With degrading infrastructure and a desire to continue developing amenities in the Heritage District, Gilbert is looking at a redesign of the Water Tower Plaza.
“We understand how important and beloved the Water Tower is,” said Jennika Horta, the town’s parks and recreation management analyst. “It’s a huge part of the Heritage District as well as the town in general.”
As part of that process, the town is conducting a resident survey to collect feedback on what residents want at the plaza. The survey can be found on the town website, which also has a project page. The survey deadline is 11:59 p.m. Aug. 21.
The town will also have an open house at 6 p.m. Aug. 31 in the assembly room at Park University, 92 W. Vaughn Ave., Gilbert.
Horta said the outreach effort is to understand what plaza users and residents want their experience to be.
“We recognize people are there for different reasons,” she said. “You can down there on a weekend and enjoy time with your friends, family and (have a) night out. You can be a business owner or work downtown and use Water Tower Plaza for a more passive use. You can be looking for somewhere to have your lunch if you’re a student at Park University or University of Arizona. There’s just so many different experiences you can have.”
The timing to do a redesign is good because a recent assessment showed the infrastructure under the plaza is in need of work, Horta said.
“There’s quite a few failures of the infrastructure underneath the concrete — the systems that operate the splash pad, the lighting and the electrical, some of the infrastructure itself, whether it’s the concrete, man of those types of things,” she said. “They have either aged to the point where we can’t find parts to repair or they’re failing to a point where replacement is needed.”
Horta said the systems in place as they have aged do not promote water conservation the way it is now needed.
Tom Blodgett Senior News Editor | Gilbert @sp_blodgett
Meet Tom Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.
Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.
Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism.
Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.
Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).
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