Marietta City Development Director Geoff Schenkel gives Marietta City Council an update on a $9.4 million levee area improvement project during a Public Lands and Buildings Committee meeting June 27. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

Marietta City Council received an update last week on the city’s $9.4 million waterfront improvement project.

During a June 27 Public Lands and Buildings Committee meeting, City Development Director Geoff Schenkel shared the results of a survey asking what Marietta residents would like to see as part of the project, which the survey calls the Levee Redevelopment Project.

Marietta received $9.4 million in Appalachian Community Grant Program funds May 6 as part of the Ohio’s Wonderful Waterways Initiative for projects to improve the areas near the Marietta levee. Schenkel told The Times in May that the area for the project includes the park from around the Lafayette Hotel to the Hotel House Bistro.

“We have kicked off our survey,” Schenkel told council at the committee meeting.

According to Schenkel, the survey was released June 21 to gather information about what improvements Marietta residents want for the levee area. He said the survey was also passed out at the Great Race.

Pictured is the area of Ohio Riverfront Park in Marietta near the Levee House Bistro in May, that will be part of a $9.4 million project to improve the area near the Marietta levee that runs from the Lafayette Hotel to the Levee House Bistro. Marietta received the funds from the Appalachian Community Grant program as part of the new Ohio’s Wonderful Waterways Initiative. (Photo by Art Smith)

According to Schenkel, the survey questions were developed by the Buckeye Hills Regional Council and American Structurepoint and Ward 2 Councilman Bret Allphin helped edit the questions and add some specificity to them.

Schenkel shared with council the survey questions and the responses to them as of Thursday morning.

According to the survey, the first question is, “What type of recreational events or activities would you like to attend at the Levee?”

Schenkel said the top answer to this question was concerts and music and the next highest answer was fairs and festivals.

“So I guess what that tells me is what we’ve done with our concepts, what was submitted last year in the project summary, which is largely rooted in enhancing what we do already, is that we’re in a pretty good place to brush up and polish what we have already,” Schenkel said.

The second question is, “What type of upgrades would encourage you to attend events at the levee more frequently?”

According to Shchenkel, the top answer was seating, with casual seating being what most people said for that answer. He said some of them said event seating and bench seating related to this answer.

He said the second highest set of responses was for public restrooms, followed by more shade.

The third question is, “What are other ideas you have that would make the levee a place you’d like to spend time?”

According to Schenkel, the top answer was cleanliness and maintenance, followed by issues with the street. He said he suspects the street issues answer is related to traffic at Front and Greene streets and the bumpiness of Ohio Street.

The fourth question asked, “What (levee) features should be emphasized?” The choices respondents can pick from are: the brick streets, the cobblestones, the fountain, the large “MARIETTA” sign, the historic sunken boiler, the terraced seating, the River Walk Trail, the historic markers or other (please specify).

Schenkel said the number one answer to this question was the view, followed by terraced seating, then the brick streets, then the cobblestones. The second choice was terraced seating, then third was brick streets and fourth was the cobblestones. He said the fifth choice was the fountain.

“We’re seeing a kind of pattern,” Schenkel said about this question. “People are not looking for a radical departure from what we have, while at the same time they’re saying maintenance and upkeep, take care of what you have, is what they want to point to. So, that’s very much doable with $9.4 million.”

The fifth question asked, “What features would be a terrible loss if they were no longer there?”. This question had the same options to choose from as the fourth question.

He said the top answer for the fifth question was the view, followed by the trail, then the brick streets, then the cobblestone and the fountain which were tied.

The sixth question asked, “What is missing from the levee to make it a great outdoor community space?”

Schenkel said the number one answer for this question was seating, followed by restrooms. Then came ADA accessibility and then shade.

The last question asked if the respondent lives in Marietta, outside of Marietta but in Washington County or outside of Washington County. The choices respondents could pick from for this question were the previously mentioned categories and other (please specify).

Schenkel said 75% of the respondents were from Marietta, 18% were from outside Marietta but in Washington County and 7% are from outside the county.

Schenkel shared with council that a contractor for the design of the project has been chosen and it is American Structurepoint, who is handling the Enrich Marietta initiative for the city.

He said the state and the grant administrator, the Ironton-Lawrence Community Action Organization (ILCAO), agreed to the city’s request to approve American Structurepoint as the designer.

At-Large Councilman Harley Noland asked Schenkel when there will be public meetings for people to give input on the project concepts. Schenkel said they are talking about doing them between June and August.

The survey can be found at https://www.mariettaoh.net/news_detail_T3_R49.php.