FARMINGTON – The city of Farmington held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening and completion of the downtown area Friday morning.
The Farmington Main Street Project is part of a larger downtown revitalization effort with the national Main Street America Program.
According to the city, this project has spanned through at least four sitting mayors.
In 2002, the project was deemed within the comprehensive plan as the most important goal that was established for the city’s future.
The full 12-month reconstruction of the streetscape, as well as reconstruction of the infrastructure under Main Street, including water, sewer and electrical, totaled around $11 million.
Businesses were able to remain open during construction, though not necessarily during the COVID-19 shutdowns. The completion of the downtown Main Street project finished just in time for Christmas.
“We were committed, as a city, that we were doing our utmost to make sure that this was done in time for the holidays because it’s just a huge time for businesses,” said Warren Unsicker, economic development director for the city of Farmington. “Obviously, COVID has put a little bit of a damper on that, but we wanted to make sure that, at least on our side, we did everything we could to get people back down here.”
Unsicker said even though the businesses could stay open during the construction, completing the project in time for Christmas will make the downtown even more fun and festive for the holidays.
“It’s vital to have this back up so that the public can come down and easily access the businesses,” Unsicker said. “It just makes it that much more enjoyable and fun for the holiday season.”
The project also made improvements to the downtown area with the Americans with Disabilities Act in mind. Wider sidewalks, crosswalks, more lighting and creating and improving ramps were all done to make downtown more accessible.
mmitchell@durangoherald.com
