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Total Funding Package Close To Being Fully Identified For Downtown Renovations

October 11th, 2019 by WCBC Radio

A preliminary estimate on the renovations planned for the downtown Cumberland pedestrian mall has the project costing $8.7 million- but there is some good news with the total funding package close to being fully identified.  The official title of the plan is the Baltimore Street Redevelopment Project, which includes reinstalling Baltimore Street through the downtown mall running one-way from Mechanic Street to George Street. During the process, the aging below-ground utility lines will be replaced.  During this month’s DDC meeting. Paul Kelly, CEDC executive director, said although he is not yet at liberty to make an official announcement- he has received positive feedback from the governor’s office and the delegation regarding efforts to complete the necessary funding package…

 

11 Responses to “Total Funding Package Close To Being Fully Identified For Downtown Renovations”

  1. October 11, 2019 at 6:14 am, Jeanie said:

    What a waste of money! Forget this renovation what job opportunities will that bring to Cumberland?
    Opening more job openings may perhaps eliminate the “undesirablrs” off the mall…just saying
    Also 8.7 million would benefit road repairs throughout Cumberland. I for one am confused on why the city of Cumberland is adamant about renovation of the mall….there is nothing there?

    Reply

  2. October 11, 2019 at 10:09 am, mac said:

    Mark my words, 8.7 million is just the beginning. Remember, the project cost was originally 5 million.

    Reply

    • October 11, 2019 at 12:59 pm, kevin said:

      > I’m sure we can tear it up and then give it to the Rolling Mill crew. That project is going swimmingly.

      Reply

  3. October 11, 2019 at 1:55 pm, David said:

    How is it that the costs and budget have exploded? The price tag announced before was a whopping $5.5 million. Now Morriss is pushing the cost up to $8.7 million. City taxpayers cant afford this kind of hike!

    Reply

    • October 11, 2019 at 6:07 pm, Jay said:

      I don’t believe the funding – or at least the vast majority of it – is coming from local taxpayers.

      Reply

  4. October 11, 2019 at 2:27 pm, kevin said:

    On a related note, if the powers that be had not spend 6 million to destroy Rolling Mill, they would already have most of the money.

    Reply

  5. October 11, 2019 at 3:12 pm, Terri Lynn Martin said:

    when will a Real Adult…or just an honest intelligent person Actually Stand Up and Do Something truly beneficial for the Entire City & County versus lining pockets of cronies and fulfilling ‘visions’ of a Select Few??

    The Only Way this or any community will ever be successful & truly thriving is when the CITIZENS are cared for, happy and personally successful- FIRST & FOREMOST!
    The Powers that Be have spent the past 2 decades adhering to the Field of Dreams Theory: ‘IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL COME!’
    Quite probably, during their closed door meetings they screen the movie or re-enact select scenes after each election to initiate new members?!!?!
    Throwing MILLIONS into old buildings, buying and destroying homes & forever fighting, planning & replanning Downtown on top of the Millions$$ paid to comppanies for STUDIES & PLANS~again & again, every few years, has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for OUR citizens!
    THEIR DREAMS of Outside Investors~Non-local Businesses & Franchises NEVER actually appear IF the project is ever done…That’s a BIG IF!
    IT’S time 4 BIG CHANGE!
    IF The Powers that Be actually want to help grow & Improve our area, They’d Work FIRST to bring INDUSTRY back to our area for people to work Decent Jobs above Min Wage and from there, a natural occurrence will happen in time: Locals will begin reinvesting into the community with new small businesses &/or locally owned & operated franchises!

    A Happy community can/will support their Tourism Dreams…But, as it stands right now,who the heck wants/supports a bunch of Tourists in the area when locals Hate it here and there’s nothing for anyone!?!

    Reply

    • October 11, 2019 at 6:19 pm, Jay said:

      Terri Lynn, The manufacturing jobs you speak of no longer exist. Automation, robotics, and A. I. have eliminated thousands, perhaps 10′s of thousands of manufacturing jobs nationwide. Technology and green energy are the industries that have limitless growth. Problem is, even if these jobs existed here we would not have the qualified work force to fill these positions. Most of the unemployed in this area can’t pass a drug test. In the dying coal industry alone there are now only about 50K jobs nationwide. The wind, solar, and other forms of green energy industries employ about 3 million. Tourism is fine but it cannot sustain the entire local economy. Look at Canal Place where its failures have been well-documented. We’re 2 decades and counting on the development of that area. The amphitheater with the nice covered stage gets used fewer than 10 times a year. There are no easy answers for this area. The loss of population, a shrinking tax base, and a high rate of poverty are things that are hard to overcome.

      Reply

  6. October 11, 2019 at 3:34 pm, Mark said:

    8.7 MILLION AND COUNTING!!. And yet the aging water lines break about every week, schools go underfunded, homeless rates keep rising, the list goes on and on. And ignorant, hateful, chicken-s–t clowns like Seth Bernard just want to throw poor people in jail for offending his snob, elitist sensibilities. A city run by clowns and greedy fools.

    Reply

  7. October 12, 2019 at 11:13 am, John Twigg said:

    I grew up near downtown Cumberland and moved away many years ago. I have visited Cumberland many times and always look forward to walking along the mall. My wife and I were there in August and enjoyed eating outside at City Lights. There is no reason why that mall should be opened to traffic. Doing so would totally destroy the pleasant atmosphere that has evolved over the years. Yes there are many open store front but allowing vehicles to drive down the mall will not fill those open stores. Put the $8 million to better use like tax incentive to attract new business.

    Reply

    • October 14, 2019 at 10:28 am, mac said:

      > The reason that the mall is being opened up is due to the fact that the original need was to replace the underground utilities and to add fiber internet for the business owners, although no one else around the area can get fiber.
      The city shopped around and could only find funding trough the Highway Administration BUT they would only fund the project if an active thoroughfare was involved. The city, in their infinite wisdom decided to open Baltimore St. to traffic.
      Now the city is touting the new one way traffic as the purpose for the project and also, by the way, since we’re there we’ll rework the utilities.
      The DDC has added the hope of a ritzy hotel as an added reason for the traffic. Now they can have drop-off at the front door and I’m sure they’ll add valet parking as this will be, after all, a luxury boutique hotel.

      Reply

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