Mayors, revitalization pioneers on the guest list.

The City of Bremerton will host the Urban Waterfront Revitalization conference Sept. 10-12, welcoming national dignitaries, port leaders and speakers from the region and North America to discuss waterfront transformation.

A handful of mayors and revitalization pioneers will share insights and opinions on the revitalization process, drawing from their own experiences to illustrate how to best revitalize a waterfront.

Bremerton Mayor Cary Bozeman, former Mayor Mike Kelly, of Sausalito, Calif., Bart Alford, Senior Planner for the City of Tacoma, Puget Sound Partnership Executive Director David Dicks and Wenatchee Mayor Dennis Johnson are among the many speakers.

“What we’ve found is waterfront development is a huge interest in the Northwest,” Bozeman said of how the conference came to fruition.

After making speeches around the state on the topic, Bozeman said he visioned Bremerton hosting a conference of the like.

“You get an idea,” he said. “I finally thought, ‘Wow, maybe we should try to get everybody together.’”

Leaders will discuss financing, transportation, Brownfield development and environmental cleanup, smart growth and planning, marketing, sustainability, public engagement and public/private partnerships.

Two pre-conference workshops on “Sustainable Shorelines” and “Community Planning in the Green Economy” will precede the conference, which will focus on making waterfronts more accessible to the public.

“What we’re trying to do is redevelop waterfronts so there’s more access to the public,” Bozeman said. “That’s our vision, to give the public more access to the waterfront.”

While the conference is in its first year, Bozeman said it could become a tradition.

“We hope to do it every year,” Bozeman said. “I think it’s eventually going to be a nationally known conference.”

And registration numbers show people are keen on the idea, with more than 200 signing up so far.

“I’m really pleased that we’ve got more than 200 people registered,” Bozeman added.

The conference will be in the 10,000-square-foot Kitsap Conference Center at Bremerton Harborside, with the first pre-conference workshop beginning at 8 a.m. Wednesday.

Registration is required. To register and for more information, visit the Urban Waterfront Revitalization Conference Web site, http://www.sustainabilitypro.com/uwr_communities.php.