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Friday, February 10, 2012
The Sacramento Press is all about providing an outlet for everyone in the community. We recently hit the street to get people's opinions about development in our town. We welcome your suggestions for future "Street Interview" questions.
This week's question:
In terms of development, what’s the one thing you’d like to see most in the central city?
Marilyn Ayres, 24
Oak Park Resident
Owner, Thunderhorse Vintage, 2522 J St.
“More affordable housing. Only yuppies can afford to live here. I own a business in Midtown and I can’t afford to live here. It’s pretty ridiculous.”
Maiku Braxton, 28
Midtown Resident
“I think those zip cars are really cool. That and more bike racks. Our public transportation is not the greatest. Zip cars would eliminate a lot of excess traffic. Also, stop turning one-way streets into two-way streets. That creates a lot of confusion.”
Debi Hammond, 36
Roseville Resident
President, Merlot Marketing
“That’s hard because there have been so many wonderful developments. The one thing I’d have to say is maybe clean up some of the areas, like maybe the K Street area. I’ve been really pleased with the higher-end restaurants that have been opening up. I’d like to see a revival of some of the little boutiques and galleries that were there.”
Blake Faulkner, 19
Midtown Resident
“Maybe a little less bums in the back alleys. We always have to make sure our doors are locked. Maybe a little cleaner. Less trash on the street.”
Guy Couture, 41
Midtown Resident
Owner, The Massage Guy, 2627 J St.
“A central parking area -- where people can come down and park and walk to shops. Midtown’s just been crazy-exploding. I’ve lived here 15 years. I know a lot of the reason people are afraid to come down here is the parking issue and driving issues. I think people struggle with parking: (they don’t know) what’s metered, what’s not metered and just finding parking.”
Elizabeth Johnson, 42
East Sacramento Resident
“I hate these new meter boxes. They don’t take dollars. I’m concerned about these. When you’re running a business, you don’t want people having trouble with parking. The old school meters are just fine. I’d like the old meters back.”
Anthony Johnson, 39
East Sacramento Resident
“It’s improved a lot since the ‘80s. Recently you’ve got all the new restaurants. Second Saturday just sets it off because you have different people from different ethnic groups coming out and learning about art.”
Conversation Express your views,
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Leave a Comment
To eliminate the confusion you write about, how about turning ALL streets back to two-way in the central city like they are in suburban residential neighborhoods and were for decades when downtown was a bustling area? No one was confused then.
What changed downtown is simple economics...there was profit to be made by increasing housing costs and off of development...so goes the cycle of all downtowns. They gutted the soul out of midtown. The "grid" as the new hipsters like to call it was a very special place...it was a secret, at least until others found out they could get rich packaging and selling the downtown lifestyle. Almost all of the artists, musicians and students have been forced out. we are left with cookie cutter hipsters and lobbyists...but that was the point wasn't it? They do spend more.
And the street reorganization did what it was intended to do...keep people from commuting through downtown at 50-60 miles per hour...but the trade off kinda sucks...it's hard to get around now.
Not kidding. I don't venture down there for safety reasons. There is really nothing to see or do. The prices are sky high. Parking is terrible. There is no horse drawn anything down there. The transit system does not run every 5 min.
If you take the light rail, you will get mugged - since there is no police on board and no one helps you. Why or why would I spend my hard earned money in a nasty place? Parking, no. Traffic, Yes. Bums o plenty. Disgusting smelly and not a thing to do. No place to have a picnic. Nothing smells good. Friendly, no. Why o why would I spend 5 minutes down there.
Sorry folks, the reality is there is no reason to go to Sac, unless you live in the area. Get everything done online and enjoy the pleasant time away from downtown.
2. More bike friendly. Better and more dedicated bike lanes. Fix the fucking pot holes that almost kill me once a week. Make all the railroad crossings smooth like S Street where you can get across them with 23c road tires. And, sorry, but get rid of the angle parking! Totally dangerous for cars and bikes. It's almost impossible to see anything backing out of these.
3. Dedicated trolley cars that stick to one street all day. So have one running up J Street from 4th to Alhambra. One running down I Street. And a few farther out, Maybe N and S. The current one has some circular route that I never remember, so I don't jump on it spontaneously like a trolley car should be used. If I didn't have to think about a route, and could be assured it just went straight down the street I was on, I'd use those fuckers all the time. Run them every 15 minutes. Make them convenient, useful.
4. As someone mentioned, Zip Cars, or equivalent, would be amazing downtown. I usually only drive when I'm going out of town (bike or walk everywhere else), and if we had those, I probably wouldn't even bother owing a car.
5. Ditch the street lights (like in Alkali Flats). Neighborhoods with less lights feel so much more welcoming and peaceful at night. I know this seems counter-intuitive but I prefer them. I live in Mansion Flats and it just always feels bright, gaudy and "on." Start a dark sky initiative. Not many people get behind this, but being able to see stars is actually pretty amazing. Plus it saves energy.
6. Draw up an emergency plan that we all have access to and can memorize. If a levy broke and there was a major flood I don't know anyone downtown that has any idea what they should be doing. Do we go to the tracks at B St (they're pretty high)? What's the closest one? Top of a parking garage? Is there water and food anywhere? An escape route if we're driving? For a city with such high flood potential it would seem like something like this should exist.
7. Municipal Wifi. Doesn't have to be free, just available everywhere downtown with a strong signal. I'd pay a decent amount for that.
8. Fill every empty lot (leave community gardens and parks, of course) with single-family homes or mixed-use multi-story development. More people, the better.
I could go on and on...
Matt Walton
Posy's (great place) and one Italian restaurant and three or four sleazy bars were open in the CBD after 5 in the 80's. No vibrancy there. Midtown was more fortunate and had more restaurants/bars, but still nothing "jumping"--not even Lavendar Heights.
Yes, rents did go up in the central city as they did everywhere and home ownership slightly as buyers fixed up deteriorating Victorians and Bungalows. Yet, 2000 census revealed an 87% rental rate for midtown. Lots of artists and musicians still live in various blocks around in midtown. I see and hear their work everyday as I walk around. They are very creative at adapting as they have for decades, by sharing apartments, houses etc. to make rents more affordable.
One group (five in one house to share rent) lived next door to me until they were evicted about three year ago for parties, incredibly loud music that could be heard down the block, hard drugs and high or drunken guests careening around in cars. Now a family lives there. Three moved down the street and got evicted again. Better for everyone that those artists and musicians are gone.