Athens, Ga. – A team of urban planners, landscape architects, historic preservationists and designers from the University of Georgia College of Environment and Design will arrive in Wilkes County on Nov. 6 for an intensive, three-day public design session, or charrette, to address gateways and scenic corridors into the county.
Wilkes County and its county seat, Washington, are collaborating with Georgia Made Georgia Grown, a company that promotes the sale of local products within the state, and would like CED’s design to complement this program.
“My hope is that visitors will have a wonderful experience from the moment they cross into Wilkes County, and partnering with Georgia Made Georgia Grown will help us achieve this goal,” said David Jenkins, the Washington manager of Georgia Main Street, a state program to develop towns’ core commercial districts.
The team will establish a full working design studio at the Washington City Hall Annex for the weekend. The plans, drawings, analyses and ideas developed during the day will evolve as the weekend progresses, culminating in a final presentation Sunday afternoon.
“Within these three days, the team is charged with designing and illustrating, in plans, maps and renderings, a vision for the protection and enhancement of the roadways leading to the county seat,” says Pratt Cassity, director of CED’s Center for Community Design and Preservation. “We hope to design a place that truly fits Wilkes County’s vision for its future.”
The design team’s three-day calendar includes the following public events at the City Hall Annex: Saturday, Nov. 7, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. and 1 – 2 p.m., drop-in working sessions with design team; and Sunday, Nov. 8, 3 – 4 p.m., closing presentation of preliminary results, public comment and critique. Afterwards, the design team will polish the concepts developed during the charrette and submit a final work plan to the city of Washington and Wilkes County.
For more information, see http://www.ced.uga.edu/index.php/services_outreach/.