KEENE, NH – Keene’s City Council is giving themselves a couple more weeks to process information relating to the Downtown Infrastructure Improvement and Reconstruction project before making a final decision.

The project appeared on the full council agenda Thursday evening. Last week, the Municipal Services, Facilities, and Infrastructure committee voted 3-2 to recommend that Central Square’s configuration remains the same with some improvements to lane markings, lengths of crosswalks, and traffic lighting systems, improvements to Main Street to maximize sidewalk widths while keeping parking in the central median, that raised crossing tables be installed from Gilbo Avenue to Railroad Street and updates are made to other crosswalks in the corridor, that the project include infrastructure for the installation of public restrooms, that protected bike lanes not be included in the final design, that an evaluation is done during the final design process of all turning movements on connected streets, and that Gilbo Avenue remains a two way street.

MSFI Committee Chair Mitch Greenwald moved to carry out the intent of the committee report, and explained his personal reasoning behind the motion, that passed in the MSFI Committee the week before with councilors Bobby Williams and Catherine Workman opposed.

Immediately after that, Councilor Kate Bosely moved to amend the motion, and recommended that the motion goes to a council workshop to be held on a date that is to be determined, after Urban Designer Jeff Speck visits the city on June 12th and holds a public presentation regarding his recommendations for the project.

Bosely and a couple of other councilors who were in favor of the motion, including Bettina Chadbourne, pointed out that the council voted at their previous meeting to donate up to $5,000 towards the Keene Downtown Group’s fundraising efforts to bring Speck to the city, so the city should attend his presentation and take his recommendations into consideration.

Other councilors felt that the project has been bounced around from committees, public hearings, and workshops since last November, and it’s time for them to make a decision and move on.

Workman suggested that the council workshop should be scheduled in lieu of the regular council meeting scheduled for June 15th. The city will announce the date of the workshop at a later date.

As for what happens after that workshop, Bosely said that the council should decide how they would like to proceed at the end of it. The motion passed 11-4 with councilors Randy Filiault, Phil Jones, Kris Roberts, and Greenwald opposed.

Speck joined WKBK’s Open Mic program earlier this week to discuss his work and what it entails for the Downtown project. The full discussion is available here.