Revitalization

of downtown Fayetteville is spreading off the

Courthouse Square and moving down Church Street.

Narrow,

in poor repair and unlighted, the street has been

known as a blighted part of town and a scene of

frequent crime, but officials are hoping that

will change with installation of street lights,

widening of the street, the addition of a

sidewalk and other improvements.

"Sidewalks

will help connect all the people to the

downtown," said Sherri Anderson, director of

Fayetteville's Main Street program. "It's

not just the facilities... we're hoping it will

really start a revival and bring pride into the

community," she said.

Residents

often have complained about crime and "not

feeling like they're a part of the city,"

she said.

The

city has received a $158,700 state grant and Main

Street officials are hoping the city will provide

local funds for the rest of the project. City

Council Monday was scheduled to choose a company

to design the street improvements, but the item

was taken off the agenda because the grant money

won't be available until later.

If

the city fully funds the work, it will cost

$221,300, said Anderson, including brick pavers

for the sidewalks and early 1900s style street

lights.

Curbs

and gutters are expected to help solve drainage

problems that have often flooded the parking lot

and buildings of Edgefield Baptist Church, which

occupies the street along with numerous homes and

a few businesses.

Church

Street will be widened a foot on each side, and

sidewalks built on the west side, all the way

from Ga. Highway 54 to Georgia Avenue. "This

will really bring Church Street into the Main

Street area," said Anderson.

Grant

funds won't be available until October, and the

work has to be coordinated with the state

Department of Transportation, so design work

shouldn't be done until about that time, said

city engineer Don Easterbrook.

Residents

will see more improvements to downtown before

then, though, Anderson predicted.

Brick

sidewalks and other street scape improvements to

the south side of the Courthouse Square should

begin as early as August, she said, and

landscaping on the historic Hollingsworth House

should start "anytime now," she added.

City

officials also are working to find a certified

historical planner to coordinate preservation

work on the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House, Anderson

said. "We hope to get one on staff,"

she said, but the city may have to settle for a

consulting contract. Bids are out, she said.

"We

have so much going on," Anderson marveled.

It's

all due to the City Council's approval early this

fiscal year of a $1.5 million bond issue to move

revitalization efforts to a higher level. Goal of

the Main Street program is to stimulate business

downtown, to bring people into the area for

events and activities and to shop, and to create

a turn-of-the-century atmosphere through street

scape improvements and historic preservation.

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