Phil Florian wrote:DL, all the redesignation and such of districts is a City responsibility and doesn't really cost anything, correct? I assume that this is the larger role for the City of Lakewood since they shouldn't be spending new money on this, right?
Yes, this falls within the larger role of the city. This doesn't require "new" money, but we still have to pay the salaries of the folks in the Planning Dept. and the Law Dept. so we can't say it's free.
There is a process which must be followed, which takes time, and DH & I have talked with several council members about it. They were very receptive to the idea, especially because there's really no down side to a district designation and they understand how the Arts work as an economic driver.
Sometimes timing is everything and we're nearing the point where the timing is right.
While an Arts District would not impact the Historic Neighborhood designation of Birdtown, it is important to do nothing to confuse that issue, which is one reason why council members have very sensibly hesitated in moving forward until that process has been finalized.