There's a place on every street where private land bumps up against the public right of way. In cities this is usually the point where the sidewalk edge ends and the private parcel begins. A truly urban environment will have the building front next to the sidewalk for a seamless transition with absolutely no setbacks. This is a critical ingredient for the vibrant streetlife we all want to see downtown and in our neighborhood business districts. It doesn't end there however.
Abandoned for decades but not forgotten, it looks like a rehabilitation plan for the Iron Bridge may have some legs. On numerous levels this project is a no-brainer: It expands the network of the Centennial Trail, improves connectivity
for bikes and pedestrians through East Central-Logan-University
District, brings attention to a sorely neglected stretch of the river,
etc.
On the one hand we have Forbes magazine who loves us, and on the other hand we have the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) who thinks Spokane need some help. Earlier this month the APMA released it's 2008 listing of America's Best Walking Cities, and out of 500 cities ranked across the US they ranked us #215. Sure we're no Venice, but certainly we're better than #215, aren't we?
Whether visitor or longtime resident, anyone who has driven in and around downtown has had to deal with the annoyance of the one-way streets. The one-way streets you enjoy today are actually a result of downtown's first master plan completed in 1961 (we love eBay). The plan, known as the Ebasco Plan, developed the strategy of a twin inner-loop system of one-way couplets cons
isting of an outer-loop (Spokane Falls Blvd-Monroe-1st-Washington) moving traffic in a counter-clockwise direction while the inner-loop (Main-Stevens-Sprague-Lincoln) circulated clockwise. These one-way couplets were suggested to be implemented first because, according to the plan it would reduce accidents and delays at troublesome intersections. Forty years later we're not sure if this has been the result or not.
SPOKANE VALLEY - Ahhh...East Sprague Avenue out in the Valley: Ten miles of wide-open public right-of-way flanked by some of the lowest low-rise development and some of the biggest building setbacks you'll ever see. It's the antithesis of urban in every way and if you're a pedestrian, forget it. Things may be changing however.
1) LIBERTY LAKE - We missed this newsworthy bit last fall. Liberty Lake was recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists. Way to go. Overall Liberty Lake received a Bronze designation (Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) and will retain it for the next four years. The recognition is due mostly to the significant amount of investment they've made in biking infrastructure over the years. Bicycle Friendly Communities are recognized only if the community has records in two or more of the following five categories:
Education: Does the community have systems in place to train children and adult cyclists?
Engineering: Are bicyclists included in the city’s transportation plan?
Enforcement: Do police officers understand and enforce bicyclists’ rights and responsibilities?
Encouragement: Does the community participate in Bike Month, offer bike
rodeos, host community bike rides, or otherwise encourage cycling?
Evaluation: Does the community have methods in place to ensure their bicyclist programs are making a difference?
We have a feeling our turn is just around the corner.
2) Spokane, Northern Idaho, we're sorry to say you are not the biggest loser. In fact it appears we're a little tubbier than the state average. "Six out of every 10 people in the county are either overweight or obese," and a similar pattern exists in Northern Idaho. Near nature, near perfect pudding?
2007 will likely go down as the year bicycle advocates in Spokane were finally heard. Biking infrastructure has made some tremendous gains this year thanks to many dedicated individuals, but we're not satisfied. Looking ahead to 2008 we see the momentum continuing for a city that's safer and more accessible for non-automotive forms of transportation. We think 2008 could be a prime year for the complete streets movementto finally arrivein Spokane.
Complete streets are streets that serve all transportation users and this includes pedestrians, bikes, wheelchairs, transit and autos. Think about the streets you use everyday to get home, to work, to the store, etc. Which ones are designed with all users in mind? It's nothing new in Washington State, in fact Seattle took the bold step of pledging to create complete streets first by passing a resolution and then a city ordinance the following year. Redmond and Kirkland are into it as well...so why couldn't we? C'mon, when you have the AARP and biking advocates on the same side of an issue something is up.
We know we're not even mid Winter, but we wanted to mention again an important topic. Last Spring we raised the idea of doing a Ciclovia Spokane event and it generated some good discussion. We even threw out a beginner route idea. To follow-up, the good people at StreetFilms traveled south to Bogota, Colombia, the birthplace of Ciclovia, to see first hand how the event transforms their city for seven hours each week. It's an impressive display of people from a variety of backgrounds truly enjoying and experiencing their city in a way that isn't possible at any other time. Imagine the same here in Spokane...[NOTE:At 8:25 in they share the names of other cities across the world where this event has spread.]
So you've ranted and raved here over the past three years about a wide variety of topics. It's been good...real good. And a large portion of text here has been dedicated towards downtown Spokane with all it's wins and losses.
Well tonight is your chance to give some input that might translate into action as the City of Spokane looks to be updating it's plan for downtown. Bring all your ideas no matter how outlandish. Think a gondola should connect Browne's Addition to the future Kendall Yards? Throw it out there. It's only three hours people so show some love for your city. Opportunities like this don't come around very often, and there'll be loads of free parking. :^p
Details, details, details:
COMMUNITY WORKSHOP
Thursday, November 29, 2007
6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
South Campus Facility Court (next to the Bookie), 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd. in the University District.
It's damn cold out today and that means that Ice-skating is underway downtown, but you wouldn't know it by looking. That's because the ice-rink is buried in the middle of Riverfront Park a full three blocks away from any of the action downtown near Riverpark Square. That's too bad, because during the winter months nothing attracts people like outdoor ice-skating (both participants and observers). Seriously.
Public spaces during the winter have an entirely different way about them, and if they're accessible and visible by the public they can dramatically improve the street life. But did you know that the original plan for Riverfront Park called for
the ice-rink to be located in a different location?
You've all heard of Manito, Corbin, Comstock, Lincoln, Liberty, etc. The names represent some of Spokane's most sizable park lands. At the other end of the spectrum is Spokane's oft overlooked .28 acres (12k sqf) Skeet-so-mish Park. If you've ever visited (not sure why you would) Skeet-so-mish park it's easy to understand why nobody pays any attention to it. It amounts to two city parcels 1/2 block east of Maple St. on Maxwell Avenue and other than the 10' of basalt that fronts Maxwell, the park has little apparent significance.
Based on our extensive research on Google over the past 10 minutes, Skeet-so-mish is the name used in the journals of Lewis & Clark to refer to the tribe of the Coeur d'Alenes whom they encountered in 1805. Regardless, the question still is why does a nub of a park exist in this location? Especially one that is absolutely inaccessible to everyone, and why use Skeet-so-mish? Check out the park sometime. It's an odd and overlooked public place - and as a citizen feel free to use at your leisure.
Originating in San Francisco in 2005, Park(ing) Day has gone national, actually international. The one-day event is a call to artists and citizens to come together and create temporary public parks or Park(ing) Spaces in parking spots across the city. A quick look at their Park(ing) Space mashup reveals just how huge this event has become in San Francisco. The event is now national and is sponsored by The Trust for Public Land. A list of participating cities is impressive. Hell, even Vancouver, WA is planning a Park(ing) Space.
We're pretty sure this has never occurred here in Spokane, so we're holding out hope that some group of inspired locals have some big plans for a nice metered spot downtown. If someone does make it happen, be sure and send us some footage. Don't forget to feed the meter!
If there's any question how well an old park can serve a
neighborhood, look no further than the Cannon HIll neighborhood. The
park, just off 18th and Lincoln Street, is tucked away surrounded by
some of the finest historic homes in Spokane (just ask the developers of the gated Elkridge Heights -caution annoying music). While the park is an amazing design and amenity, so too are the tree-lined streets that stretch into the adjoining areas.
Everyone has that one intersection in their neighborhood that could just be so much better. For whatever reason, the cars seem to drive through too fast, the crosswalks are non-existent, or there is no place to comfortably sit and wait for the bus. We found a neighborhood-based event profiled on the most excellent Streetfilms.org called Intersection Repair.
