Downtown La Center residents will soon live closer to a local landmark and more food options.
The La Center City Council unanimously approved two park-related measures on Wednesday, May 13, advancing plans for a future downtown community gathering space at the corner of Fifth Street and Birch Avenue.
The council awarded a $154,212 contract to Colf Construction LLC to move and rebuild the historic Make Mine Milk building, currently located east of the I-5 junction, at the future park. An additional $20,788 was set aside for possible change orders, bringing the total project authorization to $175,000.
The council also unanimously approved an ordinance allowing food carts and food cart pods in commercial zoning districts, including downtown La Center. The ordinance also changes restaurants serving alcohol from a conditional use to a permitted use in those zones, streamlining the approval process.
Plans for the park, just south of the C-Tran park-and-ride, call for a playground, covered seating, event space and a future food cart pod. According to Public Works and Community Development Director Tracey Coleman, the idea to move the building downtown came from a citizen of the local arts council. The building, which once served as a local dairy farm, has been donated by the Cowlitz Indian Tribe.
“The contract is actually to disassemble it and to rebuild it down here to give that historical feel here at La Center, because it’s been up there for so many years,” Coleman said.
The rebuilt Make Mine Milk building will be smaller than the original near Interstate 5. The city intends to reuse historic materials where possible and adapt the structure to fit the downtown site.
“It’s absolutely covered,” Coleman noted. “It’s enclosed in three sides with one full side open, with a future plan of being able to close all four sides to be able to have big garage doors that close down and open up to keep it warmer. It will have lighting. It will have outlets in it. And we’ll have picnic tables in there so people can get out of the rain.”
Coleman said the city set aside extra funding for future improvements or project changes, aiming to prevent construction delays if adjustments are needed. According to Coleman, renters in the residential building on the same block as the future park site have expressed support for the planned food carts, while the property owners approved fencing improvements that the city helped install.
The new food cart ordinance is intended to support the city’s vision for the downtown park by allowing food cart pods in commercial and downtown areas.
