Project Phoenix aims to revitalize downtown 29 Palms
A newer downtown is in the works at a high desert community with the city of 29 Palms moving forward with a plan.
“We’re trying to get them to come here, stay here, love it here, and come back and not just drive through,”
That’s the vision Mayor Steven Bilderain has for downtown 29 Palms. Consisting only a few blocks along highway 62, he and others in the city feel there’s economic potential and have a plan in place with Project Phoenix.
{“url”:”https://twitter.com/JeremyChenKESQ/status/1149796940902780928″,”author_name”:”Jeremy Chen”,”author_url”:”https://twitter.com/JeremyChenKESQ”,”html”:”&#lt;blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”&#gt;&#lt;p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”&#gt;The city of &#lt;a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/29Palms?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”&#gt;#29Palms&#lt;/a&#gt; is pushing forward with a downtown revitalization project called Project Phoenix aimed at attracting tourists passing by. I have the full story coming at 6 p.m. on &#lt;a href=”https://twitter.com/KESQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”&#gt;@KESQ&#lt;/a&#gt;. &#lt;a href=”https://t.co/AKGCweWzNz”&#gt;pic.twitter.com/AKGCweWzNz&#lt;/a&#gt;&#lt;/p&#gt;– Jeremy Chen (@JeremyChenKESQ) &#lt;a href=”https://twitter.com/JeremyChenKESQ/status/1149796940902780928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”&#gt;July 12, 2019&#lt;/a&#gt;&#lt;/blockquote&#gt;n&#lt;script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″&#gt;&#lt;/script&#gt;n”,”width”:550,”height”:null,”type”:”rich”,”cache_age”:”3153600000″,”provider_name”:”Twitter”,”provider_url”:”https://twitter.com”,”version”:”1.0″}
“We’re hoping that we can modernize, but still keep that culture that we have. I want people to drive by and make that like look like ‘What’s going on over there?'” Bilderain said.
It’s a $16.5 million revitalization project funded by state bonds. That includes creating a cultural space with a new multi-purpose building where people can gather, shop and eat and various infrastructure improvements.
“Nice lights. Walking ability. No traffic from the 62, but just make that area vibrant. People want to come here,” Bilderain said
One reason for the project is to attract tourists whose numbers have been growing visiting Joshua Tree National Park nearby, projected to hit three million by the end of the year. For Jacob Smith, owner of Smitty’s Bargain Box, it means the possibility of expanded hours.
“Some of us open on weekends, some of us don’t so once you get more people moving in, it’s going to bring them to walk into the store,” he said.
Increased foot traffic would be a boon at The Virginian Bar
“It’s going to bring revenue to downtown, and also a destination and that’s what we’re really aiming for, a destination,” Cora Palomino, owner of The Virginian Bar, said.
A destination the mayor believes the city can become.
“Once they’re there, they want to stay there and eat, drink, shop, and love 29 Palms,” Bilderain said.
The city says the initial construction for the project will begin this January, with completion scheduled for the end of 2021.
