Published: August 16, 2008 08:29 pm      

Downtown talk on the air

Both sides speak out on proposed downtown overlay plan

Supporters and opponents of the proposed “Historic Downtown Overlay” had their say Saturday during a live broadcast on KAND Radio.

The one-hour program, broadcast from Two Doors Down Coffee Shop, brought together spokesmen from both sides of the issue, scheduled for a vote by the Corsicana City Council when it meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Malinda Sharpley, Main Street director for the city, was on hand to address questions raised about the proposal, one that has been in development over the last several months. Several re-writes of the proposal came as the result of input from downtown businesses and city staff. The plan was most recently revised this week.

“We probably should have done this some time ago,” Sharpley said when asked by program host David Yates why the plan was being presented now.

Robert Horvath, a builder and contractor, spoke against implementation of the overlay plan, a plan he says will infringe on the rights of downtown property owners. Horvath said restrictions in the plan on the kind of windows and color of paint to use should be left up to the individual property owners.

“That’s our right,” he said, adding that some of the elements of the overlay plan were either covered by existing ordinances or were in direct conflict with laws on the books now.

“What we’re doing now is working ... we’re doing it on our own,” Horvath said.

Lowell Dunn, who recently purchased and renovated the old Tekell Furniture building on Beaton Street, said he believed the proposal would help protect the investment that building owners make in Corsicana.

“I don’t want to wake up tomorrow and find the building next to me doing something that could be detrimental to my property,” Dunn said.

Horvath acknowledged that “some sort of guidelines” would be acceptable, but demanded more input from the downtown community.

“We want to have a vote ... select our own officers,” he said.

“It’s our downtown, not the city’s.”

Brad Cook, another supporter of the overlay plan, expressed concern for the downtown area’s long term survival.

“We’re looking at the future ... I want to ensure the integrity of our downtown,” Cook said. “If we don’t do this, we’ll be sticking ourselves in the past.”

Cook said he felt that some of the opposition to the overlay plan is “a lot of misunderstanding.”

“If everyone was totally honest, they would like to see some rules downtown,” he added.

About a half-dozen people participated in the program’s discussion by way of telephone, with about a 50/50 mix of pro and con comments on the plan.

Saturday’s radio program was one of two public forums on the overlay plan in the past week. The city hosted a “Town Hall” meeting Aug. 11 at the Corsicana Public Library, attended by about 40 people.

The overlay plan will be discussed by the council at a 5 p.m. workshop on Tuesday, followed by a scheduled vote on the plan in the 6 p.m. regular meeting.

—————

Bob Belcher may be reached via e-mail at belcher@corsicanadailysun.com