HOLYOKE — The city’s director of planning and economic development believes the time is right to invest in new wayfinding signage downtown, as part of a broader “refresh” reflecting a changing part of the city.

According to Aaron Vega, the city’s downtown streets currently offer a patchwork of tired, outdated signs from different eras and with different designs. Parts of downtown don’t highlight parking or notable venues, and other areas are so inundated with signs drivers don’t even heed them anymore.

Replacing these signs with more updated and unifying message could be in the offing. The city is planning to hold a public forum Feb. 26, the first of two meetings to gather feedback from residents about what they would like to see. On that day there will also be a public survey made available for residents and business owners. Vega, who heads the city’s Office of Planning and Economic Development, also encourages non-residents who work in the city and those who commute through it to attend and pitch their recommendations.

The survey, which will also be provided online, asks several questions, including which destinations should be highlighted, what people consider the borders of the downtown area, and asks for comment on current wayfinding shortcomings. Residents will also be shown signage from other communities, and voice their opinion on artistic features and design elements.

This project, said Vega, “dovetails into” the city’s ongoing master plan, which has attempted to bolster and leverage the city’s tourism and economic activity. The signs, he said, are meant to be both the city’s guideposts as well as vibrant additions to downtown’s ongoing revitalization.

“Things are different downtown,” he said. “It’s a rebirth, and the branding for that is really important.”

Vega said many streets downtown, especially Main, Race and Beech, are inundated with signs, and the upcoming forums will look for ways to streamline and perhaps combine signs.

“People tune it all out, which is dangerous,” he said, speaking on the sometimes overwhelming amount of street signs.

In October the city began working with Stantec on the project, which will be funded with community litigation funds, which are given to communities to offset their costs imposed by legal casinos and gaming in the state.

Vega hopes a “large chunk” of the new signage will be implemented before the end of this year, particularly at entry points to the city. Work will begin following a second community forum in the spring.

The upcoming meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. at the HCC MGM Culinary arts institute located at 164 Race St.

Samuel Gelinas can be reached at sgelinas@gazettenet.com.