LEBANON — The City Council last week agreed to issue a request for expressions of interest to gather ideas for redeveloping an oft-discussed 2.9-acre piece of property between City Hall and the Mascoma River.

The unanimous vote at Wednesday’s council meeting advanced the recommendations of the Lebanon Economic Development Commission and Downtown TIF Advisory Board, the two boards seeking ideas on the space currently used for parking.

“The idea of redeveloping this area, including the potential for parking structures, goes back decades,” David Brooks, the director of the Lebanon Department of Planning and Zoning, told commissioners at the meeting.

Brooks said the committees wanted to see more information about potential projects and didn’t believe they knew enough about what was possible. The unusual idea of issuing a request for expressions interest gives firms a chance to share a vision without the city being under any kind of pressure. If one or more of the ideas resonate, the city then could issue a formal request for proposals.

“The purpose of an RFEI is to seek additional input about what might be possible and enhance a community’s understanding of the level of interest from private parties before going through that more formal RFP process,” Brooks said. “It’s really hoped that respondents will provide the city with some narratives and visual representations of how the community might achieve its goals.”

Those goals include seeking mixed use and infill development; creating bike and pedestrian connections between the downtown and surrounding neighborhoods to the Northern Rail Trail and Mascoma River Greenway; improving the attractiveness and vibrancy of the area; enhancing riverfront access; and bolstering economic development opportunities.

The two city groups have been studying options since the beginning of this year under the guidance of a visioning study the city completed in 2016. They looked at ideas for how to redevelop parking lots as part of a broader look at redevelopment opportunities to enhance the appearance and functionality of the downtown.

Members of the two committees told the council that the focus of interest is in developing the riverfront into a city asset.

“The only real consensus the two committees came to was developing the riverfront and making it an amenity,” Victoria Smith, a member of the TIF Advisory Board, said. “This is an important opportunity that cannot be missed to redevelop that riverfront and enhance it and make it accessible. Right now, it’s a jungle and you can’t even really get to it.”

William Dunn, chairman of the Economic Development Commission, pointed out that issuing a request for expressions of interest doesn’t tie the city to any type of plan.

“This is really an opportunity to gain expertise from outside individuals who have design and development experience and can give us a vision of what might happen,” Dunn said.

Dunn said the idea of an apartment building in that location “created a lot of strong feelings.”

“One of the things that became abundantly clear is the constituents within the city really value that river frontage,” Dunn said. “If there’s an opportunity to create development or have other folks come up with concepts on how to develop but save what we find valuable, then we will listen to those proposals.”

The board approved the idea unanimously with four council members speaking in favor of it. Councilor Erling Heistad said the proposal was a chance to turn wasted space into a city asset.

“I find it exciting that we are able to move forward and start asking for vision,” Heistad said. “That is a space within the city that should be opened up on both sides of the river so that we can access what many other cities have been able to do.”

Firms will have 90 days to file their submissions once the city posts the request for expressions interest. To encourage greater participation, any business that submits one will be given additional consideration during the RFP process.

Darren Marcy can be reached at dmarcy@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.