On July 22nd we asked Valparaiso residents what they would build in the city if given the choice, and they didn’t hesitate to offer their businesses, venues and projects of choice. Valparaiso is a dynamic and constantly developing city with a creative populace so unsurprisingly there was a lot of feedback. In only two days the post had already accrued over 450 comments and responses. Here we compiled some of the best, most common and most interesting responses from all of you!
Food
“In & Out Burger,” Recommended Gina Cullen, referencing the west coast burger joint.
“An old-fashioned soda fountain shop. Something with shakes, candy counter, sandwiches ect…downtown,” said Tina Guess. Tina was hoping for something, “quick and cheap but nostalgic,” for the downtown area.
Brynn Willett had a wish list of her own, “A real, authentic NY/NJ style deli and/or bagel shop, Trader Joe’s and a non-chain-smoking sports bar,”
Catherine Carlisle Bigger had a couple ideas as well: “Whole Foods and a healthy juice/food place by the Y. (Like Jamba Juice but healthy)”
“A five story warehouse-looking dining and entertainment complex a la the BOB in Grand Rapids. Place it south of the tracks across from the Franklinhouse,” suggested Nat Finn.
Entertainment/Community
“A city pool! Where we can pay as residents for a membership to help maintain it and can pay for guest passes for nonresidents! Money generated would help maintain through the years!” Alicia Balazs-Peiffer recommended. This was a popular idea among many and a common response.
Others had ideas in a similar vein like Leanne Guess, “Fantastic public pool with slides, walk-in depth, diving board, toddler pool, etc!!!” Pat Kearby also weighed in, “Swimming pool. I grew up in East Chicago and it did matter what side of town you lived on, each park had a pool and they were always full!”
“Half Price Books…have begged them for years, but they say we don’t fit their demographics…really??” said Gina Arens, hoping, as several others did, for a used bookstore in town.
Robin Demaree has some ideas for the old ski resort that would add some more entertainment opportunities in town. “An adventure park at the old ski resort. Rope bridges, tree houses, climbing walls, zip lines and hiking trails.” Many were excited by this idea. Taysha Thompson had a similar idea, “An adventure sports park – skatepark, mountain bike trails, rock climbing wall, etc.” Active sports were a popular choice for Valpo residents.
Sonja Streuber suggested something that many Northwest Indiana residents have requested before around the region: “Now that the Star Plaza is really going away, yes, we could use a bigger indoor concert venue, perhaps even as a stage add-on to the Fairpark on 49, to take advantage of the already existing parking.”
“Interactive Children’s Museum or Adventure Park with whitewater rafting, rock climbing, trampoline park and zip lines or a large obstacle course,” recommended Michele Irzyk.
Some were anxious for projects already in the works to get finished, “Finish Tower Park, it’s taking forever. We just want to play bball again…” said Wesley Roy Tutterow.
“Rock climbing gym please…it would make so much money,” said Andrew Morris.
“Art shop to promote local artists – authors, painters, photographers, jewelry makers, etc. Must be art, must be hand-crafted, must be local artists,” said Bob Moulesong.
Infrastructure/Charity/Various
One resident, Benjamin Edward, made joking reference to a classic Simpson’s bit, “A monorail. Well, sir, there’s nothing on earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified, six-car monorail!”
“A new shelter for The Caring Place…Besides a new shelter, I think it would be awesome to have a new homeless shelter or soup kitchen that runs daily. I would also LOVE to see elevated pedestrian walkways,” said Kaykoura Krishna, going in a more philanthropic direction.
“An underground pedestrian walkway that would allow the downtown businesses to have two floors of storefronts and better utilization of parking lots,” said John Kroll, picturing a very creative way to maximize storefronts downtown.
“Crossing gates and safety measures at railroad crossings so Valpo can be a quiet zone,” suggested Garret Kaste.
Among the most popular were suggestions for active sports and entertainment venues, a clear sign of Valpo’s dedication to staying on the move and always trying to improve. All in all the city of Valparaiso has a lot of very creative volunteer city planners with a plethora of ideas floating around in their heads on how to make this already awesome city a whole lot cooler!