c d + a Shared Streets – A Flexible Approach for Streets as Civic Space The following examples illustrate the boundaries between modes (pedestrian, bicycle, vehicle) are eased or eliminated, resulting in a less vehicle- dominated environment that is more engaging and active with street life. Research by Community Design + Architecture 350 Frank Ogawa Plaza, 5th Floor Oakland, CA 94612 December 12, 2013 www.community-design.com This page left intentionally blank STREET PRECEDENT FACTSHEET COMMUNITY DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE Central Pittsburg “Renovated, refreshed, reinvigorated with more life than ever before! Historic Market Square is once again the hub of Downtown activity.” c d - Pittsburg Downtown Partnership + a MARKET SQUARE PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA Market Square Designer: Klavon Design Constructed: 2010 Right Of Way: -- Background/Function: Market Square has long been the heart and center of Downtown Pittsburgh. Until 2010, car traffic and parking dominated and segregated this iconic public space. Klavon Design’s redesign goal was “to create an urban plaza that caters to the people that use the space. Although limited cars and parking are still part of Market Square, bus traffic is no longer allowed. The cross streets within the square were re- moved to reconnect the four existing squares into one piazza. The existing walks along the buildings were expanded to 21 feet to include a central dining district. The road width was reduced to accommo- date one-way traffic and parallel parking.” Lessons: Curb removal is key: According to Market Square’s designer, Klavon Design, “the most significant de- sign feature of the square is the removal of all curbs.” With curb removal, “the square truly has become a totally accessible space.” Bold moves can have dramatic benefits: Remov- ing all four cross-streets that bisected the plaza and replacing them with pedestrian areas was a strong choice that demanded a total re-thinking of the plaza. Bold moves can have big payoffs: the idea worked. Today, the plaza and its pedestrian and ve- hicle traffic function and integrate better than ever. Pittsburgh’s Market Square is once again the thriving heart of the city, after a redesign in which removing all curbs was key SHARE STREETS 1 STREET PRECEDENT FACTSHEET COMMUNITY DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE “Bell Street Park will transform five city blocks into a park corridor that will safely accommo- date cars, bikes and pedestrians. The redesign will change a harsh urban environment into an c d Downtown energized public gathering space that will vastly increase the livability of the neighborhood. Seattle + a - Brad Kahn, Chairman, Seattle Parks Foundation BELL STREET (PARK) SEATTLE, WA Designer: SvR Design Company Constructed: 2013 Right Of Way: 68 feet Bell Street Background/Function: Bell Street Park is at once a new kind of street and a new kind of park: a true park in the street. Intended to provide “much needed community open space for the high density Belltown neighborhood,” ac- cording to the City of Seattle, the project “converts one traffic lane and reconfigures parking to create a park-like corridor through the heart of Belltown on Bell Street.” Until 2013 Bell Street was a standard right-of-way like any other, predominantly asphalt, predominantly ceded to cars. Now it is a green park that retains all its former street functions, managing traffic and stormwater, and providing full access to all modes while also giving downtown Seattle new green open space in the public right-of-way. Lessons: Streets can truly become public open space: image: SvR Design Company Forward-thinking citizens got creative when they reimagined Bell Street (first proposed in the 1998 Belltown Neighborhood Plan) as a new linear park - now designed with seating for casual ineraction with neighbors, parking for retail, and flexibility for public events. Streets can be put to work: Innovative swales and image: www.seattle.gov stormwater capture and management features are integral to the design, proving that when designed Bell Street in Seattle offers an entirely new vision of a street: a green park in right - more like a park - streets can do important the public right-of-way, designed for community open space, that prioritizes work to minimize street maintenance and control image: SvR Design Company people and yet preserves functional access for all modes rainwater overflows. SHARE STREETS 2 STREET PRECEDENT FACTSHEET COMMUNITY DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE South Lake Union “The intent ... is to make Terry Avenue accessible to all people ... Pedestrians may be separated from areas where vehicles are allowed by a 2” or 4” curb, by a row of truncated c d domes per ADA specifications, or by a separator such as a planting area.” + a - Terry Ave North Street Design Guidelines SOUTH LAKE UNION SEATTLE, WA Designer: Gustafson Guthrie Nichol Ltd. Constructed: 2010 Right Of Way: 75 feet Background/Function: South Lake Union is a pedestrian- and bicycle- friendly street which has a design reflecting the ar- ea’s industrial past. It also includes a streetcar link- age from Downtown Seattle to Lake Union, passing by the headquarters for Amazon.com. Lessons: Asymmetrical layout: The asymmetrical layout of the street gives rise to a balanced approach to shared space. Within the 75-foot right-of-way, there is space for pedestrians, parking, vehicles, light rail and parking. The width of each ‘zone’ varies. The east pedestrian zone has a width up to 31 feet. Variation in material: Brick pavers dominate the right-of-way, with the exception of the west side pedestrian zone, comprised of scored concrete. Of- ten these material changes are at the same level as their surrounding zones. Exceptions include curbed planters and other elements of vehicle separation. Parking retained on one side: On-street parking was retained on the east side, but reconfigured as back-in angled parking. As part of the Design Plan, images: Terry Ave North Street Design Guidelines the street was intended to provide short-term park- ing for all existing and proposed uses. A new plan for North Terry Avenue was realized in 2010 and relies heavily on breaking down the separations between pedes- Relationship to ADA: The street reflects an ap- trian, vehicular and transit space. Note the material choices that define and unite each zone, with brick as the unifying theme proach to ADA considerations that highlights the reflecting the site’s industrial past. difficulty of achieving a truly shared space. SHARE STREETS 3 STREET PRECEDENT FACTSHEET COMMUNITY DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE “...a new experiment that uses traffic calming and unique streetscape features to create a street that can easily be converted to public use on weekends or special events.” - c d NW Flanders streetfilms.org + a Old Town/ NW Davis Chinatown FESTIVAL STREETS PORTLAND, OR NW Davis Designer: SRG Partnership / Nevue Ngan Associates / Suenn Ho Design Constructed: 2006 Right Of Way: 60 feet Background/Function: Located in Portland’s Old Town/Chinatown, these streets provide flexible public space able to accom- modate festivals and fairs while still allowing traffic movement through the city’s grid. The streets have no curbs; bollards define the separation between shared and auto-free space. Lessons: Flexible right-of-way: In day-to-day use, the streets have a common layout of sidewalks on both sides, parking lane and roadway, but the lack of curbs al- lows for all 60 feet to become pedestrian space dur- ing special events. Decorative features and amenities: The street in- cludes a variety of amenities that emphasize pedes- trian scale and function, such as scored concrete, entry planters with incorporated seating elements, and gateway landscape elements. Slight differences in materials and carefully placed street furnishings assure ADA compliance. Sharing of parking lane: Parking is allowed at the edge of shared and car-free space, consistent with image: www.pdxchinatown.org the rest of downtown, but, being level with the side- Aspects of the NW Davis Festival Street include (clockwise from top left): gateway art pieces; lack of curbs to maximize flexibility; the walk, is better suited to pedestrian use, promoting ability to host public events day or night; and informal seating around planted areas. accessibility and informal sharing of the space. SHARE STREETS 4 STREET PRECEDENT FACTSHEET COMMUNITY DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE “The street is unique and provides a special environment...” c d Downtown Asheville - Planner, City of Asheville + a WALL STREET ASHEVILLE, NC Designer: -- Wall Street Constructed: 1988 Right Of Way: 35 feet Background/Function: During the 1980s the City of Asheville partnered with a single developer to rehabilitate the former historic downtown core. A former delivery alley, Wall Street had the potential to become a boutique downtown retail district. What resulted was a devel- oper-led project that created a shared street. Lessons: Single level: Occupying a single block, this narrow shared space winds its way through boutique retail and pub restaurants. The pedestrian and vehicular zones are all on one level and use similar natural stone paving. Tree planters and permanent bollards separate the pedestrian and vehicular spaces, and the street lends itself nicely to closure and pedestri- an-only festivals. Parking on one side: South side parallel parking was reintroduced in 1993 at the request of mer- chants who wished to gain drive-by customers. Still, the street maintains its unique feeling and the parking serves to slow cars down. Nearby structured parking supplements the limited on-street options. image: Flickr user gritgoods image: Flickr user anoldent Interestingly, the street still serves as the delivery al- A former delivery alley, Wall Street has been transformed into a shared street and a model for a narrow shared shopping street. Note ley it has been for more than a century. the lack of curbs and a paving design that softens the hard edge between pedestrian and vehicle zones.