ThinkingStiff comment-53251 2011-07-13T02:04:04Z 2011-07-13T02:04:04Z Density. For any business district to survive it needs lots of people. European cities where pedestrian malls flourish have narrow cozy streets surrounded by 5+ story buildings filled with residents. These residents need to eat out, get coffee, buy groceries, go to the pharmacy, etc. They simply walk out their front door and do all these tasks locally. Almost no one lives on K Street between 7th and 12th Street (or even that near it). It's been a ghost town after 6 PM as long as I can remember. It's a street I avoid (especially at night) if I have to walk somewhere near it. And since bikes weren't allowed until recently, I couldn't even use it as a nice traffic-free shortcut. The most successful businesses opening up recently, like the Dive Bar complex, do bring in people, but mostly people that live outside of downtown and drive. They park in a lot just off K street, walk straight to their destination, and walk straight back when finished. They're not strolling down K street walking past empty pissed-covered buildings. I walk and bike everywhere and support making our city more bike/ped friendly in every possible way, but traffic on K Street is welcome and long overdue. US cities achieve density through automobile traffic mostly, since they are more spread out. This will allow enough businesses to survive (organically, not through failed and expensive city programs to keep them alive) that it will make locals want to go there again. WIth the combination of automobile traffic and local foot and bike traffic, K street can achieve the density it needs to survive. ThinkingStiff 2011-07-13T02:04:04Z ThinkingStiff comment-24869 2010-04-15T17:47:55Z 2010-04-15T17:47:55Z Best ever! ThinkingStiff 2010-04-15T17:47:55Z ThinkingStiff comment-15428 2009-10-13T04:42:12Z 2009-10-13T04:42:12Z Orange doesn't rhyme with purple. ThinkingStiff 2009-10-13T04:42:12Z ThinkingStiff comment-15427 2009-10-13T04:41:02Z 2009-10-13T04:41:02Z Orange doesn't rhyme with purple. ThinkingStiff 2009-10-13T04:41:02Z ThinkingStiff comment-7993 2009-05-21T05:18:09Z 2009-05-21T05:18:09Z 1. Convert all additional one way streets into two way. The places that have already done this feel like neighborhoods again. Places where you feel safe walking and riding your bike. Neighborhoods shouldn't be thoroughfares. 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 ThinkingStiff 2009-05-21T05:18:09Z