YORK, Maine — A new York Village Subcommittee met for the first time Friday, as an initial step toward improving signage, parking, traffic and zoning in the center of town.

The Board of Selectmen initiated the committee to create a group that will focus on the needs of the village, as a York Beach subcommittee has done in recent years for the York Beach downtown in Short Sands Square. Members include town officials, village residents and representatives of York Hospital, Museums of Old York and the York Village Business Association, all located in the town center.

Business association members who met last winter told Town Manager Rob Yandow they would like their downtown to have public rest rooms, more off-street parking, a sign welcoming visitors to "Historic York Village," reduced speed postings, crosswalks and better sidewalks to make it more walkable. Bicyclists also have trouble navigating the busy intersection of Route 1A, York Street and Long Sands Road, they and others have said.

On Friday, Yandow said one of the first items the subcommittee must address is the definition of York Village, meaning its boundaries and whether it should have a clearly defined business district. "This is a long-term project," he said.

The next York Village Subcommittee meeting, open to the public, will be at 8:30 a.m. Friday, July 22, at York Public Library.

Residents of another village group have been meeting at the Remick Barn of the Museums of Old York since February, when Roxanne Eflin, director of the Maine Downtown Center in Augusta, spoke about York potentially becoming a Main Street Community. Museums of Old York Executive Director Scott Stevens invited Eflin to speak. Stevens serves on both committees.

"There's a lot of overlap," Stevens said. "The two (committees) are not exactly the same. The one I'm on (at the Remick Barn) is focused on revitalization."

The town can't get involved in promoting businesses, he said.

Both committees want to avoid duplication of efforts, said Yandow, who said members of Stevens' village committee will be invited to subcommittee meetings. York Village Subcommittee members also include Steve Pelletier of York Hospital; selectmen's representative Mary Andrews; citizens Ron McAllister, Jennifer Smith and Stu Dawson; business representatives Gloria Gustafson and Antonia DeSoto; and Planning Board representative Lew Stowe.