Cities balance character, commerce
Building and businesses thrive in small towns mindful of their roots.
BRIGHTON, Colo. -- Visitors who stroll down quaint Main Street here often say how much the city reminds them of the small towns they grew up in: Old store facades, railroad tracks through the heart of downtown, free parking everywhere.
On Brighton's east side, visitors at the new Prairie Center could be in Anywhere, USA: Super Target, Kohl's, Home Depot and other big-box retailers in a gleaming shopping center on 2,000 acres of ex-farmland near a freeway ramp.
They're the two faces of Brighton, a city in the path of growth spreading between Denver and Denver International Airport.
For many little cities that want to grow but not lose their small-town feel, creating an environment where the old and the new can thrive is a challenge. How do they prosper and expand their economies yet preserve their historic character and charm?
Keeping the two sides distinct, yet connected, has been Brighton's goal for years. The city created a "smart growth" plan and launched a downtown revitalization campaign. It set design standards, strengthened environmental initiatives, hired a top economic development director and channeled commercial expansion to specific neighborhoods. "We didn't want to be known as a suburb," Mayor Jan Pawlowski says. "We like the small-town atmosphere."
Healthy signs of growth
When the Gadberry Group, a technology consulting firm that identifies growing markets for its clients, compiled its 2007 list of "boomtowns," even its executives were puzzled by the results: Brighton; Frisco, Texas; Goodyear, Ariz.; Plainfield, Ill.; North Port, Fla.; Lawrenceville, Ga.; and Wentzville, Mo.
Chief operating officer Larry Martin says, "I was surprised that all were suburban."
What some are doing:
•Plainfield, Will County's oldest community, is less than 40 miles southwest of Chicago. The village had about 4,500 people on 5.6 square miles in 1990. By 2007, it had 37,000 people and 23.9 square miles through annexation.
The area is surrounded by large retailers, but Plainfield wants its downtown to remain the core. Streets have been ripped up to upgrade sewer and water lines and widen sidewalks. There are proposals for condominiums above offices and stores, sidewalk cafes, a commuter line with connections to Chicago and a riverwalk project along the DuPage River.
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