The Mifflin neighborhood is a historic area of downtown Madison, filled with a rich tradition of student activism dating back to the Vietnam War. However, it is also filled with dilapidated houses and run-down apartments. The area is in desperate need of revitalization, which is exactly what the Downtown Plan seeks to accomplish.

The proposed 25-year plan for downtown Madison is three years in the making and aims to balance the importance of preservation with the need for development. It sets new height limits for buildings around the Capitol, calls for 5,000 living units and five million square feet of commercial space and encourages high density development. It also preserves important views, proposes a new park next to the DoubleTree Hotel and would create a path connecting Memorial Union to James Madison Park.

One of the most controversial issues in the Downtown Plan is the redevelopment of Mifflin Street, a traditionally student residential neighborhood that has been the target of redevelopment over the past few years.

Although many feel protective of this quintessential student area, a street’s history can only go so far to protect its original architecture. Many houses are more than 100 years old and are becoming more run-down every day. The iconic Mifflin Street Block Party is not reason enough to justify the continued existence of inadequate, unsafe and overpriced student housing.

The Downtown Plan would update the neighborhood by creating several low-rise apartment complexes and a new urban lane, while ensuring the area is still predominantly composed of duplexes and houses, especially along Mifflin Street itself. It would also create an abundance of parking spaces by moving them underground, thereby restoring more backyards and green spaces.

While the Downtown Plan proposes much needed renovations, it should not try to cater to young professionals and families, but maintain its predominantly student status. After all, developers tried to attract the same crowd with Lucky and Grand Central, to name a few, but instead ended up attracting a wealthier subset of students.

Student complaints that any change to the Mifflin neighborhood would compromise its integrity are misplaced. Mifflin Street has come to represent an image of students that is tired and inaccurate. The focus should not be on maintaining the neighborhood for sentimental reasons for the hard-partying students, landlords and wistful baby boomers. The Downtown Plan should aim for student housing in the Mifflin neighborhood that is high-quality, safe and affordable.

Students should embrace this change as one for the better and look forward to a Mifflin Street Block Party where no one crashes through an unstable porch.