Frankfort Board Approves $65K Downtown Study

FRANKFORT, IL — At its Monday meeting, the Frankfort Village Board approved an agreement with The Lakota Group for professional planning and urban design consulting services for historic downtown Frankfort.

The proposal will not exceed $65,000.

Trustee Michael Leddin said the study will focus on Kansas Street, between Ash and Oak streets, but it will also review the entire downtown area, from Hickory to White streets, and from Elwood to Nebraska streets.

The study will "help establish a more comprehensive and economically sustainable vision for future growth and development," Leddin said during the meeting.

According to Board documents, the Village wants to explore options related to Kansas Street streetscape and public way. The street is used for outdoor dining in the warmer months.

"As part of this study, Lakota will explore how the space currently operates, whether this space should be enlarged, the street should be closed, or if there are other spatial relationship that would provide public or economic benefits to the overall downtown," Board documents state.

The timeline for the study should be completed with a draft of the master plan in April.