The existing Galena Highway 20 Corridor varies in character from well-preserved historic settings, to typical highway-oriented development, to pristine rural countryside.
The downtown and hillside segments of Highway 20 fall within the Galena National Register Historic District where changes to sites and buildings are controlled by rehabilitation design standards. Here you will find preserved nineteenth-century stone and frame buildings with historic site amenities and signage along with small scale and/or integrated parking facilities.
Within Galena corporate limits and outside of the Historic District, the Highway 20 character takes on a much more varied, contemporary, and highway-oriented character. The road itself widens and traffic speeds are higher. A mix of more contemporary and automobile-oriented commercial uses have located here on individual parcels, grouped in strips, or located within the industrial park. Buildings are set back from the highway, and larger parking lots dominate some sites. Some older highway-oriented uses now stand empty. Building character includes new franchise-designed facilities, metal industrial buildings, and typical gas station facilities, along with aging highway-oriented commercial uses. Some outdoor storage, waste handling, and loading facilities are visible from Highway 20. Very few historic structures remain in this segment. Some views of the surrounding landscape remain while others are now blocked by structures.
The segment of Highway 20 outside of the corporate limits is currently "countryside." Primarily rural in character, the surroundings are dominated by rolling agricultural fields, fence rows, and farmsteads. Some new residential and golf course development can be seen from one portion of the highway.
This diverse character has influenced the development of the corridor and district development concepts outlined in the next chapter. These diverse segments each have issues and important influences on future site development and building design.
Development Goals
Based on some of the existing prominent characteristics of the corridor and the character of future development desired by the city, the standards and guidance contained in this Manual are intended to further the following development goals within the Highway 20 Corridor.
Preserve desirable views to farmland, bluffs, and hillsides.
Maintain large open spaces and rural qualities.
Respect, preserve, enhance, and leverage natural features of development sites.
Create a unique and authentic sense of place.
Promote residential and business diversity and vitality.
Create a quality image of development.
Enhance the onsite experience of occupants and visitors of development.
(8) Coordinate access and traffic between properties.
(9) Preserve and restore historic structures.