Downtown and midtown development, expanding public transportation and road infrastructure projects, and improving code enforcement and public safety were among the priorities for 2017 identified by the Gainesville City Council during its annual retreat at the Fair Street neighborhood center on Friday. City officials recently announced plans to demolish the old county jail in the midtown district to spur new residential and commercial development, and also prepared a “request for proposals” to generate interest in a mixed-used project on two city-owned parking lots downtown facing Jesse Jewell Parkway. “It was a very good day,” Councilwoman Ruth Bruner said of Friday’s discussions on economic development.