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Downtown Gateway Project
Downtown Streetscape Master Plan & Gateway Project
In July 2024, the City Council adopted the Downtown Streetscape Master Plan, a community-driven blueprint to enhance Downtown Half Moon Bay’s design, accessibility, and vitality while preserving its historic charm. Public engagement included 25 focus groups, 240 participants, 164 survey responses, and presentations to City boards and commissions.
A key community priority was creating a distinctive “arrival experience” at Highway 92 and Main Street. Building on decades of discussion about restoring a historic gateway, the City hired RHAA Landscape Architecture to study options and develop concepts. The project will return to the City Council on August 19 in order to present tasks completed so far and to seek direction on three options moving forward:
1. Prioritize Wayfinding: Redirect available funds to focus solely on wayfinding signage, with the City managing the project and RHAA’s remaining contract used for design support, easement negotiations, and potential installation.
2. Prioritize Gateway Monument: Use all available funds for continued design and technical studies of the gateway monument at the Main Street Bridge, led by RHAA. Additional funding would be needed later for permits and construction design.
3. Balanced Approach: Split funds between the gateway monument design and a parallel wayfinding effort. Both projects would likely require additional funding for full implementation.
Following the adoption of the Streetscape Master Plan by the City Council, a Request for Proposals (RFP) was issued to develop a more detailed and refined final design for the Gateway. Through this process, RHAA was selected to lead Phase I of the design work. The final design will embody the solutions and community values outlined in the Streetscape Master Plan while supporting the overall vision for Downtown Half Moon Bay.
The project seeks to achieve the following objectives:
- Sense of Arrival: Establish a welcoming and distinctive gateway that celebrates the entrance to Main Street from Highway 92, enhancing the experience during both daytime and evening hours.
- Visual Cohesion: Ensure the Gateway integrates seamlessly with other signage types and supports future Downtown branding initiatives.
- Wayfinding Consistency: Highlight the Gateway as one of four wayfinding signage categories identified in the Streetscape Master Plan: Gateway, Monument, Regulatory, and Directional.
- Marketing Support: Develop illustrations to assist the City in securing construction funding for the Gateway.
- Construction Design: Provide groundwork for a future construction design package, including specifications, cost estimates, and materials, to facilitate the City’s bidding process.
The City Council approved the Downtown Streetscape Master Plan in July 2024, emphasizing the following goals:
- Enhancing downtown's appeal, accessibility, and economic vitality;
- Preserving and enriching its unique character; and
- Prioritizing improvements that benefit both residents and visitors.
The Master Plan outlines a cohesive, safe, accessible, and enjoyable vision for Main Street, accommodating people of all ages and abilities. Main Street is divided into three sections—Heritage Main Street, South Main Street, and North Main Street. However, the plan’s primary focus is on Heritage Main Street, specifically the area from the Historic Main Street Bridge to Correas Street.
A key feature of the plan is a proposed "Main Street Gateway" at the southside intersection of Main Street and Highway 92, designed to draw people into downtown. The Streetscape Master Plan emphasizes functionality, flexibility, and aesthetic appeal in its proposed solutions for Heritage Main Street. While the plan includes a conceptual rendering of the gateway, it does not specify design requirements.
