DANVILLE, Va. (WDBJ) – The River District has seen a complete transformation over the past decade. Now, the city is expanding its revitalization efforts to another historic district.
The River District Redevelopment Plan started in 2011.
Now that the River District is thriving nearly 15 years later, Samantha Bagbey with Danville’s Economic Development department says phase two of the redevelopment plan can begin.
“The River District – think of it as your living room,” said Samantha Bagbey, Danville Economic Development Project Manager. “That’s the first place when guests come, you want to invite them to go and sit. The living room is doing pretty good right now. So now, what other parts of the house are we wanting to branch out to?”
It’s called Plan Mechanicsville. The Mechanicsville District is right outside the River District in the High Street area.
Mechanicsville has a rich history that dates to the late 1800s.
In 1963, during the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Martin Luther King gave a speech at High Street Baptist Church. It was also where many protests were organized during that time.
“There are many, many buildings and locations here that are just rooted in history. We’re making sure that not only do we preserve it, but we keep it alive,” added Bagbey.
The first phase of Plan Mechanicsville is to hear from the residents through community meetings and surveys to come up with a final master plan by the spring.
Then, revitalization efforts can begin on areas such as housing, parks, public spaces, streets and more.
But Bagbey says that won’t be possible without the community’s input.
“We want to make sure this is the community that they want to see and that they want to continue to live in while also bringing in new residents to the area to help continue to uplift it,” said Bagbey.
There will also be a community event on North Union Street November 15 from noon to 3 p.m. where residents can enjoy fun activities and voice their opinions.
