FROM THE DESK OF SENATOR DAVID LONG

Last week, I had the opportunity to walk around downtown Fort Wayne with a couple of out-of-towners, explaining how it used to look in the early 1980’s, as compared to its current appearance. The two visitors were Senate colleagues who were also members of the State Budget Committee, which was meeting in Fort Wayne the next day. We were heading to Rib Fest, and I became a kind of tour guide to and from their hotel.

This evening stroll, combined with the need to explain the history of various locales, forced me to take note of just how much things have changed in 20 years, and how they continue to do so today.

For instance, on the way to the Festival, I explained how the Courthouse had been renovated in recent years, and what an unknown (around here) yet amazing and nationally recognized historical treasure it was. For those who keep track, it ranks among the top five most historically significant courthouses in the entire United States, and some experts have ranked it as high as second. If you haven’t been in there since the renovation was completed, take the time to do so soon. No matter what your knowledge of the building’s history, you won’t be disappointed.

We wandered on past the beautiful new Salin Bank headquarters at the corner of Calhoun and Main, constructed upon a previously unsightly parking lot, and made our way to Headwaters Park. I explained the history of the flooding of the “thumb” area of downtown, where so many businesses suffered for so many years. As we all know, the area had become dilapidated and an eyesore, yet the visitors had a hard time understanding how this beautiful and festive venue could have ever been anything other than the park it is today. They were very impressed, especially when they understood how much use the Park gets during the summer.

Wandering back from the Rib Fest event, we passed through Freimann Square, where the first great downtown renewal took place. What used to be an unsightly slew of old buildings became a beautiful park, and the cultural center of our community with the construction of the Performing Arts Center and the Art Museum.

Traveling further south, we passed through the Courthouse Green, where, I explained, a full block of buildings had existed just a few short years ago. The creation of the park-like area was the fulfillment of the original design for the Courthouse. It has opened up views of both the eastern end of the Courthouse, as well as the front of the Lincoln Tower. The true splendor and majesty of these two great landmarks is now far more evident than prior to the creation of the Green.

We then headed down Calhoun Street, past the new, upstart eating establishments springing up between Wayne and Berry Streets, and past the gleaming new Murphy Building, which now houses the Wells Fargo headquarters, but once was the site of the old Murphy’s department store (which sat empty for many years before the recent, and complete, renovation). Crossing the street, I explained how the One Summit Square Green was created during the heyday of Summit Bank, and what an improvement that had been.

We finally ended up at the Hilton Hotel, where I explained the history of that urban renewal project, which brought us both the hotel and the Convention Center. The current expansion of that Center, as well as the creation of the new downtown library, was also very impressive. Combine this with the ambitious plans for downtown redevelopment that are on the drawing board, (including a new hotel, an indoor sports complex, new businesses and restaurants, and a new cultural zone), and our two visitors were appropriately impressed and amazed with the transformation that had taken place over the past two decades. It was a great walk through downtown’s recent history, and a strong reminder to me about how much has changed. A person who visited downtown Fort Wayne in the early ’70s would have a very difficult time recognizing it today.

Some will scoff at the revitalization of downtown, believing it to be a waste of time and money. Not me. I think a robust, vibrant downtown area is crucial to a strong, dynamic, and growing community. In today’s tough economic world, where a community like Fort Wayne has to compete for business with the better weather of the south and west, and the cultural amenities of the east and west coasts, we have to have the vision to make our region better, and more livable, than our rivals. Strong communities need great downtowns. Fort Wayne’s, when completed, has the chance to rival any other small community’s in the country.

I’m proud of our downtown’s past, proud of the renovations and modernizations that have taken place in the last 20 years, and excited about the changes that are to arrive soon, and in the years to come.