Wait until you determine the future of the historic buildings on the East Side of the Garland Square before you finalize a landscaping plan and other redesign work for the Square’s central portion, the city of Garland and consultants were cautioned in a public meeting last night.
Numerous citizens testifying at a public hearing urged those in charge not to, in effect, get the “cart before the horse” in planning details for the Square’s redesign before knowing whether some of those elements, such as restrooms, would be duplicated in plans for the East Side.
The David C. Baldwin landscape architecture and urban planning firm had hoped to have a final Square concept plan ready for a Sept. 27 public hearing so plans could be developed for the city’s capital improvement budget at the end of the year. They asked for citizen input about three detailed conceptual plans presented at the hearing so that a decision ideally could be narrowed down to one plan by the Sept. 27 date.
Several citizens urged a delay until definitive decisions could be made about the area known as “the Crossman block”, named for the Curtis Crossman Sr. insurance firm that occupied a portion of the East Side for many years.
David Baldwin said that architects are having a structural engineer look at the building to see about the strength of the roof to determine whether part or any of the existing building could be saved.
Some citizens raised concerns that altering the historic fabric of the Crossman block would threaten the city’s pending plans to apply to have the Square placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Baldwin said the “whole idea of saving the Crossman block (to not damage the National Register process and subsequent possible economic benefits to downtown businesses) just came up a couple of weeks ago” in conversations with the city. He said his firm was charged with developing conceptual plans “up to the edge” of the Crossman block—a plan that ideally would work whether a new building was built there or not.
Chad Jones, an owner of the H.W. Jones Hardware on the Square’s North Side, questioned why “we are fast-tracking” getting the concept plans for the central portion together without being able to view the Square development in its entirety, with the outcome for the Crossman block included in that plan. Jones said he would prefer a plan that included more open space, similar to one that was proposed the last time a Square redesign was studied.
“If the decision were made that we can’t keep the Crossman building, wouldn’t you have a different recommendation regarding overall landscaping?” Jones asked Baldwin.
“Yes, but we weren’t given that directive,” Baldwin replied. He said that it was only mentioned to his firm in a city staff meeting a couple of weeks ago that the city is finalizing plans to apply for the National Register for Historic Places.
Months ago city staff hired preservation architect Nancy McCoy to begin the National Register process. She and her firm have to finalize the application and get City Council approval before actually applying to include the Square on the National Register, a process that could take more than a year from start to finish. Besides concerns about the lack of coordination within the city regarding the future of the Square, concerns were expressed that the demolition or severe alteration of the Crossman East Side of the Square accidentally could derail the long-sought national recognition or cause it to be revoked later.
Citizen Mike Rose asked, “If you are under the gun to come up with an answer for the CIP process, couldn’t that be put off?” (That answer would include an architectural rendering and a detailed opinion of costs to give to council.)
“That was the schedule that was set for us,” Baldwin replied.
Baldwin said he had hoped that Thursday night’s discussion could be steered toward the merits of the three conceptual plans without venturing into the future of the Crossman block or the National Register nomination, since it was not part of the firm’s directive.
But as is typical when the subject comes up, the first question (and many thereafter) during audience-comment time pertained to the East Side’s future.
An oft-repeated citizen contention was that the three plans possibly crowded too many elements into such a small area (0.64 acres) and that a great deal more open space was needed. Baldwin said some of this could be adjusted.
Richard Hargrove of Alton’s Antiques said he hoped the “Crossman Building could be the anchor building for the entire square.” Kay Crossman Turner of Garland, granddaughter of Curtis Crossman Sr., was present in the audience.
The three plans feature a variety of combinations of elements such as green spaces, splash pads, interactive sculptures, arbors, water features, temporary stages, flag plazas, commemorative plaques and interpretive signage.
However, when a citizen asked Baldwin what plans the firm had designed for the city’s time capsule that has been instilled in the Square and is to be opened at a future date, Baldwin said the firm was not aware of the existence of the capsule.
In the history of the Square, on the east side was the block that later became generally known as the Crossman Block for the Crossman Insurance Company, founded by George Wilson Crossman and later operated by his son, Curtis Crossman Sr. (longtime dweller at 400 South 11th). The Alamo-style building that housed Citizens National Bank was at the northeast corner. Adjacent to it were four storefronts designed as one building and built in 1906. Initially these storefronts housed a restaurant, tailor, barber and post office. At the end near Main (then North Street) was a drugstore and variety store built between 1907-1912.
Ultimately the East Side was the home of the Nicholson Memorial Library (on the northeast) and also a dress shop, the insurance agency, the A&P Grocery, and a furniture store. The portion of the East Side that housed the library has been razed and is now open space.
Four city council members-Anita Goebel, Scott LeMay, B.J. Williams, and Jim Cahill—attended the meeting, as did Scott Roberts, chair of the plan commission; Louis Moore, plan commission member and Mayor Douglas Athas.