(2/2) For years local leaders, consultants & experts, planners & engineers, developers & attorneys dreamed of transforming Downtown Oxford Michigan into a āpedestrian friendlyā Main Street America village that would attract upscale shoppers & new retailers. Studies illustrated renovated storefronts, cute boutiques, fabulous restaurants, new infill buildings, and hip urban amenities. The daily rumble and toxic exhaust of 30,000 cars, trucks & gravel haulers speeding along the M24 highway that bisects Downtown Oxford was conveniently ignored, hidden behind images of a new streetscape with brick paver sidewalks, cast-iron lampposts, benches, bike racks, majestic trees, and generous landscaping.
Preserving a past that never existed required rigid adherence to the plan approved by local leaders. Residents, businesses, and property owners who questioned the utopian vision were dismissed, harassed & threatened. āItās too late to change plansā was a common response. āIf you donāt like how the Village is run, move somewhere elseā was heard more than once. āProtecting the character of the Villageā or āthatās not the image we have for Oxfordā was sufficient reason to deny undesirable projects, improvements, and people.
#PedestrianFriendly #MainStreet #DDA #DowntownDevelopment #UrbanPlanning #CityPlanning #Accessability #Handicap #PropertyRights #Michigan #HistoricPreservation