Just after Christmas this year, I drove from Tallahassee to my hometown, Gallatin. I was surprised to see that the small square had been renovated. Huge Bradford pear trees that had obscured the art deco style courthouse had been replaced with Eastern Redbud trees and (what appeared to be) East Palatka Holly. In addition, the streetscape had been significantly altered to provide widened sidewalks, mid-block crossings, improved parallel parking, etc. I was able to meet with Jim Svoboda, the Community Development Coordinator for Gallatin to find out more. In a time when these types of changes to downtowns may be seen as just more government social engineering, it looks like this town got it right from the beginning.