MASON CITY – Four properties on a street corner near downtown Mason City have been razed and are contributing to a fresh start for the area.
At the corner of Second Street SW and Madison Avenue, a home was demolished recently. Across the street, between Second Street and First Street, the former homes of Apparel Care and Star Auto Body were also demolished this summer.
According to City staff, Charlson Excavating and McKiness Excavating have been working on demolition in this area for the past 9 months. You will now see fresh grass sprouting up between the bike trail and Madison Avenue.
“The contract didn’t allow them to plant grass during the height of the summer,” City Planner Tricia Sandahl explained. “Their grass planting window reopened so they were able to seed the lots and get the grass established.”
According to Ms. Sandahl, the City purchased seven residential structures and two commercial structures in this area, including two on the east side of Willow Creek.
“The long term plans are to establish a greenbelt along the creek to enhance the trail that is already there. The lots on the west side of Madison Ave. are slated to become a community garden.
“The open space and the community garden will make the neighborhood a lot better place for the people who still live and work there. I’ve talked to Jaylene Whipple at Bills BBQ several times about how she feels about the open space and the increased visibility she has from the east.”
The community garden is part of the Blue Zones Project built environment projects that counts toward the City’s certification. The plots will be available to anyone in the community.
Glad to see progress on this area. this has been a long drawn out process. would like to see more things done with the. Houses and a plan to make those ares look nice instead of overrun with weeds and critters.
The whole damn downtown is a blighted area.