TUPELO – Tupelo will be the topic of national buzz soon, considering the city will serve as a pilot program to create a more livable community.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Project for Public Spaces officially will announce Monday that downtown Tupelo beat out applicants from around the country to be the site of the organizations’ “placemaking” demonstration.

For the demonstration, the two national organizations will help local and state leaders improve downtown Tupelo, with an emphasis on transportation enhancement. The program includes a $10,000 grant.

“This is a huge opportunity for us to broaden our thinking about how we plan our infrastructure and build for the future,” said Debbie Brangenberg, executive director of the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association. “It is not about making radical changes from the way we have done things, but learning to embrace new ways to deal with the needs and issues with the future in mind.”

As part of the program, the Washington, D.C.,-based National Trust and the New York-based Project for Public Spaces will have a team conduct workshops and training sessions in Tupelo. The multiple-day event, which is open to the public, is planned for the week of Oct. 4.

The goal is to come up with ideas to make downtown a more pedestrian-friendly area.

Create incentives to walk downtown

The key is to come up with incentives for people to walk around downtown, said Lauren Adkins, the assistant director of the National Trust Main Street Center, which is a part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Incentives include attractive paving patterns, sidewalk dining, safe sidewalks, attractive storefronts and buffers created by trees and bike lanes.

“You know your community much better than we do,” said Steve Davies, the senior vice president of Project for Public Spaces. “The process is set up so people in the community come up with their own ideas for improvements with a little inspiration from us.”

PPS is a nonprofit planning, design and educational organization that has completed projects in more than 2,500 communities in 40 countries and all 50 U.S. states. Some of its projects include Times Square and Bryant Park in New York City, Chinatown’s Central Plaza, West Plaza and Bamboo Lane revitalization in Los Angeles, Congress Street master plan in Tucson, Ariz., and the Miami Baywalk in Miami.

Davies said Tupelo’s application stood out from the 10 communities that applied because it was enthusiastic and it conveyed the sense that “there’s a lot going on already.”

Adkins said all the applications were outstanding, but the selection committee picked Tupelo because the local Main Street organization already had a master plan and had a project in the works.

Plus, Adkins said, the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association has had a “history of success” during its 20 years of existence.

Tupelo, she said, just needed a little more expertise to hit its tipping point.

Make downtown a destination

Main Street’s master plan is geared toward making downtown more of a destination, plus making it more appealing to pedestrians and cyclists. The plan, which was unveiled last year, calls for sidewalk beautification, traffic light synchronization, pedestrian amenities, a downtown park and the three-laning of a section of Main Street to include bike lanes, auto lanes, a center turn lane and on-street parallel parking.

Earlier this year, Main Street, at the recommendation of the state Department of Transportation, expanded the project to include bike lanes to the Elvis Presley Birthplace.

The project is estimated to cost $2.9 million. Main Street is seeking federal funding for the project. The City Council in July committed to provide the 20 percent match of about $573,000 if the grant is awarded.

The master plan has not been approved by the City Council, which is a needed step before the changes can take place.

Yet, in order to be considered for the placemaking pilot program, the City Council approved a letter of agreement that it would implement a “tangible transportation improvement” idea from the workshops within the next year.

Brangenberg said the improvement isn’t clearly defined and could include sidewalks, crosswalks or additional signage.

Mayor Jack Reed Jr. on Friday said he was on board for the project and was “absolutely committed” to sidewalk improvements for safety and health reasons.

“They’re an absolute must for us to become a more livable city,” he said. “Build them and they will come.”

Contact Carlie Kollath at (662) 678-1598 or carlie.kollath@djournal.com.