The historic and continuing center of commerce and activity in Canaan is our downtown area, located at the intersection of US Route 2 and State Route 23. Located within the village are almost all public buildings, including the Town Office, Fire Station, Post Office, Grange, elementary school, and several churches. A majority of Canaan's retail and service businesses are located on Route 2 within half a mile or so of the village center. And the housing density in and adjacent to the village is higher than other places in town, with the exception of some trailer parks.

Nevertheless, the village area is endangered. As more commercial businesses locate on Route 2 outside the village, our town becomes a "strip" rather than a center. And businesses outside of the village lead to more vehicles on our rural roads. As for homes, despite developments on Merit Street and Tobey Road in the past 20 years, growth in the village is nearly non-existent, while the number of new households in the rural area has doubled. These are characteristics of a suburbanizing town, one in which there will soon be no discernable center -- just one road a lot busier than the others.

To its credit, Canaan citizens recognize the value of a continuing village center. In its recent deliberations, the CD Advisory Committee laid out the very clear criteria that a new town office would have to be in the village. And we have a very active Downtown Merchants Association promoting the commercial aspects of the village. Listed below are some of the findings of this plan that will affect the future of the village.

FINDINGS:

The village area is an area of great opportunity. It still has a good inventory of useable buildings. There is a very good nucleus of business -- retail, restaurant, motel, etc. -- to build on. There is a base of public buildings (post office, town office, schools, churches) to bring people into town.

Despite a lack of vacant building sites in the village, there are still some available and underutilized opportunities. Some existing structures are ripe for renovation or replacement.

Private investment in revitalizing the village has been impressive. Local merchants have contributed towards village welcome signs, sidewalk improvements, and publicity campaigns, among other things. Individuals have also invested quite a bit in their own properties, on remodeling and improvements.

The most crucial factor affecting the health of the village now is the quality of public facilities (infrastructure). The lack of public water and sewer limits the size and variety of development. While the existing road layouts are adequate, there isn't enough on-street or off-street parking opportunities. There are insufficient traffic controls to provide a feeling of safety for pedestrians. Sidewalks are sporadic in quality and location.

Route 2 is a major East-west highway in Maine as well as the main street of the village. Route 23 carries a lot of truck traffic, which also funnels through the center of town. Combined, they average about 6,800 vehicles per day, a generous proportion heavy trucks. This kind of traffic is not conducive to an intimate village atmosphere. Add to that the fact that the speed limit is not enforced consistently. While the 6,800 vehicles a day presents a commercial opportunity, how to manage them in a village setting is a problem.

Commercial growth in the village will depend on two sources. One source will be through traffic on Route 2. These might be tourists or commercial travellers. In order to tap this market, we will need to provide a reason for them to "linger." Motels and restaurants are the basic lure, and motel business in Canaan has been increasing at some 10 percent per year. But the second step is to provide a physical (and mental) linkage to the other local businesses. We do this by making it easy for the traveller to a)learn about, and b) get to, them. Good information and good infrastructure.

The second source is local business. For locals, the main attraction is the destination points, like the school, town office, and post office. But again, if we expect anyone to patronize local business while on their errands, we need to provide good infrastructure. We also need to be smart about the type of business we encourage. No individual business is going to be able to go head-to-head with stores in Skowhegan, but businesses such as convenience stores and banks, which cater to errand-runners, might be successful.

A healthy village also contains a solid proportion of residential property. This provides a "captive" customer base. Our village's residential base is stable, but we need to provide for some growth. We should not adopt policies that would make it hard to build at village densities within or adjacent to the village. The homes on Merrit Street are on one acre lots; Other houses in town are on lots as small as 1/4 acre (minimum for on-site septic is 1/2 acre).

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Keeping the village as a vital and important part of our community will need to be a joint effort of the community at large, including government, residents, and business people. Each has a role to play. While this plan can only implement actions by local government, we are including recommendations for other activities that can complement ours.

GOAL: (Vision) Encourage a village environment which serves the needs of residents and businesses by being a center of Canaan's commercial and social activity.

Policy #1: Build community support by making the village a source of local pride and attractiveness.

Actions: "Welcome to Canaan" sign(s),

Arbor Day tree planting,

a flower bulb planting program,

promoting special events,

advertising local history and other local attractions,

developing a bike and pedestrian trail system

Identify and publicize historic homes and structures.

Policy #2: Promote private investment in Canaan village

Actions: Support the Canaan Merchants Association activities.

Conduct a "buy-a-brick" campaign for replacing the sidewalks.

Work with property owners to correct code violations.

Help to find low interest loans or grants to support property improvements.

Policy #3: Work to increase public investment in the village.

Actions: Continue to look for suitable location to provide off-street parking.

Apply for a CDBG Quality Main Street and Public Facilities grant.

Work with DOT to improve Route 2 sections by adding sidewalks and on-street parking.

Establish controls to slow traffic, especially near the school and at crosswalks.

Policy #4: Cooperate with private business in getting tourists and other travellers to linger in the village.

Actions: Provide informational signs/directories/literature on Canaan business and attractions.

put out a directory of local businesses at tourist destinations,

find a local agent for out-of-state fishing licenses,

Advertise Canaan on the internet.

Continue to pursue the possibility of a local golf course.