke Park when Palmer saw them and thought they’d perfectly match the 1970s-era vibe of the buildings on North Anthony. When the trail was built, they were installed along it like public art.

Now, those sculptures are becoming real works of art: The helix and turtle have been removed so they can be sandblasted and painted white, and the helix, which sits in front of Belmont Beverages, will be decorated in Sharpie Art by local artist and Memorial Park Middle School art teacher Amy Clark. Sharpie Art uses permanent markers to decorate objects; the helix will get a grapevines and wine theme, with Clark’s time and materials paid for by Belmont.

“I think it will be perfect for this area because it’s really eye-catching,” Clark said. The turtle is being prepped now but will be decorated at some point in the future.

Businesses have been key to much of what has happened: When officials proposed dramatically reducing the number of driveways, business owners balked at losing direct access.

“It took time to negotiate with businesses – we had to work with them to realize the value in creating a sense of place,” the city’s Holocher said. “But after we spruced up that corridor, they really responded by investing in their buildings.”

Mike Vorndran, the former president of the North Anthony Neighborhood Association and now the group’s treasurer, said the project shows that a relatively small investment can create huge improvements in the quality of life.

“It’s not a crutch, it’s just a little help,” Vorndran said. “The bike path along there has really helped … you can get places without risking your life now. I see a lot of young people over there walking, shopping and catching the bus, and I love it.”

dstockman@jg.net

More than 1,500 people have taken a look at the Grand Avenue Bridge scale model since it was unveiled earlier this summer, according to Colorado Department of Transportation bridge project planners.

The model has been on public display at Strawberry Days, the Tuesday Night Markets and at Glenwood City Hall, generating numerous comments and ideas on what the project should look like and allowing an opportunity for questions about the process.

“The response has been fantastic,” said Joe Elsen, CDOT’s Region 3 East Program Engineer, in a recent press release. “There is a wide range of opinions, and we’ve answered many questions.”

Since the planning for a new bridge began in late 2011, the project team has developed a so-called “build alternative” that is currently being evaluated through a formal Environmental Assessment (EA) process. The full EA is expected to be released for public review in December or January, Elsen said.

The new bridge being studied would follow a new alignment from Grand Avenue on the south, curving west to a reconfigured interchange at Interstate 70 Exit 116 and Sixth and Laurel streets. Sixth Street would no longer carry State Highway 82 traffic, as it does now.

In addition, a new pedestrian bridge would be built, which is needed to carry utility lines and improve pedestrian connections between the Hot Springs Pool area north of the Colorado River and the main part of downtown Glenwood Springs south of the river.

The EA will include a “preferred alternative” and construction mitigation commitments to be considered for final approval by CDOT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) by mid-2014.

Construction on the new $60 million bridge could begin by late 2014, following design and right-of-way purchase, and will likely take about two years, according to CDOT officials. The project is using money designated from the special Colorado Bridge Enterprise fund.

Over the next several months CDOT will be requesting input from the City on landscaping, urban design and other architectural elements of the project.

“While decisions on these elements rely on approval by FHWA and the Colorado Bridge Enterprise, this input will help the project team better match the needs of the project with the context of Glenwood Springs,” Elsen said.

The bridge model continues to be on display in the lobby at Glenwood Springs City Hall, 101 West 8th Street, and will also be at the Tuesday Night Market in Centennial Park every other week from 4-8 p.m.

More than 1,500 people have taken a look at the Grand Avenue Bridge scale model since it was unveiled earlier this summer, according to Colorado Department of Transportation bridge project planners.

The model has been on public display at Strawberry Days, the Tuesday Night Markets and at Glenwood City Hall, generating numerous comments and ideas on what the project should look like and allowing an opportunity for questions about the process.

“The response has been fantastic,” said Joe Elsen, CDOT’s Region 3 East Program Engineer, in a recent press release. “There is a wide range of opinions, and we’ve answered many questions.”

Since the planning for a new bridge began in late 2011, the project team has developed a so-called “build alternative” that is currently being evaluated through a formal Environmental Assessment (EA) process. The full EA is expected to be released for public review in December or January, Elsen said.

The new bridge being studied would follow a new alignment from Grand Avenue on the south, curving west to a reconfigured interchange at Interstate 70 Exit 116 and Sixth and Laurel streets. Sixth Street would no longer carry State Highway 82 traffic, as it does now.

In addition, a new pedestrian bridge would be built, which is needed to carry utility lines and improve pedestrian connections between the Hot Springs Pool area north of the Colorado River and the main part of downtown Glenwood Springs south of the river.

The EA will include a “preferred alternative” and construction mitigation commitments to be considered for final approval by CDOT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) by mid-2014.

Construction on the new $60 million bridge could begin by late 2014, following design and right-of-way purchase, and will likely take about two years, according to CDOT officials. The project is using money designated from the special Colorado Bridge Enterprise fund.

Over the next several months CDOT will be requesting input from the City on landscaping, urban design and other architectural elements of the project.

“While decisions on these elements rely on approval by FHWA and the Colorado Bridge Enterprise, this input will help the project team better match the needs of the project with the context of Glenwood Springs,” Elsen said.

The bridge model continues to be on display in the lobby at Glenwood Springs City Hall, 101 West 8th Street, and will also be at the Tuesday Night Market in Centennial Park every other week from 4-8 p.m.