(WACO, Texas) — After years of planning and work, a $170 million construction project is set to transform downtown Waco into a major destination. The first phase of Barron's Branch, a historic redevelopment of the downtown area, is scheduled to begin next month near University Parks Drive.
Tom Balk of the City of Waco said the project addresses long-standing gaps in how the city's core has been developed.
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"We have some blind eyes to the massive parking slots that we have, or the underdeveloped properties on the river. So resolving some of those issues is what opens the door to say that, you know what? We have the same ingredients as some of these really successful destinations, like the pearl in San Antonio," Balk said.
Construction will move through a 30-acre district in a counterclockwise direction.
"Work around this 30-acre district in a counterclockwise fashion. So from University Parks to Jefferson to 4th Street, and then also a piece of Fifth Street will be affected as well. So most of that infrastructure will be the thing that residents see and feel the most is they're trying to make their way through downtown. We've got a plan to make that as easy as possible," Balk said.
Local resident CJ Westmoreland, who visits downtown often, said he believes Barron's Branch will eventually deliver an economic boost to the area. He pointed to smaller projects already making a difference.
"One day, I was walking the streets, and I found the Brazos bike lounge here, and meandered in, and became a regular customer. So those little projects like this, even though sometimes they don't sound like much, they are key to bringing in new customers, and bringing people into the area to spend money," Westmoreland said.
Westmoreland also said he hopes the city ties the project to Waco's active athletic community as part of a broader effort to make downtown more walkable.
"There's a strong athletic community in Waco. And we already have people here that are great athletes, and they work out regularly. But if the city can tie this new project into that, it would, I think, be a strong return on investment," Westmoreland said.
The city plans to begin the first phase of construction early October.
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