7 replies to this topic

[mylo]

Hello fellow HD'ers

Just wanted to get everyone's opinion, as residents of the area, with regards to all the construction in town?

With Jerry Bernau's project, Light Rail and The Railroad Block, along with SAC Commercial's project at 602 Sutter, what's your opinion?

Are they destroying a historic area by updating it? Or breathing new life into a dormant part of town? Is the construction overkill? not enough? well thought out?

Will all this new hubbub bring more traffic and create a pain in our resident necks? Or are the additional stores, markets, office space, and restaurants appealing to you?

Your thoughts?

[dnell]

I like the old town feel of this area. I grew up in Placerville, and liked all the historical buildings and areas that dotted the town. I also liked all the open areas of land. In the past 5 years, there has been alot of growth up there, and places that used to be open meadows are now Wal-Marts, McDonald's, and self-storage places. I find it sad to watch.
I do see growth as a positive thing, new places in Folsom provide more jobs, and will promote more people visiting Folsom and spending money, which will be good for the city...but I personally like less. Maybe I'm just a country girl:)

[Chad Vander Veen]

Historic districts sooner or later become relics, which then become artifacts and eventually just old junk.

I think smart growth is important and I fully support the projects in HOF.

[Dave Burrell]

With Jerry Bernau's project, Light Rail and The Railroad Block, along with SAC Commercial's project at 602 Sutter, what's your opinion?

Are they destroying a historic area by updating it? Or breathing new life into a dormant part of town? Is the construction overkill? not enough? well thought out?

Will all this new hubbub bring more traffic and create a pain in our resident necks? Or are the additional stores, markets, office space, and restaurants appealing to you?

Your thoughts?

I like the feeling of old town Sutter Street as it currently stands - its one of my favorite places in all of Folsom. I'm going to miss it when Jerry's world is completed, I think the charm and history of old town is going to be gone with all this new stuff being built.

I also disagree with Chad (sorry) - I think we should maintain the history and heritage that Folsom was built on instead of bulldozing it and turning the place into another shopping mall area so that Jerry can become even wealthier.

I think the new construction and mega parking bldg is just going to turn it into another Roseville galleria and with the old businesses being chased away by big money - soon the area will no longer be unique, it will be just like everything else around here - over built, over crowded and no longer fun

Historic districts sooner or later become relics, which then become artifacts and eventually just old junk.

I think smart growth is important and I fully support the projects in HOF.

You shoulda moved to a newer community - Roseville would be perfect for you - no history, no relics, no artifacts - just lots of strip malls and shopping areas, ideal for anyone who could give a crap about a town's historical significance

[mylo]

I think the new construction and mega parking bldg is just going to turn it into another Roseville galleria and with the old businesses being chased away by big money - soon the area will no longer be unique, it will be just like everything else around here - over built, over crowded and no longer fun

That's certainly a fear of a lot of the stakeholders. But hey, you're not a resident! What you doing in our forum?

I'm really interested to hear the residents opinions. Many will benefit from the increased traffic and desirability of the area. I ask if the potential sacrifice of that "small charm", vs. the potential degradation of the area entirely (I agree with Chad, it eventually will dissintegrate) makes it "worthwhile" for them?

[john]

Historic districts sooner or later become relics, which then become artifacts and eventually just old junk.

I think smart growth is important and I fully support the projects in HOF.

While I agree that historic districts are always in need of more maintenance, I think it's important to set aside more money to preserve the ambiance, etc... especially in Folsom. Sutter STreet is the heart of the city and I love seeing the revitalization in progress. WalMart and Target has its place... just as long as it's far from the historic areas.

[tony]

I'm excited about the possibilities, and last time I checked, nothing old or historic has been bulldozed to date. The old motorcycle repair shop where Jerry's new buildings are going fell down on it's own. That lot was vacant for going on 10 years now.

Even though I disaagree with the location of the proposed parking structure and I feel that it falls far short of the potential for that site, nothing is being torn down to bulld it. It is replacing an asphalt parking lot, and not a verty nice one at that. Nothing was torn down to build the light rail station either.

The revitalization prpogram holds the potential to greatly enhance the historic fabric of the district, much of which has been badly underappreciated, underpromoted and underutilized. I'll bet if you stopped 100 people at Borders Books, 99 of them would not have been to the Powerhouse, the historic interpretive center or even the history museum. And 75 of them probably would not have ever been on Sutter St.

One of the goals of the HD revitalalization program is to help the existing building owners and businesses make improvements that will improve their business opportunities and make the "historic" part of the district more appealing to more people. I have great anticipation of many little things getting done to improve the HD -- one of the first, thanks to Jerry's project, will be having a sidewalk to walk on all the way down at least one side of Sutter St.

Someone mentioned "smart growth". While the parking structure is not exactly a big step in that direction, many of the other ideas coming from the HDR group are. That's exciting in a place where smart growth is hard to find.

[newsblaze]

I think its going to improve because there is great coordination and a lot of effort going in to it.

At the last craft fair, there was a display where you could see some of the drawings of what is coming soon and also of some possibilities. I don't know if there will be a display this evening.

Regarding the parking structure. The initial plan was ugly, but you should see what it will look like now - I think its a beautiful building, in keeping with the historic character. If you have to have a parking structure, this fits the area.

The Historic Folsom Residents Association meets monthly.
We're working to help shape the whole area and keep it in the historic character, but updated. We don't have control over the revitalization, but we voice our opinion.

The HFRA website tells about the meetings and what is going on. I need to do more to show results. There are also postings about the Revitalization project.

All folsom residents are welcome to attend the HFRA meetings. They always run very close to the agenda and finish on-time - there is a special meeting on June 15th. Check the website next week when I post the agenda.