The City Council will consider the Downtown Development Authority’s (DDA) recommendation on Downtown Northville street closures at its meeting Monday, June 6, 7 p.m. (at City Hall and on Zoom). In May, the DDA voted 5-4 to reopen N. Center St. from E. Main to Dunlap but keep Main St. closed from N. Center to Hutton without establishing a timeframe. The public is invited to comment at the meeting.
There’s already been plenty of community input into the pros/cons about how to handle the two sections of downtown streets in the near future: keep them closed to traffic or reopen them. Most restaurant owners and retailers said the street closures helped their businesses. Another factor to consider is the street closure’s impact on local traffic patterns, especially at intersections and in neighborhoods close to downtown.
DDA commissioned an online survey, conducted by Carlisle Wortman Associates, asking respondents whether the downtown street closures should continue (in some form) or reopen to vehicular traffic. Of the 4,053 responses, 74% were in favor of street closures (either one or both streets) and the vast majority (80%) wanted to keep the social district with 53% wanting to expand it.
The DDA and City Council jointly held a public forum in May to share survey results and receive additional input from residents, business owners and visitors. Full survey results, including extensive written comments, are posted on the
DDA website.