The City of Davenport, Iowa, has stopped short of promising miracles, but what?EUR??,,????'???s happening certainly has many people in awe. The Mississippi River community of 102,000 people is experiencing a River Renaissance with $113.5 million in improvements to the downtown area. By May 2005, Davenport?EUR??,,????'???s riverfront will have a new arts center, a river music center, an ag-tech center, a newly renovated performance theatre, two new parking facilities and a unique cable-stayed pedestrian bridge soaring 40 feet from downtown to the riverfront. The ambitious plan received a hefty endorsement from the State of Iowa in August 2001. Vision Iowa, the financial assistance program for projects relating to recreation, education, entertainment and cultural activities, granted $20 million toward the downtown Davenport revitalization project. Streetscaping sets stage throughout Gene Meeker, executive director of the Downtown Partnership, says the literal groundwork for River Renaissance began in 1994 with infrastructure and streetscape improvements. ?EUR??,,????'??The city has a major infrastructure investment downtown,?EUR??,,????'?? Meeker said. ?EUR??,,????'??To get value out of it, we knew that beautification of downtown needed to be done to present a better package.?EUR??,,????'?? Since the streetscape projects predate the River Renaissance program, the Downtown Partnership raised money independently for design, construction and maintenance of the streetscape beautification and amenities. Funding for the $4.7 million in streetscape projects came from three sources: the Riverboat Development Authority, the City of Davenport, private property owners and individuals in the business improvement district. The downtown area is now friendlier to pedestrians. Outdoor caf????(C) seating areas, gathering spaces and the ?EUR??,,????'??art walk?EUR??,,????'?? along the streetscape create a place people want to visit. The intermittent parks, plazas and comprehensive streetscape have set the stage for the revitalization of downtown Davenport. ?EUR??,,????'??The streetscape concept creates a more pedestrian-friendly downtown with parks, seating areas and green spaces,?EUR??,,????'?? Meeker said. ?EUR??,,????'??We?EUR??,,????'???ve targeted 50-square blocks within the business improvement district for streetscape enhancements. We want it to be a drive-to destination instead of a drive-through.?EUR??,,????'?? Symbols of River Renaissance Pedestrians can ?EUR??,,????'??walk on water?EUR??,,????'?? and a great symbol of Davenport?EUR??,,????'???s River Renaissance at Exhibition Plaza. The new entrance to the Davenport RiverCenter convention facility is a unique space and walkway inspired by the nearby river. The plaza leads visitors on a meandering river walk to the RiverCenter from the surrounding downtown streetscape. Standing at the entrance to the Davenport RiverCenter, designers didn?EUR??,,????'???t have to look far for inspiration for the plaza design. Whether on the second floor atrium of the RiverCenter or on the ground floor, the mighty Mississippi River is in plain sight, quietly flowing past downtown and on to New Orleans. Davenport is unique in that there are no dikes or levees obstructing a view of the river, providing visitors with a breathtaking vista of a portion of the vast 2,340-mile waterway. The Mississippi River is the city?EUR??,,????'???s ?EUR??,,????'??front door?EUR??,,????'?? and has become the focal point of River Renaissance that is bringing its historic downtown back to life and embracing its rich heritage. Project Overview When the RiverCenter wanted to remove a deteriorated, dead-end street that served as its entrance for years, they hired Shive-Hattery landscape architects to design a new entry that would provide a memorable experience for its patrons. The result is Exhibition Plaza, an innovative space that cost less than $400,000 to construct. The plaza is divided into two spaces, the river walk and the central lawn. These areas feature colorful textured pavers, ornamental lighting, benches, sculpture, brick columns, and colorful landscape plantings. The river walk draws its influence from two sources - the Mississippi River, located one block to the south, and the downtown Davenport streetscape. The brick ?EUR??,,????'??river?EUR??,,????'?? begins at the doors of the RiverCenter and flows through the plaza to Second Street. This meandering path is visible not only from the street, but also from an adjacent parking facility and the second floor atrium of the RiverCenter. With its unique color and texture, it is tough to resist ?EUR??,,????'??walking the river?EUR??,,????'?? as you make your way to or from the RiverCenter. The RiverCenter uses the central lawn for overflow event space and outdoor festivals, and has been designed to accommodate a possible building expansion. The two spaces are separated by an ornamental iron fence and gate system that enables the RiverCenter to control access to the central lawn, but also allows for free movement to the facility entrance. Language of the River As writer Mark Twain said, there is beauty in the detailed language of the river. Twain wrote in Life on the Mississippi as a riverboat captain apprentice: ?EUR??,,????'??The face of the water, in time, became a wonderful book ... and it was not a book to be read once and thrown aside, for it had a new story to tell every day. Throughout the long twelve hundred miles there was never a page that was void of interest, never one that you could leave unread without loss, never one that you would want to skip, thinking you could find higher enjoyment in some other thing. There never was so wonderful a book written by man; never one whose interest was so absorbing, so unflagging, so sparklingly renewed with every re-perusal.?EUR??,,????'??Like the Mississippi River, there is beauty in the details of this hardscape design. The river walk design of Exhibition Plaza seeks to capture the qualities that make the Mississippi River so intriguing and ever changing. Exhibition Plaza, with its unique features and visual connection to the river, creates an exciting urban space. Blue-gray Unilock pavers define the river, as it appears to flow from within the RiverCenter out across the plaza to Second Street. The color and smooth finish allude to the natural character of the Mississippi, in tone and movement. A soldier course of darker pavers and an eight-inch concrete edge make the river?EUR??,,????'???s bank. Adjacent landscape plantings are similar to the natural areas still found up and down the river. Predominate tree species within the plaza are River Birch and Maples. A mix of viburnums, dogwoods, shrubs and perennials provide year-round interest in the plaza, as well as providing screening of an adjacent multi-level parking garage. Two sculpture areas are located along the main path, providing visual impact with bulbs and annuals, spring through fall. In addition to the ?EUR??,,????'??river walk,?EUR??,,????'?? pedestrians have the option of going through the plaza on a 10-foot-wide walkway of concrete that includes a detailed scoring pattern. For those concertgoers late for a show at the adjacent Adler Theatre, or for business people in a hurry, the straight sidewalk is a convenient alternative. Interestingly, informal research shows that 50 percent of pedestrians use the river walk while the other half use the center walkway. At night, the river walk is highlighted with Prisma Lighting (Cyclobat(tm)) fixtures that wash the river with a soft light, defining the geometry of the natural river form. Ornamental light fixtures and posts by Holophane Outdoor Architectural Lighting line the center walkway. The combination of path lights, ornamentals and the lighting within the RiverCenter creates a safe, welcoming night time environment. A local iron works company, American Iron Works, Ltd., fabricated the ?EUR??,,????'??picket?EUR??,,????'?? fence that surrounds the adjacent lawn. Fine Art Velour(tm) brick was used on the fence columns to match the RiverCenter brick fa??? 1/4 ade. A concrete cap on the brick column also reflects the detailing of the RiverCenter architecture. Coming to Davenport Meeker says the streetscapes, parks and spaces like Exhibition Plaza provide the beautification needed to draw people to the business district. ?EUR??,,????'??The first eight years we?EUR??,,????'???ve been getting ready with development of the downtown. We are now moving into the marketing mode to get our return-on-investment for the downtown,?EUR??,,????'?? he said.