Baldwin ? Sandy Cardens wants to freshen up the appearance of downtown Baldwin by giving a nod to its past.

Cardens is looking forward to a day when overhead power lines are buried, landscaping boxes are installed, ornamental trees are planted, old-style light poles are plugged in and vintage bricks are inlayed into new concrete sidewalks.

“The main idea is to make it someplace that people want to come, something that makes it a little more charming,” said Cardens, who works for the Baldwin Chamber of Commerce and serves on the organization’s Downtown Beautification Committee. “We have a lot of old buildings here. We want to take advantage of that architecture. We want to bring people to town, and one of the ways to do that is to increase the beauty in the downtown area.

“We need some flowers. We need pots. We need different lighting.”

But before anything can happen, the project also needs a commitment from downtown property owners to cover the bulk of the project’s costs.

City officials say the entire project could cost as much as $461,000, with two-thirds of that being paid by 31 property owners with property along High Street, from Sixth to Ninth streets; and along Seventh and Eighth streets, from Grove Street to the alley north of High Street. The other third would be paid by city taxpayers.

Jeff Dingman, city administrator, said the Baldwin City Council had tentatively given its support to pursue such a project. Now he’s busy meeting with property owners to explain the process and outline possible costs.

The $461,000 estimate likely would be the highest possible cost, Dingman said, because it was calculated using estimates generated for the block anticipated to cost the most to overhaul: the south side of High Street, between Seventh and Eighth streets.

That block would cost about $42,000 for materials, he said.

“That’s roughly $143 a linear foot,” said Dingman, who said that properties in a particular block likely would be assessed based upon the estimated costs only for their particular block. “A lot of these blocks may be more like $80 a linear foot.”

An artist's rendering of proposed changes to the look of downtown Baldwin. The city wants to add new trees and streetlamps.

The work, as envisioned, could take several years to complete, he said. Planter boxes would be equipped with irrigation systems to care for trees and plants, plus electrical outlets to provide power during special events, such as the annual Maple Leaf Festival.

Dingman said that new streetlights also would be shorter and designed to better direct light, empowering a more historic feel than the tall, overhead models that have been in place for at least two decades.

Overall, Dingman said, the overhaul would put a fresh face on the heart of the city.

“It would look similar to Lawrence’s (Massachusetts Street) streetscape, but it wouldn’t be quite as full — not as many trees and planters,” Dingman said. “The idea would be to shoot for a 1930s-era type of look.”

Not all downtown property owners are sold on the idea, however.

Joanna Vesecky worries that the project’s effects could go beyond offering the appearance of the 1930s and instead plunge small businesses into grim financial realities reminiscent of the Great Depression.

“I’m all for bringing business down here, but not if it means slitting our throats to do it,” said Vesecky, who operates Joanna’s Tanning and Hydro Massage inside her mother’s building just north of City Hall. “It’s a great idea, but it’s extremely expensive. A sign on the highway would be better.”