The Bremerton City Council greenlighted a design contract Wednesday for the new “Quincy Square” – a redevelopment that aims to transform a block of 4th Street into a pedestrian-friendly gathering space, music venue and “destination” for residents and visitors, architects said.

The Bremerton firm Rice Fergus Miller was chosen to design the project, envisioned as a music-themed homage to the 85-year-old music producer and former Bremerton resident Quincy Jones.

Officials said the rights to name the square after Jones have not yet been secured, but they are hopeful to get consent from the 27-time Grammy Award winner.

The project’s design will cost $495,000, funded by state and federal grants, according to the Bremerton public works department. The total cost of construction will be identified after the design process is completed late next year.

The firm hopes to transform the area into “an inviting urban neighborhood,” and hopes the redesign will spur “desirability for prospective business and residents” to locate on or near 4th Street, according to plans submitted to the city.

The square, which will take up one block between Pacific and Washington avenues, will be walkable and landscaped, with communal picnic tables, a gathering space called “the Green Room,” a stage for outdoor performances and infrastructure to easily close the open and close the road to traffic during events.

It will be “a modern arterial that can be transformed into an urban public space,” plans state, and will be “good for people and cars.” The architecture firm has already identified subcontractors for civil engineering, street design and landscaping.

City mayor Greg Wheeler expressed optimism about the project.

“Live music is something we’re short on in Bremerton. I believe if this project is developed the way it could be, it could be that place in Kitsap County where you go for music,” he said, noting that the Roxy concert venue is on the same block.

Wheeler said he thinks Quincy Square could become a small-scale version of Austin, Texas’ 6th Street, an entertainment destination with live music venues, bars and stores.

“You could open up storefronts, and all of a sudden you have indoor, you have outdoor, you have live music,” he said. “It has great potential.”