MIDLAND, Texas — Whether it's more for families to do in the park or opportunities for the City's nightlife, the City of Midland leaders and members of the planning and zoning commission discussed the future of Centennial entertainment overlay district.
"But today was just that first step, and what [we] really have [as] a vision for the long term benefit for this entertainment district is to encourage people downtown to have a more vibrant and robust downtown experience," Midland Mayor Lori Blong said. "Whether that’s for families and children and folks playing during the day or evening activities for people with nightlife."
The overlay display would cover roughly 49.5 acres, which would be Centennial Park and a couple of blocks perimeter to the park.
According to Mayor Blong, as of right now, there will be no cost.
"For the component that we discussed today there’s really no additional cost," Mayor Blong said. "What we did today functionally was took away the City restrictions for alcoholic regulation and we’re relying on the Texas alcoholic beverage commission the TABC and their regulation for this 49 1/2 acres."
However, you will see costs down the road.
"Now for some of the things we hope to do in the future there will be some foreseen cost to put bollards up to be able to block off streets in an appealing way for future street concerts and things like that," Mayor Blong said. "So we do have a vision for some opportunities to develop downtown further but the portion that we discussed today does not include that."
As far as ideas for what to bring to the District, the City is working with local groups for feedback and ideas.
"We’ve done all of these things in partnership with the Downtown Midland Management District (DMMD) as well as the Centennial Park board and some of those stakeholders," Mayor Blong said. "So we’ve really worked hard to bring people to the table to say what’s best for this part of town and is this going to benefit everyone."