Meeting Reminder

Today at 6:00 p.m., at 1 North Front Street, Friends of the Public Square (a.k.a. FOPS) holds a community meeting regarding future plans for Seventh Street Park. 

At the meeting, Starr Whitehouse, the landscape architects retained by FOPS, will present design options for the historic park and seek input from those attending the meeting.

Last Friday, Gail Wittwer-Laird of Starr Whitehouse, made a preliminary presentation to the Historic Preservation Commission. That presentation can be found here, beginning at 47:07. It includes several concept designs for improving the connectivity and functionality of the park. A few of these designs are reproduced below.

The presentation also touched on park furnishings. Starr Whitehouse is recommending using the Central Park settee, which is being used at Promenade Hill, in the Public Square as well. 

There was also a discussion of the central element of the Public Square: the fountain. Wittwer-Laird presented the different typologies of fountains, from the most complex to the simplest. She reported that she had measured Venus in the DPW garage where she is stored and calculated that the original fountain would have been 18 feet high. "That's very high," Wittwer-Laird commented.

Photo: Evelyn & Robert Monthie Collection, Columbia County Historical Society

"You can imagine," said Wittwer-Laird, "when you came down Warren Street or Columbia Street [and saw the fountain], that was a really big event. So, how can we bring back the big event?--whether it's with Venus or not."

Come to the meeting later today and make your preferences for this public space known.