If you’ve ever wondered what downtown Leonard will look like in the future, now’s your chance to give your thoughts and ideas of what you’d like to see.
Main Street Oakland County will be hosting a Leonard Downtown Design Charette from 1 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, July 25 to discuss how the town can define itself as a ‘downtown? district and preserve its historic character.
The MSOC works to maximize the economic potential and preserve the heritage of Oakland County’s historic commercial districts by emphasizing economic development within the context of historic preservation.
The charette (Sha-Rett) is a high-speed, intensive, creative session in which a team concentrates on specific problems with citizens presenting solutions.
Throughout the day, residents, business and property owners and public officials will have various opportunities (see below) to share their ideas with the MSOC representatives, with a summary of the day’s input presented at 8 p.m.
Whether you have ideas about new construction, Master Plan issues, sewer/water issues or questions about historic buildings, this meeting is the place to address them.
A team of architects, planners and historic preservationists will also be on hand to discuss future plans for downtown Leonard.
Once all of the ideas are compiled, the MSOC will come back to the village council with some preliminary recommendations for future projects.
Village council member Charlene Sutherby said a Leonard resident recently contacted the MSOC because she wasn’t happy with the visual appeal, or lack thereof, in downtown Leonard.
Although this ‘mentoring? portion of the MSOC program will not cost the village any money, Sutherby said it will cost them $30,000 to move forward with any plans after the charette.
‘They’re very eager to work with us,? she said.
Being a resident of Leonard for 37 years, Sutherby agrees that sprucing up the downtown area would definitely be beneficial to the community.
‘I’m not a person who wants Leonard to grow, grow, grow, but I’d like Leonard to be nice for the people that live here,? she said. ‘I’d like people to say ‘this is my town and I’m proud of it.??
The Leonard Downtown Design Charette will take place from 1-9 p.m. on Wednesday, July 25, at Rowland Hall (23 E. Elmwood St.).

Leonard Downtown Design Charette
1 to 2:30 p.m. ? Community Input
3 to 4:30 p.m. ? Community Input
5 p.m. ? Break
6 to 7:30 p.m. ? Community Input
8 p.m. ? Summary of Input
8:30 p.m. ? Mixer/Refreshments

To be held at Rowland Hall,
23 E. Elmwood Street
Everyone is welcome.