Auburn University students present revitalization strategies for Pell City

PELL CITY, Ala. — Downtown Pell City is home to several mom and pop shops along with government buildings.

Friday, people in Pell City got a lesson from Auburn University students who have a plan to revitalize the city's downtown.

"The site that we're working on is Brownfield," Makala Gibson, a graduate student said. "It's right by downtown. So there's a big connection that can be made. So I think in our project we were trying to revitalize this area."

The graduate students are studying landscape architecture and community planning.

They interviewed city leaders, neighbors, and store owners.

Through their research, they noticed a separation of streetscaping between downtown and adjacent areas.

"There's a clear definition of street planning downtown that stops right after the railroad," Keena Miles, a graduate student said. "A lot of us were thinking more plant based techniques to create that walkability factor to cross the railroad system."

Some plans include farmers markets and vegetable gardens.

Another idea involved addressing safety concerns by putting in sidewalks.

The overall goal is to find ways to better utilize the city's assets and to use them to spur economic growth.

Students got some of their ideas by taking a look at what worked for areas like Athens, Alabama.

Pell City officials say they plan to use portions of the students work, but will not be adopting any plans wholesale.