Mayor Paul Soglin’s annual capital budget calls for the allocation of funds to renovate Library Mall and State Street in 2013.

According to City Engineer Robert Phillips, Library Mall will undergo design planning in 2013 and construction in 2014. He said because it is a highly-used section of the downtown area, the public will play a significant role in the renovation’s design.

“We know we have to accommodate a fire lane, we have to accommodate vendors, and people probably have attachments to certain other elements in that area,” Phillips said.

Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said because Library Mall is such an heavily-used area, Soglin’s proposed budget states the renovation should be designed by an outside engineering firm, rather than by internal city staff. He added the budget dedicated $550,000 to design the area in 2013 and $4.9 million to construction in 2014.

Phillips said the designers will start out with a blank slate and get a feel for what people want to see there and look at alternatives. He added the money in the budget allocated to the project is for the design of Library Mall and not just for public involvement.

There are several competing interests in the State Street area, which also places a high importance on public opinion of the project, Verveer said.

Planners are currently determining whether bicyclists will be allowed on Library Mall after it undergoes the renovations, according to Verveer. He said it is currently illegal for people to ride their bikes in the area.

He added another aspect under consideration is potential issues caused by the food carts that set up shop on Library Mall at lunchtime. He said large electrical outlets currently stick out of Library Mall for the food carts to use, making the area not as functional as he would like.

Other concerns that the city will address include flooding issues of the mall and a possible rebuilding of the podium and stage.

The city has been reconstructing parts of State Street and the surrounding areas for over a decade, and these new renovations are the final piece of the ongoing project.

Other major design projects that will take place in 2013, which are funded under the budget, include renovations to parts of Johnson Street, North Charter Street, Spring Street and Henry Street, according to Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8.

Verveer said part of the State Street reconstruction project included the replacement of sidewalks on several blocks of the street that have prematurely deteriorated. He said they are in the worst condition on the 400 block of State Street, near Lisa Link Peace Park.

He said the city poured asphalt in the gaps in the sidewalk on the 400 block that was much more expensive than concrete sidewalk.

“At the end of September we’re going to try to make some spot repairs to the deteriorated sidewalk and use the 400 block as a pilot,” Verveer said. “It’s a disappointment because city spent a tremendous amount of money to install aesthetically-pleasing sidewalk.”

Verveer said the project will fall under the sidewalk program that dedicates $2.01 million to sidewalks in the entire city of Madison.