Just in: Renderings of $12.5M Georgia Street makeover

Plans are taking shape to transform a three-block stretch of Georgia Street in downtown Indianapolis into a pedestrian-friendly corridor connecting the expanded Indiana Convention Center to Conseco Fieldhouse. (Check out the new rendering from Ratio Architects above. And for a PDF with several other images, click here.) Work is scheduled to begin later this year on the $12.5 million project, which would add new street lights, trees, a pedestrian path, a rectractable overhead covering and, from the looks of the rendering, outdoor cafés along Georgia Street from Capitol Avenue to Pennsylvania Street. The project—described in the plans as an "urban outdoor event venue"—is slated for completion before the city hosts the Super Bowl in 2012. Georgia Street will continue to serve as a two-way street and will only be closed to traffic for special events. Project funding primarily will come from a federal grant. What do you think?