With spring
having sprung (not that we had a real winter in the North Bay), it’s time to
check in on a few old favorites, both places and subjects.
Ray’s
Deli: I’ve previously written about
the role that Ray’s Deli and Tavern plays in the life of my Petaluma neighborhood. Recently, a local architect suggested meeting
at Ray’s to discuss the relationship between urbanism and climate change, a
suggestion to which I quickly acceded because of both the subject and the
meeting place.
However, the
architect was late for our Friday afternoon meeting, so I ended up sitting at a
community table, sipping on a bottle of water and observing the springtime
angst of junior high school students newly freed for the weekend.
It was a
mind-numbing swirl of apprehension over who had said what to whom, who was
fighting with whom, and who might have a secret crush on whom. The drama, amped up by a Friday afternoon in
springtime, was enough to make my head spin.
And to make me decide that being a junior high teacher must be in one of
Dante’s circles of hell.
But the key
urbanist point is that we were all occupying the same space. Me awaiting a climate change conversation and
the hormone-charged mass of teenage tragicomedy were both considering the same
assortment of deli sandwiches, chips, and beverages.
And we’d all
walked there.
It was an uncommon
combination for a largely auto-oriented small city. It was also pretty darned cool.
McDowell Brew Pub District: A few
months back, I noted a brewing (pun intended) pedestrian problem along North McDowell Boulevard. With the Lagunitas Brewery putting down ever
deeper roots on the east side of McDowell and upstart breweries such as
Petaluma Hills getting underway on the west side, there was an increasing
problem with pedestrians crossing the 40 mph McDowell without the benefit of
traffic aids.
Right now,
the problem is exacerbated because most of the available parking is on the west
side of McDowell and most of the patronage is heading to Lagunitas on the east
side. A parking lot proposed by
Lagunitas on the east side will alleviate some of the concern, but there would still
be a problem with pedestrians engaging in an evening of brew pub hopping.
In my
earlier post, I debunked the idea that a painted crosswalk would be a solution,
noting that drivers tend to overlook crosswalks when driving at higher speeds. Also, the stripes give pedestrians a false
sense of security. The paradoxical result
is that car/pedestrian accidents tend to increase after crosswalks are painted
on high-speed streets.
The only
solution I could conceive at the time was a full signal, but cost was neither
affordable for a financially-strapped City nor justified by the few financial
benefits that would flow to the City.
I still
stand by my previous conclusions, as unhelpful as they may have been, but was recently
forced to take another look at the situation.
I’d been unexpectedly
lucky in my previous visits to Lagunitas, often snagging one of the few current
parking places on the east side of McDowell.
So when an urbanist friend recently suggested meeting at Lagunitas for
urban conversation at 2:30pm on a Thursday, I readily agreed. How much beer drinkers could possible start
imbibing that early in the week or the day?
As it turns
out, there were a lot of early beer drinkers.
I eventually parked two blocks away on the east side of McDowell. And as I walked back toward McDowell, my
friend called. She was at McDowell and
ready to cross, but was dismayed by the number of cars and their unwillingness to
stop. So she would await my arrival.
We
eventually worked our way across the street and had a pleasant and enlightening
discussion, but the experience of crossing McDowell stayed with me. So I now have another solution to offer.
And it’s the
obvious solution, building off the work of Twenty is Plenty, Vision Zero, New
York City, and even my own thoughts on traffic calming in my neighborhood.
Here’s the
comprehensive plan. We reduce the lane
widths on McDowell from 12 feet to 11 feet or even 10 feet, add bulb outs at
intersections, and perhaps adjust the lane alignments with slight angle points,
all of which would encourage lower speeds.
As drivers respond to the more constrained conditions and new reduced car
speeds are observed, the speed limit could be set at the lower speed, perhaps
25 mph. Now we paint the crosswalk
across McDowell and the drivers would respect it.
I’m sure
that many are shocked with the idea of reducing the speed limit on a major
arterial, but it’s the likely way of the future, with many communities going
this direction to encourage alternative modes of transportation and to save the
lives of pedestrians.
Besides, the
length of McDowell between the major cross streets either direction from the
breweries, Penngrove Highway and Corona Road, is a little less than a
mile. The additional time to drive that
distance at 25 mph instead of 40 mph is only 50 seconds.
I know that
the total extra time is that 50 seconds multiplied by the many people who drive
McDowell over course of a day. But that
still leaves the question of whether many people multiplied by 50 seconds each
is worth more or less than the reduced stress levels of the brewery district
pedestrians and the reduced risk of pedestrian injuries or fatalities. It’s not an easy balance to judge, but I come
down in favor of the pedestrians.
Also, if
pedestrians can cross McDowell safely and the businesses east of McDowell
aren’t adversely impacted by the street parking for the breweries, then
Lagunitas needn’t build the new parking lot and the lot can instead be used for
new industrial uses. Wow, economic
development through lower speed streets!
What a concept!
I have no
expectation that a lower speed McDowell will be implemented anytime soon. But I think it’s the way of the future. I hope to live long enough to write “I told
you so.”
Block
Parties: To conclude, I’ll touch on block parties. When I last mentioned the subject, the Petaluma City
Council has apparently given their approval to City staff to update and to clarify
the block party rules, including a green light for block parties in more
locations. Since that update, I’ve sent
my thoughts to City staff on how the rules might be updated, including ideas
I’d gleaned from other North Bay cities and from observing block parties during
the summer of 2014.
However,
there has been no resulting action. I
know that City staff has a number of high priorities. I also know that I could have been more
diligent with my follow-up. Nonetheless,
it seems a shame that we’re facing another summer of legal limbo for what
should be a rite of summer, simple neighborly block parties.
If you’ve
been thinking of hosting a block party, but have been awaiting clarification on
the rules, here are my thoughts:
- · Proceed with your party planning. Block parties are great ways to build communities and the City seems supportive even if the Municipal Code is lagging behind.
- · Go ahead and check with the Police Department. (Email me if you need help with contact information.) But don’t be deterred if the response seems ambivalent or vague. Their hands are also tied.
- · When configuring your use of the street, remember that passage of emergency vehicles can quickly become an urgent need. Leave a travel lane of at least 16 feet in which the only impediments are items such as chairs which can be whisked away quickly as needed. (Last year, I attended a party where a bounce house blocked the emergency vehicle lane. The organizer told me that eight men could move the bounce house quickly if needed. Relying on eight men to be immediately available during an emergency seemed a bad plan.)
- · Although the City doesn’t yet have an insurance requirement, they may soon. And an insurance rider may be good protection for a party organizer in the event of a bounce house accident. I’d recommend at least checking with one’s agent.
But above
all, have fun. And if you want to invite
me to the party, I’m always willing to enjoy some neighborhood camaraderie.
Next time,
I’ll mount my soapbox to complain about flawed thinking behind sidewalk and
bike path alignments.
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (davealden53@comcast.net)
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