$25M spent so far on Heritage District

Gilbert spent at least $25 million including state and federal funds over the last decade in upgrading and dressing up its Heritage District downtown, an amount officials and business owners say was necessary to attract visitors and development to the area. The money paid for items including the new $6 million Western Powerline Trail and the $3.5 million Water Tower Plaza park, both near Page Avenue and Gilbert Road. Other costs included painting the Water Tower, which cost $247,000, installing classic streetlights and furnishings including trash cans and planters, which cost $2.3 million. “I don’t know if there’s one (improvement) that’s more pivotal than others,” said Greg Tilque, Gilbert development services director. “We couldn’t do it without any of those.” Tilque said the money was well spent, adding it helped attract popular downtown mainstays like Oregano’s Pizza Bistro and Hale Centre Theatre. Brian Bergeson, co-owner of Bergie’s Coffee Roast House near Page Avenue and Gilbert Road, said the trail and water tower were key in bringing new people to the area. “(They) have definitely increased the traffic down here and brought a little bit more beauty to the downtown area,” he said. He said the benefits that have come from the millions of dollars invested in the area are hard to measure, “but as a business owner down here, I like what I see right now.”

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