Since Jasper’s origins, its Courthouse Square has been the focus of the community. The Courthouse is a signature work of architecture surrounded by an impressive ensemble of historic buildings. Unfortunately, the current configuration of the space renders it more a place to pass through than to stay. Wide streets surround the courthouse and isolate it from the businesses that define it. The sidewalks themselves have few appealing characteristics that make one want to mingle; there are limited places to sit. The pedestrian character of the square is undermined by the flow of traffic that navigates around its edges
A modest reduction in the pavement around the Square allows for a generous planting buffer adjacent to the road and new space for outdoor dining. The well-landscaped area reduces storm-water runoff and creates a handicapped-accessible buffer zone between parked cars and the sidewalk. Activity nodes are established at the four corners of the Square with additional seating, street trees and pedestrian-scaled lighting.
Jasper’s Courthouse Square Infrastructure and Revitalization Project began reconstruction in May 2022 and will be completed by Summer 2023. Final design by Rundell Ernstberger Associates with Ragel Construction.
- CityVisions Associates
City of Jasper
Family of Elements
Temporary events and pop-up activities provide an opportunity to prototype longer-term infrastructure investments that facilitate the transformation of Jasper’s Courthouse Square into a place at all times of the year and not just during Strassenfest.