City Council Holding Public Hearing On Downtown Master Plan

The Yakima City Council meeting on Tuesday should be a spirited one as the council will hold a public hearing on the Downtown Master Plan as part of the bi-weekly council meeting.

The plan includes adding a green median on Yakima Ave. while condensing the lanes to one in each direction. There would also be active trolleys running through downtown on Yakima Ave.

The biggest point of contention about the plan seems to be changing the parking lot that currently sits next Chestnut Ave. between Second and Third streets into a public plaza. That part of the plan has come under fire for removing a critical source of downtown parking.

Critics have said that losing the parking lot, especially across the street from the Capitol Theatre, will cause people to not want to go to downtown.

The city has countered by saying that parking will not only be replaced but nearly doubled without using the Yakima Mall parking lot which is expected to eventually be included.

The firm who designed the plan, Crandall Arambula, has called the plaza a game changer to attract events and create a sense of anchor to downtown.

The meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. at city hall.