The Town of Herndon hopes to bring more energy to the plaza outside Old Town Hall by giving it a new look and additional amenities.
Town staff will present updated plans for landscaping, a new pergola and other design changes to the Historic District Review Board when it meets at 7 p.m. today (Tuesday).
“The purpose of the project is to refresh the design of the Town Hall Square and add more amenities with the intent of attracting and encouraging more use of this area by residents and visitors,” staff said in a report when the project was first brought to the board on June 12.
Located in the triangle of Elden, Station and Lynn streets, Town Hall Square currently features a park and plaza area with some green space and outdoor seating, including benches and a couple of tables.
According to the staff report, Herndon’s Department of Community Development is seeking to replace the existing picnic tables with aluminum tables that have four benches each and metal umbrellas to provide shade from the sun.
The trash and recycling receptacles will be updated and moved to reflect the town’s current design standards. Paving and landscaping changes are also proposed, with bluestone and clay pavers replacing clay pavers and wood beams.
“The updated landscaping includes new shrubs and trees around portions of the plaza, relocated flagpoles, and a relocated memorial garden,” the staff report says.
Other planned additions include fixed chess tables at the southwest end of the plaza near Old Town Hall, an accent bench on the lawn to serve as a “usable or interactive artistic and play feature,” string lighting hung from poles around the square’s perimeter, and a permanent metal pergola with a stage elevated 18 inches off the ground.
The pergola would be located between Old Town Hall and the Herndon Depot (717 Lynn Street). Since the June 12 meeting, the design has been tweaked to include fixed benches and additional paneling to increase shade, per a staff memo for tonight’s board meeting.
“Though the addition of panels increases the visual impact of the pergola and deck area, staff believes that the scale and placement are chosen in such a way that it will not negatively impact the adjacent contributing structures, specifically the Depot which is closer to the proposed pergola,” the memo says.
The proposed accent bench, which initially consisted of two stacked metal beams, has also been modified with a third beam and “seating cubes” to enhance “the size and visual component of this feature,” staff said.
Town staff are recommending approval of the application by the board, which is charged with determining the compatibility of proposed design changes with the Herndon Historic District’s guidelines.
“While the streetscape standards for the historic district lean very traditional with Victorian design tendencies, the approach with the design of the Town Hall Square was to do something a little different and slightly more contemporary to set it apart from the streetscape design,” staff said in the June 12 report. “The site amenities reflect that approach with more contemporary designs that still work within a traditional context.”
The Department of Community Development told FFXnow that they’re still refining a cost estimate for the project, and there’s no “firm” construction timeline yet.
“We hope to have a contractor secured within the next month,” a spokesperson said by email.
