MARYSVILLE — The city of Marysville invites the public to a special meeting to share ideas for not only revitalizing the downtown and waterfront areas, but also ways to create a more vibrant, pedestrian-friendly downtown.

Marysville University will provide the setting for the public meeting from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10, in the Marysville City Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall, located at 1049 State Ave.

The evening will include a review of the city’s revitalization measures to date, as well as recommendations and interactive “pulse pad” voting that will give attendees a say in how to prioritize long-term and short-term revitalization needs. The pulse pads, on loan from the Association of Washington Cities, provide instant feedback and results, displayed on a large screen.

“How revitalization evolves must come from and belong to all citizens and business owners in our community,” Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring said. “We’re here to listen.”

The City Council committed $150,000 for downtown revitalization efforts and a public engagement process. Some funds were spent to hire a consultant team to work with city leaders. The group met in January with a key city staff team for workshops to define a development strategy for Marysville’s waterfront, to give the City Council confidence to move forward with the next steps. The group recommended creating a complete community downtown, built around multi-story housing and mixed uses, with access to social and recreational opportunities such as:

• Neighborhood dining.

• Outdoor rooms.

• Water features such as fountains, canals and lakes.

• Open space.

• Narrow streets that are pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly.

Some ideas generated thus far have included sidewalk and street improvements for better walkability, gateway improvements and way-finding signage, matching funds for building exterior improvements, a spray park, a kayaking facility, Qwuloolt trail design, and modest traffic and landscaping improvements.

Refreshments will be available. Classes are videotaped, and will be shown on Marysville Cable Access TV 21 on Comcast, and TV 25 on Frontier, at dates to be announced later.

Please call Marysville Community Information Officer Doug Buell at 360-363-8086 by Friday, April 5, to reserve your seat, or email him at dbuell@marysvillewa.gov. Be sure to include your name, phone number, postal address and email address. For more information, contact Buell or log onto http://marysvillewa.gov/marysvilleuniversity.