The Urban Development Authority initiated Macon Action Plan (MAP) is complete and live after a vote of the plan’s collaborative steering committee. The community-driven plan for the future of Macon’s Urban Core will serve as a blueprint for urban core planning. Thousands of people who live, work, worship, learn, and play in Macon’s downtown and surrounding neighborhoods offered opinions, ideas, and insight for the final plan.

“I’m delighted we have a plan for our urban core that involved the input of so many people and organizations, and, even better, that there is widespread support to see the Macon Action Plan through,” says Macon-Bibb County Mayor Robert Reichert. “Our Downtown – from the business district to the neighborhoods to the government, health and education services – is the core of our community and provides us the strength to continue building on our recent successes.”

Steering committee chair and local architect Shannon Fickling stated, “Bringing the non-profits, government entities, downtown business owners, residents, religious communities and educational institutions together required dedication, time, and energy to create the plan. It’s great to be able to say the plan is completed and we’re off and running with the design of Clinton Street, one of the first exciting projects that resulted from the committee’s ideas and recommendations for the city.”

“Investment in the Urban Core will strengthen the economy of both Macon-Bibb and the region. MAP is focused on creating a place that supports existing residents while attracting and retaining jobs and talent,” noted lead consultant Scott Page of Interface Studio.

“Macon has demonstrated the ability to take action. The Macon Action Plan builds upon the accomplishments of initiatives like the College Hill Corridor to further revitalize the heart of Macon as a place to work, start a business, play, learn and live. It’s success will be determined by the same creative and effective local leadership that have collaborated to create this achievable vision for the future of Downtown and surrounding neighborhoods,” said Page.

Plan details
The MAP includes an Executive Summary; Introduction chapter with background on the project, a summary of MAP’s public outreach, the community’s collective vision for the future, and suggestions for aligning leadership, capacity, and funding and increasing community involvement to help implement the action strategies that together; and MAP’s action strategies, organized under the following goals:

• Support the engines of economic development – action strategies seek to support key institutions and large employers as well as smaller commercial and industrial businesses, striving to help existing businesses thrive and grow while also working to attract new businesses and services
• Create an unparalleled Urban Core experience – action strategies suggest improvements to parks and the public realm, events and programs to draw more residents and visitors to the Urban Core, gateway treatments that enhance the sense of arrival to the Urban Core, as well as ideas for marketing and promotion.
• Focus on Urban Core living – action strategies outline next steps for residential development in Downtown and identify strategic opportunities in Urban Core neighborhoods
• Cultivate connectivity – action strategies address parking, automobile and truck access to and through the Urban Core, and active transportation opportunities to encourage walking and biking.

Each goal chapter concludes with its own Implementation Matrix, a chart that outlines community priorities, key partners, phasing, and potential funding sources for every action strategy. The plan concludes with a brief chapter on early actions, outlining important next steps for the coming year.

Two early action projects recommended by the Macon Action Plan

• Mill Hill
 – The UDA has partnered with Macon Arts Alliance and Historic Macon Foundation to revitalize the block of houses on Schell Ave. and Hydrolia St. in East Macon as an arts village. Plans for the village were developed as part of MAP, and work on restoring the first set of homes will begin in November. Additional streetscape and infrastructure improvements will be included as part of the project. Macon Arts is in the process of establishing an artist-in-residence program for the neighborhood and is leading the charge in the rehabilitation of the Clinton St Auditorium, built in 1920 by the Bibb Manufacturing Company.
• Clinton Street 
- Originally considered as a parkway into the Ocmulgee National Monument’s rear entrance, the Clinton Street park concept was developed in conjunction with MAP to be a passive park for the neighborhood to use and connect the neighborhood to the job centers in the urban core. Residents shared input on what they would like to see in the neighborhood and a park for children to use was a top priority. The UDA has acquired most of the land for the park and will begin clearing properties for park development soon.

Background
The Macon Action Plan (MAP) is a plan to envision the future for Downtown and surrounding neighborhoods and guide change in coming years. Facilitated by the Macon-Bibb Urban Development Authority, Macon-Bibb County, and their partners, in collaboration with the MAP planning team led by Interface Studio, the plan incorporates thorough research, community feedback, and expert planning. In September 2015, the MAP was approved by the volunteer steering committee including representatives of UDA, NewTown Macon, Historic Macon Foundation, Macon Arts Alliance, College Hill Alliance, Macon-Bibb County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Macon-Bibb County Commission, property owners, business owners, local churches, and Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative.

The final plan was made possible with generous funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and The Peyton Anderson Foundation. In October 2015, Macon-Bibb Urban Development Authority was awarded the 360-Degree Award by NewTown Macon for exhibiting a commitment to all three of NewTown’s focus areas through Macon Action Plan: increasing residents, growing jobs, and creating a sense of place. To view the final plan, visit maconactionplan.com.