Mayor Vonderheide Covers Downtown Revitalization, Temporary Strassenfest Relocation, and Recreation and Aquatic Center Updates in Coffee and Conversation

By Kris Norton

Jasper - In a Tuesday morning Coffee and Conversation session at the Jasper Train Depot, Jasper Mayor Dean Vonderheide touched on everything from the Downtown Revitalization Project and the short-term relocation of Strassenfest, to efforts to bring more housing options to the area.

In the 8:00 a.m. question-and-answer meeting, Vonderheide opened by looking back on Veterans Day before looking ahead to the future Downtown Revitalization Project. Vonderheide reported that the engineering, planning phase is well underway; bids for contracting are expected in early January.

Vonderheide points to aging utilities in the area as the primary reason for the overhaul, while referencing the water main break in the weeks leading up to last year’s Strassenfest.

“That’s the main reason we’re doing it, is we’ve got a lot of utilities and infrastructure in there that’s aged – as a matter of fact, we had a break two weeks before Strassenfest,” Vonderheide said. “I was really worried to have a water line break two weeks before, right outside the Courthouse Square, on the north side.”

“I was thinking, ‘Okay, we’re going to have a water slide at Strassenfest,’” Vonderheide joked.

The current plan includes the replacement of water lines and sewers. Replacing the pavement on the road, new concrete sidewalks, as well as parking spaces made from permeable pavers to better handle rainwater. Another phase in the plan would see construction from 7th to 9th Street and from 5th to 3rd Street at a later time

Possible collateral of next year’s construction – Strassenfest will need to be moved temporarily.

“I’ve asked Strassenfest to consider moving this year because of the Downtown Revitalization, so we’ll be under construction next summer,” Vonderheide said. “It’ll be torn up so Strassenfest is going to relocate – they’re looking right now at relocating along 4^th Street, East and West, down to the Schaeffer Barn. We don’t have finalized plans on that, but the committee is looking on what that might look like and how we might be able to accommodate that.”

Fueled by an 11.1% increase in population in the latest census, Mayor Vonderheide stressed the importance of creating new housing in the downtown area. Vonderheide added the possibility, and exploration, of market-rate housing in the city. The act of converting more floors above downtown businesses to apartments was mentioned.

“I have people that come and stay at the hotel to look, they want to live here, but they have no place that they can find to move into,” Vonderheide said. “That’s just a sad state to be in.”

Vonderheide hopes more housing options may draw in more people, and fill some of the approximately 2,000 reported open jobs in the area.

For the established residents, Vonderheide touched on an upcoming amenity, one that is still in the planning phase. The proposed Indoor Sports Recreation and Aquatic Center, with a potential $30-$40 million price tag, is still taking shape. The City of Jasper is looking at potential partnerships with the National Guard, YMCA, the Parks Department, and Memorial Hospital. The Center would likely be located at Bartley and 15^th Street.

All involved parties are weighing the costs and benefits of an outdoor or indoor Aquatic Center. The groups are hopeful to have a rough draft in January, then public forums afterwards. The City of Jasper intends on keeping the current pool operational until the new Center is complete.