Bartlesville to give its downtown a facelift

Bartlesville is on its way to getting a facelift. The city council has approved a new master plan for downtown. <br><br>Community leaders hope a renovation will attract new businesses and keep people

Wednesday, February 18th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Bartlesville is on its way to getting a facelift. The city council has approved a new master plan for downtown.

Community leaders hope a renovation will attract new businesses and keep people downtown after 5 o'clock. One aspect would provide more parking and a more traffic flow for visitors.

Voters approved a half cent sales tax to help pay for the improvements. Developers say that will cover only a portion of the cost. Kelly Diven with the Downtown Development Committee: "This is a project that will go years into the future it will not all be funded by public money through sales tax. Our goal is to match up appropriate projects with the type of funding that we're seeking."

Diven hopes the first success will be the renovation of a 1920's era bridge, built to honor veterans as a gateway to downtown. Rotary Club members are willing to put up half the cost. Organizers say that's a perfect example of how the entire plan should work, matching city dollars with private investors.