ARCADIA, Fla. — An Arcadia nonprofit wants to ask you a question: How easy is it to walk downtown? Thanks to a $25,000 grant from AARP, Arcadia Main Street is doing a survey to find out how safe - and easy - it is to walk downtown.
"We want people to tell us if there are areas where the sidewalks might be broken, if it needs to be repaired," said Pam Ames, the group's executive director.
Watch FOX 4's Hunter Walterman talk to Arcadia's mayor about how this survey will help shape City Council decisions on sidewalk funding:
The group plans to recruit 100 volunteers to complete a walk audit of downtown. And city leaders are taking notice. City Council is working on the budget for next year, Mayor Judy Wertz Strickland told FOX 4. On Wednesday, the council held a budget workshop.
"I'm hoping we can do a little better with sidewalks," Wertz Strickland said. "That was a big topic, was sidewalks."
Arcadia put $50,000 towards improving sidewalks in 2024, the mayor said. The audit results will help guide council to make funding decisions on pedestrian safety, the mayor said.
The grant will also fund new signs highlighting Arcadia's history and businesses, making the town easier to navigate.
The signs are meant to encourage tourism, Ames said, directing drivers towards downtown Arcadia. That includes landmarks like the courthouse, post office, and city hall. There is enough money for 50 signs, Ames said.
Tourism helps support the small businesses that are the hallmark of downtown Arcadia, including art gallery Pletcher's on Monroe. Pletcher's opened a little more than a month ago and highlights local artists. Marc Pletcher runs the gallery with his wife, Kathy.
Marc was a FedEx courier for 18 years. He said it was time to move on and do something different. Art has always been a passion for the couple, Marc said. So, they decided to move from Punta Gorda and open a gallery in Arcadia.
"It was time to move on from our post there, and we wanted to do something different." Marc said. "We love Arcadia. We love the area. So we bought into one of these old buildings and started to do something in the art[s]"
Marc said the signage will be a huge boost not just for the gallery, but the whole town.
Arcadia Main Street plans to sign up volunteers for the audit at the Discover Arcadia Market on Saturday from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The group also has a link to sign up on its website.
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