GREELEY — The stretch of 16th Street from 10th Avenue to Seventh Avenue, and 17th Street from Ninth Avenue to Eighth Avenue, could be due for some redevelopment and revitalization after the Greeley City Council discussed the topic in a work session this week.

Potential improvements include facade improvements for existing business, redevelopment of vacant buildings, new construction on underused parking lots, expansion of pedestrian infrastructure and making the No. 3 Greeley Canal that runs through the area more visually appealing.

The idea of redeveloping these stretches of 16th and 17th Streets has been considered by Greeley city councils for nearly two decades. The city looked at concept plans in 2005 and 2012.

For this iteration, the city is focusing on improving infrastructure first and pursuing development opportunities as they arise. One of the biggest proposed changes is a reconfiguring of parking in the area.

Plans call for the diagonal parking spots on 16th Street to be converted to parallel parking, which would allow for the sidewalks to be widened. More seating and lighting would be added to the sidewalks. 

To counteract that loss of parking, plans call for the parallel parking spaces on Ninth Avenue between 15th and 17th Streets to be converted to diagonal, which would result in a net gain in parking spots. 

The No. 3 Canal would also be converted into a feature of the area while still retaining its function to deliver water to farmers. Well-lighted walking paths lined with trees would be added to both sides of the canal, and more bridges would be constructed to aid pedestrian movement.

Finally, the Eighth Avenue corridor improvements would also be extended south to 17th Street.

This plan is still in the early stages. Public Works staff will present a capital improvement plan to the council at the June 14 work session.