Major community investment helps Norwich Museum District improve
Work being done in front of the Northeast Classic Car Museum. Upgrades in the Museum District are expected to be completed by late October or early November, depending on weather and material availability, and are estimated to cost around $1 million. (Photo by Tyler Murphy)
NORWICH — The Museum District in Norwich is getting a $1 million makeover, funded by a mix of grants and donations from local organizations.
The area, located on Rexford Street and spanning from the North Broad Street and Silver Street intersections, is getting new sidewalks, lighting, signs, landscaping, and more.
Local organization, the Friends of the Museum District, is working on things like landscaping, new sidewalks, and lighting, estimated to cost over $400,000, according to Co-chair Eric Larsen.
He said local museums are working on their own projects as well, but have teamed up with Friends of the Museum District to create a master plan for the area, and ensure all upgrades are cohesive.
"There is a group of people called the Friends of the Museum District that have helped both initiate some of the work and also worked in conjunction with the museums that are in the area to make sure that all the improvements that each entity is doing all kind of ducktail together," said Larsen. "Our plans include new sidewalks, landscaping, new curbing, new lighting, some signage for the Museum District. All those things to kind of make the district identifiable, it's own thing."
The Friends of the Museum District includes community members and representatives from the Northeast Classic Car Museum, the Chenango County museums, and the Railroad Museum, according to Larsen. Together they were able to come up with their plans, and then find grant support from local foundations such as the R.C. Smith Foundation, the Greater Norwich Foundation, and more.
"Very fortunately we had some early support from the NBT Foundation (Norwich Building Tomorrow Foundation), and that allowed us to hire the Chazen Engineering Company to develop a plan for us. Because it's hard to get money if you can't show people what you really want to do, and we needed the drawings to be able to get an accurate cost estimate," he explained. "So that seed money allowed us to develop the plan, and when we had the plan in hand and had the cost estimates that were developed in conjunction with that, then that allowed us to go to a series of local foundations and ask them for money. So we just wrote our own grants for that."
These changes come after years of preparations, according to Larsen, and it was finally time to put those plans into action. The goal is to create an identifiable zone that serves as an economic and tourism booster for the area.
"We have this great asset, you know, very fortunate that these buildings are all in a very identifiable, compact area. And we wanted to find a way to enhance that to bring value to it, to bring attention to it, to highlight it, so that it can, you know, continue to grow as an economic and tourism driver for the city and all of Chenango County. It's basically, here's the asset, what can we do to build on it and make it more visible?" said Larsen.
In addition to the upgrades on the streets and museum properties, homeowners in the Museum District are also eligible for revamping projects, Larsen said. He explained that the NBT Foundation came up with the idea to create the Curb Appeal Program, which would reimburse eligible homeowners for improvements to their own properties.
"They went ahead and funded a pool of money that is available to people who live within the area that's being developed. So basically from Broad Street to Silver Street, on Rexford Street, anybody who lives in that stretch can apply and, if approved, they would match up to 5,000 [dollars]," said Larsen. "So if you had a $10,000 project, or more, you could get up to $5,000 reimbursed through this grant fund."
The Curb Appeal Program is ongoing, and Larsen urges residents in the Museum District to apply. Applications will be reviewed first by the Friends of the Museum District, and then the NBT Foundation.
Norwich City Alderman Matthew Caldwell explained the City of Norwich has also contributed to the project, in the form of an in-kind donation of labor.
"The city has offered to provide in-kind services in the form of labor for two constructed sidewalks," said Caldwell. "We authorized up to a specific dollar amount ... we made that motion saying, if it's going to exceed that amount, please come back and we can discuss helping more."
Larsen expressed his gratitude to the City of Norwich for their contribution.
"In the way of shoutouts, one to the City of Norwich because they made a key contribution to this whole project, they're providing all the forms and labor for the sidewalk work. So a significant in-kind contribution there, and a big benefit to the project. You know, it's expensive to do all the other work we're doing, and the city providing those forms and some help getting some of those sidewalks in was a really important and valuable contribution to the project," he said. "The mayor, the common council, Ed Pepe, you know, all deserving some credit there."
The projects being done by the Friends of the Museum District are expected to be completed by the end of October or early November, depending on the weather and availability of materials, according to Larsen. He added that projects done by the museums may take longer, but a specific timeline is not yet available.
Larsen credits the success of the projects to the ability of several entities and organizations to work together for a greater good.
"It's just so nice to see a project where you've got the City of Norwich, and the volunteers, and the foundations, you know, the DPW, and all the people living in the neighborhood, and all the entities that are part of the district all getting together, all working together, to do something positive," Larsen said. "We should certainly highlight the many great things that are going on and are possible when we all put our minds to it."
Caldwell also praised the project, saying the upgrades are a significant improvement for the Museum District.
"I think it's an amazing project, they're moving quickly. I know the city DPW has been working hard. I've been through there and it's looking great, and I'm excited to see what it becomes. It's certainly a huge improvement for that area, and that's exceptional," he said.
"I've heard a lot of great, positive comments and I think it's a really nice improvement for the City of Norwich. Something that people can get excited about and be proud of, and a great example of what working together can accomplish," Larsen added. "It's gonna look sharp when it's done. It's really exciting to see the progress."
The area, located on Rexford Street and spanning from the North Broad Street and Silver Street intersections, is getting new sidewalks, lighting, signs, landscaping, and more.
Local organization, the Friends of the Museum District, is working on things like landscaping, new sidewalks, and lighting, estimated to cost over $400,000, according to Co-chair Eric Larsen.
He said local museums are working on their own projects as well, but have teamed up with Friends of the Museum District to create a master plan for the area, and ensure all upgrades are cohesive.
"There is a group of people called the Friends of the Museum District that have helped both initiate some of the work and also worked in conjunction with the museums that are in the area to make sure that all the improvements that each entity is doing all kind of ducktail together," said Larsen. "Our plans include new sidewalks, landscaping, new curbing, new lighting, some signage for the Museum District. All those things to kind of make the district identifiable, it's own thing."
The Friends of the Museum District includes community members and representatives from the Northeast Classic Car Museum, the Chenango County museums, and the Railroad Museum, according to Larsen. Together they were able to come up with their plans, and then find grant support from local foundations such as the R.C. Smith Foundation, the Greater Norwich Foundation, and more.
"Very fortunately we had some early support from the NBT Foundation (Norwich Building Tomorrow Foundation), and that allowed us to hire the Chazen Engineering Company to develop a plan for us. Because it's hard to get money if you can't show people what you really want to do, and we needed the drawings to be able to get an accurate cost estimate," he explained. "So that seed money allowed us to develop the plan, and when we had the plan in hand and had the cost estimates that were developed in conjunction with that, then that allowed us to go to a series of local foundations and ask them for money. So we just wrote our own grants for that."
These changes come after years of preparations, according to Larsen, and it was finally time to put those plans into action. The goal is to create an identifiable zone that serves as an economic and tourism booster for the area.
"We have this great asset, you know, very fortunate that these buildings are all in a very identifiable, compact area. And we wanted to find a way to enhance that to bring value to it, to bring attention to it, to highlight it, so that it can, you know, continue to grow as an economic and tourism driver for the city and all of Chenango County. It's basically, here's the asset, what can we do to build on it and make it more visible?" said Larsen.
In addition to the upgrades on the streets and museum properties, homeowners in the Museum District are also eligible for revamping projects, Larsen said. He explained that the NBT Foundation came up with the idea to create the Curb Appeal Program, which would reimburse eligible homeowners for improvements to their own properties.
"They went ahead and funded a pool of money that is available to people who live within the area that's being developed. So basically from Broad Street to Silver Street, on Rexford Street, anybody who lives in that stretch can apply and, if approved, they would match up to 5,000 [dollars]," said Larsen. "So if you had a $10,000 project, or more, you could get up to $5,000 reimbursed through this grant fund."
The Curb Appeal Program is ongoing, and Larsen urges residents in the Museum District to apply. Applications will be reviewed first by the Friends of the Museum District, and then the NBT Foundation.
Norwich City Alderman Matthew Caldwell explained the City of Norwich has also contributed to the project, in the form of an in-kind donation of labor.
"The city has offered to provide in-kind services in the form of labor for two constructed sidewalks," said Caldwell. "We authorized up to a specific dollar amount ... we made that motion saying, if it's going to exceed that amount, please come back and we can discuss helping more."
Larsen expressed his gratitude to the City of Norwich for their contribution.
"In the way of shoutouts, one to the City of Norwich because they made a key contribution to this whole project, they're providing all the forms and labor for the sidewalk work. So a significant in-kind contribution there, and a big benefit to the project. You know, it's expensive to do all the other work we're doing, and the city providing those forms and some help getting some of those sidewalks in was a really important and valuable contribution to the project," he said. "The mayor, the common council, Ed Pepe, you know, all deserving some credit there."
The projects being done by the Friends of the Museum District are expected to be completed by the end of October or early November, depending on the weather and availability of materials, according to Larsen. He added that projects done by the museums may take longer, but a specific timeline is not yet available.
Larsen credits the success of the projects to the ability of several entities and organizations to work together for a greater good.
"It's just so nice to see a project where you've got the City of Norwich, and the volunteers, and the foundations, you know, the DPW, and all the people living in the neighborhood, and all the entities that are part of the district all getting together, all working together, to do something positive," Larsen said. "We should certainly highlight the many great things that are going on and are possible when we all put our minds to it."
Caldwell also praised the project, saying the upgrades are a significant improvement for the Museum District.
"I think it's an amazing project, they're moving quickly. I know the city DPW has been working hard. I've been through there and it's looking great, and I'm excited to see what it becomes. It's certainly a huge improvement for that area, and that's exceptional," he said.
"I've heard a lot of great, positive comments and I think it's a really nice improvement for the City of Norwich. Something that people can get excited about and be proud of, and a great example of what working together can accomplish," Larsen added. "It's gonna look sharp when it's done. It's really exciting to see the progress."
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