OPEN THREAD: Public Spaces
I've been thinking over the nature of community lately, and believe that its importance cannot be overemphasized. Take Monrovia, for example. Every Friday night the streets are filled with people walking, talking, and taking each other in. Of course, you say, it's the street fair. But if we look further, and take note that contributing to this is the absence of cars on Myrtle for a night, an area and time dedicated to getting people out and amongst each other.
Some people have said that they'd like to see the area Myrtle Avenue that bisects Old Town be free of cars to encourage walking. What do you think of this idea? I would love to hear relevent discussions from both points of view.
posted by aw
8 Comments:
I've listened to some urban planners talk on this subject. Temporary closures seem to work (like the street fair), however permanent closures do not work with very few exceptions, Santa Monica's 3rd street being one due to the heavy tourism.
What works better to create a pedestrian friendly environment is to use diagonal parking, narrowed lanes, jutting sidewalks and other obstacles that cause cars to slow down.
Closing the street has been shown again and again in other places to effectively kill the commercial district.
2:23 PM
I do think it would be nice to have more pedestrian friendly areas. I think even places like the Pavilion's parking lot could improve on this.
2:47 PM
I'll bite on this. Why closing Myrtle off completely for peds is a good question. Several reasons why it won't work, most important is our climate.
First, stick your head out today. It's too freaking hot to be wandering about. We need parking, and ample bits all along Myrtle and the side streets if there is going to be ped traffic in Old Town durning the day.
Take a look at what's happening with the Grove and similar open air venues...lot's of hostility and angst. Not enough parking if you are going to do any serious shopping. Dealing with the elements, too rainy, too hot and no one wants to be there.
Go back 10-15 years ago. So Cal had ample open air shopping malls, closed was Sherman Oaks Fashion Square. Those malls eventually became enclosed as they couldn't keep up with the other malls when it was too hot or two rainy.
Interesting you put in a comment about Pavilions parking lot. It's a parking lot and if anyone would bother to pay attention to the stop signs within the lot traffic would move a lot slower and more consistently. But that's private property and largely outside of what we can control.
Our Old Town has a lot going for it. A number of merchants really are trying to find ways to grow their business. Joe Garcia recently summed up why so many failed this year....they close shop too early, especially on Friday and Saturday evenings when Myrtle has its most traffic. You have to be open when the customers are there if you want to survive.
To give you an indication the business potential here, the last Art Walk the Oh My Godard gallery did $30K in business! Money is to be made on Myrtle without closing the streets. Have the parking and a reason to be there and the money follows.
3:21 PM
meandering...
I agree that it's too hot today. That could start me into a whole new topic: about a lack of shady areas...but not this post. :)
I agree about businesses staying open later. I often walk around Myrtle after 9 or 10 and it's completely deserted (on non-weekend nights). I do think the city does a great job of planning lots of events to bring people to Old Town and get them out amongst each other.
3:37 PM
I agree about the need for businesses, and restaurants in particular, to stay open later on Myrtle. Unless you work in Monrovia, you have little time to shop or dine in the local businesses after your evening commute is over.
11:54 PM
You have no idea how excited I was to see an open thread - and on the subject of Public Spaces to boot!! Since that is the title, I am jumping in with a comment about our parks. (I realize that this doesn't exactly go with the discussion, so I apologize in advance)
One of the things - among many others, of course - that makes Monrovia so great is the sense of community they help to create. Friday Family Festivals, summer concerts, 4th of July and Monrovia Day (the two latter having flopped this year, but that's another topic), along with lots of other opportunities for us all to come out and celebrate together. HOWEVER, the thing this town severely lacks is good parks. I am a mom of young children and most everyone I know goes to OTHER cities to enjoy their parks. Ours are dirty, dirty, dirty. Duarte and Pasadena have great parks. In Arcadia, you can go to the park and the sand has been raked early in the morning EVERY day. (I've heard they contract out to keep their parks nice.) With the issue of safety these days, that is important. The last time I took my kids to the park on Grand Avenue, my son picked up a used condom. Talk about horrible - what kind of bodily fluids had he just been exposed to??? I can't go to Library Park without planning for my kids to come home with their clothes filthy, just from the play equipment.
Also, I was hoping that when they re-do library park, they really take into account our climate. What better place for a community with families to come together than at the local park? However, how hot is it here most of the year? You can't take your kids outside in this kind of heat. Several cities (Covina and Irwindale, to name two) have water features. They are so great. For those of us who don't have a pool and the kids want to get out of the house, there is very little to do, unless we want to drive an hour to the beach - or get heat stroke!
Lastly, I have met many moms and kids whose only exposure to Monrovia is the park. We get a lot of people from surrounding cities who come to our library for story time, because Annette does such an amazing job. However, then I hear them talking about how "cute" our town is but they marvel at how dirty and un-cared the park is. I can't say anything in defense because it is so true. I have yet to meet someone that likes it, resident or not. I heard several families say they voted for the new library JUST because they wanted a nicer park. How sad!
Okay, I'll get off my soapbox. Again, I apologize for going off the topic of Myrtle.
8:54 AM
3 tulips,
I'm very happy for you to participate. No apologies necessary. The whole idea is to get a conversation going. It was interesting for me to read your comments, as you see things from a different point of view, and your opinions are welcome and valid.
I agree that we need more park space. I have not noticed the trash you speak of, but I don't have young children and usually am walking my dog after the day cools off. I wish that there was some kind of trail that would connect one open space to another, so that the walk wouldn't have to end after a quick look around or through Library Park.
I agree about the need for water features, especially with our hot summers. I suggested to people at the city that they some of the businesses along Myrtle incorporate outdoor misters during the hottest days to keep things more pleasant and encourage people to come out.
I do agree that our city has come a LONG way; I also know that we can still get better and it's ideas like yours that are important to get into the public dialogue so that city officials can know what people are wanting and incorporate their wishes into future plans.
12:12 PM
Thanks, aw. We were visiting a friend yesterday and at their park they had those bubbling type fountains out of the ground and the kids had so much fun playing in them. You just had to push a button every 10 minutes or so, so they weren't just running all the time. PLUS, their play structure had those neat canopy things (lots of Pasadena parks have those) all the benches were in the shade. It made such a difference. It made it worth being outside. WHY, I kept thinking, can't Monrovia have something like this???
I think the misters on Myrtle is a brilliant idea. Nobody wants to be out in this heat, it has got to be killing business in some way.
Thanks for such a great site - I love coming here to check it out!
8:29 PM
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