Community Feedback Drives Colusa Downtown Plan
COLUSA, Calif. — A team of national planning and preservation experts spent two days in Colusa studying downtown streets, storefronts and the riverfront, then challenged the community to turn ideas into visible action.
The Design and Preservation Rapid Assistance Team, or D-PRAT, visited through a competitive grant of the American Planning Association’s Urban Design and Preservation Division. Twelve volunteer professionals met with residents, business owners, students, city officials and community partners.
Events opened with an open house on Sunday, Nov. 2, followed by a public workshop Monday evening. Participants reviewed maps, marked priorities and reacted to draft concepts for Market Street, Main Street and Levee Park.
“This is us taking charge and creating the downtown Colusa we want,” said consulting grant writer and administrator Sadie Boggs Ash. “This is economic development in an indirect way. This is not bringing in businesses, this is us creating a solid plan.”
D-PRAT coordinator Shannon Cilento said the visit will produce an “idea book” outlining projects from six months to several years, with visuals and strategies the city can take to funders, grant programs and budget talks.
One team, led by Kenny Thompson, focused on historic preservation and adaptive reuse. Concepts included exploring a National Register historic district for the Market and Main commercial core and nearby neighborhoods and testing quick efforts in alleys and small plazas.
A second team studied Market and Main as people-first streets. Planner Aishwarya Parab proposed narrower travel lanes, slower traffic, safer crossings and a bicycle network.
“Our focus is more toward the pedestrian rather than the car,” Parab said.
The team heard from students who bike to the levee and see Market Street as a barrier. With about one quarter of Colusa’s population under 18, Parab said, visible follow-through on youth input can influence whether they see a future in the community.
Youth voices guided much of the work. At Egling Middle School and Colusa High School, students called for places to go with friends, a movie theater, more food choices and other hangout spots.
“This is a great opportunity to get input from our youth,” Ash said. “We are asking them and they are giving it to us.”
Adults echoed the need for gathering spaces and added calls for more jobs, housing options and better communication about existing services. Many supported ideas such as a sports complex, a theater and retail that serves young people.
A third D-PRAT team, introduced by Tom Ford, examined how Colusa connects to the Sacramento River. Suggestions included sidewalks to levee access points, wayfinding signs, new crosswalks along Market Street and interpretive signage. Ford said many changes can phase in, pairing simple striping and signs with larger projects.
The workshops also surfaced concern that past planning efforts did not lead to visible change.
“It has been probably 15 years since the city has asked you to come and participate and you have, and then nothing has come from it. That is not my goal,” Ash said. She asked the team to identify “quick wins” along with long-term efforts. “Please know that the city’s commitment to you is to take action on all of this feedback. This is not intended to just sit and collect dust.”
For many, the two-day workshop itself proved a constructive, hands-on step toward shaping downtown’s future.
“Overall, it was a good exercise for those who participated to review with others ideas and potential for downtown,” said business owner Pat Kittle. “I believe that this time there are strong commitments from good leaders in the city and businesses that have survived for coming together to come up with realistic action items.”
D-PRAT’s model calls for projects that are doable in six months, three years and five years to build momentum and help Colusa compete for investment.
“We want residents to see that small, achievable wins lead to bigger changes,” Ash said. “Whether it is upgrading lighting, refreshing facades or improving pedestrian access, these improvements send a signal that Colusa is investing in itself, and that attracts private investment to follow.”
City partners say the value of the visit will rest on what happens next, when the idea book arrives and Colusa selects its first priorities.
“The D-PRAT workshop was a really positive experience for Colusa. It brought new ideas, fresh perspectives and clear goals to the table as we look at revitalizing our uptown and riverfront areas,” said Jack Cunningham, executive director of the Colusa County Chamber of Commerce.
