Neighborhood Design Center, Inc.

The Neighborhood Design Center conducted a Downtown Design Walkabout for the Village of Belleville in the fall of 2007. The walkabout was one part of a downtown revitalization process conducted by MSA Professional Services. The other components were to establish a Community Development Authority (CDA) an architectural review of the former railroad depot, and a architectural feasibility study and needs assessment of the public works, fire station and police station properties. Funding was provided through the Dane County Better Urban Infill Development (BUILD) Program. The goal of the walkabout was to engage community members, through observation and sharing of ideas, to identify downtown assets and opportunities for improvement. The Downtown Design Report (2.5 MB) was accepted by the Village of Belleville in November.

The walkabout consisted of four small groups walking two different downtown routes. Each group recorded their observations on photographs and in writing. After regrouping at the Village Hall, each group selected approximately 9 photographs that addressed those questions, and presented their observations to the rest of the participants. Common themes and general observations were discussed among the whole group.