Mount Pleasant city officials are looking for ways to get CMU students more involved with the downtown area.

Here are four suggestions for doing so:

Rework downtown traffic

The downtown traffic can be so horrendous that students feel barricaded from going downtown.

Many roads are one-way, lacking obvious signs for drivers. Students can find themselves circling around the town rather cruising straight through simply because they’re unaware of which side of the road they should be driving on.

Officials also should consider longer breaks at red lights so students don’t feel like they’re racing for their lives when crossing the road. High Street, with its constant speeders, immediately comes to mind.

City officials have suggested implementing a bike path around town, allowing students to travel downtown without having to pay for gas.Bike paths would hopefully make motorists more aware of what’s going on outside of their cars, thus reducing speeding in town.

Increased signage

Officials should post more signs about what is downtown. Once students eventually make their way downtown, they’re pretty much in the dark as to what it has to offer.

Maps describing the downtown district would inform people what stores and attractions are around.

Despite businesses constantly opening and closing at a moment’s notice, a general outline of what does exist could work as a basis for students to be active downtown. Fliers of events and other activities would give students a reason to keep coming back.

Visible history

Mount Pleasant is rich with local history, yet little of it is reflected in the downtown district. There are not enough landmarks of American Indian, CMU students and faculty or other various members of our community worth remembering. These things would not only make students remember designated parts of downtown but remind them that they are part of Mount Pleasant’s history as well.

Building usage

Develop less and use existing buildings.

Throughout Mount Pleasant, new buildings are being erected only to be abandoned by businesses. Empty buildings need to be occupied or torn down.

Abandoned buildings are an eyesore and deter students from exploring their surroundings.

Hopefully the Mount Pleasant city commission will be successful in attracting students downtown. No matter what the city decides to do, it will be a slow process, especially with Michigan’s economy.

But increased effort to attract students downtown would be an improvement and undoubtedly would be met with some success.

E-mail the author: defaultuser