A committee of neighborhood, city and business representatives gathered Monday night at the Lawrence Public Library to ask what will make the planned Ninth Street Corridor Project a success.

The group, named the Ninth Street Corridor Citizen Advisory Committee, is meant to act as a sounding board for city staff and the project’s design team as the seven-block creative placemaking project moves forward.

The committee’s meetings will be held about once a month and are open to the public. Around three dozen interested Lawrence residents sat quietly in the library’s auditorium as the group discussed its goals.

At face value, the project will be a complete renovation of the Ninth Street thoroughfare, from Delaware Street west to Massachusetts Street, said Josh Shelton of the project’s design team.

The project aims to deliver streetscape and landscaping strategies, proposed infrastructure upgrades and public art integration, Shelton said.

Aside from several deliverable concepts, however, much of the project is open to interpretation, Shelton said. And it is the purpose of these meetings to steer the effort in the right direction.

Monday night’s main discussion point was a single question: “What does success look like for the Ninth Street Corridor Project?”

Lawrence Mayor Mike Amyx spoke of his barber shop on Massachusetts Street, and how a successful renovation would allow for traffic to flow naturally to and from the downtown area.

“I think success is a multimodal and safe roadway that can bring my customers up and down Ninth Street,” he said.

Tom Carmody, chairman of the Lawrence Arts Center board of directors, spoke of the potential for artwork along the corridor, mentioning a $500,000 grant the center was awarded in 2014 from ArtPlace America.

“We hope that the city uses the grant we got to engage artists,” Carmody said before the meeting.

“We’d like to see a diverse set of artists represented in the corridor,” he later added.

Representing the East Lawrence Neighborhood on the committee, Dave Loewenstein said the project should be done in such a way so that the area’s current residents are treated fairly.

“I think the project should ensure that current residents and business owners can maintain their lives and culture as they wish,” he said.

Pennsylvania Street resident Judy Romero said she attended Monday night’s meeting to learn more about the project and because she is concerned it will draw a downtown atmosphere into the neighborhood.

“I don’t want it to be a gateway to an all-night entertainment center,” she said. “With all this drinking and carousing.”

After the meeting, Romero said she was satisfied about how the committee is proceeding

“The design team is trying to get an idea of what the people want,” she said. “I think they’re open-minded. They have no preconceived notions and want to do what’s best for the area.”

The committee’s next meeting is planned for May 27. Future meetings regarding the project are also open to the public. A full schedule and more information can be found at www.lawrenceks.org/9th-street-corridor-project.