Attractions & Destinations.
Having something to do gives people a reason to come to a place—and to return again and again. When there is nothing to do, a space will remain empty, which can lead to other problems. In planning attractions and destinations, it is important to consider a wide range of activities for: men and women; people of different ages; different times of day, week and year; and for people alone and in groups. Create an enticing path by linking together this variety of experiences.
Identity & Image.
Whether a space has a good image and identity is key to its success. Creating a positive image requires keeping a place clean and well-maintained, as well as fostering a sense of identity. This identity can originate in showcasing local assets. Businesses, pedestrians, and driver will then elevate their behavior to this vision and sense of place.
Active Edge Uses.
Buildings bases should be human-scaled and allow for interaction between indoors and out. Preferably, there are active ground floor uses that create valuable experiences along a street for both pedestrians and motorists. For instance, a row of shops along a street is more interesting and generally safer to walk by than a blank wall or empty lot. Sidewalk activity also serves to slow vehicular traffic. At the very minimum, the edge connection should be visual, allowing passers-by to enjoy the activity and aesthetics of the indoor space. These edge uses should be active year-round and unite both sides of the street.
Amenities.
Successful streets provide amenities to support a variety of activities. These include attractive waste receptacles to maintain cleanliness, street lighting to enhance safety, bicycle racks, and both private and public seating options—the importance of giving people the choice to sit where they want is generally underestimated. Cluster street amenities to support their use.
Management.
An active entity that manages the space is central to a street’s success. This requires not only keeping the space clean and safe, but also managing tenants and programming the space to generate daily activity. Events can run the gamut from small street performances to sidewalk sales to cultural, civic or seasonal celebrations.
Seasonal Strategies.
In places without a strong management presence or variety of activities, it is often difficult to attract people year-round. Utilize seasonal strategies, like holiday markets, parades and recreational activities to activate the street during all times of the year. If a street offers a unique and attractive experience, weather is often less of a factor than people initially assume.
Diverse User Groups.
As mentioned previously, it is essential to provide activities for different groups. Mixing people of different race, gender, age, and income level ensures that no one group dominates the space and makes others feel unwelcome and out of place.
Traffic, Transit & the Pedestrian.
A successful street is easy to get to and get through; it is visible both from a distance and up close. Accessible spaces have high parking turnover and, ideally, are convenient to public transit and support walking and biking. Access and linkages to surrounding destinations must be a part of the planning process. Automobile traffic cannot dominate the space and preclude the comfort of other modes. This is generally accomplished by slowing speeds and sharing street space with a range of transportation options.
Blending of Uses and Modes.
Ground floor uses and retail activities should spill out into the sidewalks and streets to blur the distinction between public and private space. Shared street space also communicates that no one mode of transportation dominates.
Protects Neighborhoods.
Great streets support the context around them. There should be clear transitions from commercial streets to nearby residential neighborhoods, communicating a change in surroundings with a concomitant change in street character.
On a side note: Project for Public Spaces may soon be putting its fingerprint on a local urban project in the coming months -- Welcome to Jacksonville!
http://improvingurbanplaces.ning.com/profiles/blogs/qualities-of-a-great-street
Photos by Metro Jacksonville
Share this article
RSS
vicupstate
June 10, 2009, 07:50:30 AMIt's really good that Project for Public Spaces is coming to Jax. They won't run out of projects anytime soon.
Deuce
June 10, 2009, 09:11:32 AMPicture 4 is my fav. I want to hang out on that street. Perhaps we should show pictures of streetscapes to the city council and ask them which street they would want to walk on and then show them pictures of downtown jax and ask what's stopping them from doing the same here. I would be curious to know their responses.
JeffreyS
June 10, 2009, 09:44:25 AMI think you could add Margrett street in five points to that list.
Jason
June 10, 2009, 09:54:38 AMGreat article. And thanks for showing some local examples of great streets.
heights unknown
June 10, 2009, 10:07:37 AMYeah I would love to hang out or live in the area that Pic #4 is on; it's like out of a fairy tale picture book (Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Oz, etc.).
Deuce, a City Councilman would probably agree with us on what streets they would like and yes wouldn't be able to give a solid or good answer as to what's stopping them from doing the same here, but alas, it is not all up to them regarding making our downtown or city streets look like some or all of the pics in this thread. But they can help.
Heights Unknown
Lunican
June 10, 2009, 10:50:29 AMPhoto #4 is Charleston, WV.
thelakelander
June 10, 2009, 11:05:54 AMHere are a few more nice streets I've walked over the last week.
Kalamazoo, MI (the first pedestrian mall in the US....now its open to cars again)
Main Street - Ann Arbor, MI (we ran a video about this street a few years ago)
Garfield Place - Downtown Cincinnati (a well maintained street median)
xian1118
June 10, 2009, 11:49:38 AMMay I ask lakelander, how are you able to do so much traveling? Maybe I should be looking into this kind of position. Great photo examples, as always.
Deuce
June 10, 2009, 04:00:30 PMYeah, I know it's up to more than the council but they can pass tougher laws against panhandling and loitering, they can put the funds where they are needed, they can apply pressure to the appropriate city agencies to get their ass in gear, or at least I think they can do all this stuff.
heights unknown
June 10, 2009, 05:26:10 PMThey can try yes, you're right and I will agree on most of your points, but it doesn't mean that everything will get passed. Yes, they need to at least try.
Heights Unknown
Keith-N-Jax
June 10, 2009, 08:18:39 PMGarfield Place- nows that's really nice.
Purplebike
June 11, 2009, 12:44:25 PMGreat photo essay! Can someone tell me more about Project for Public Spaces coming to Jax? Thanks!
Orlanta
June 19, 2009, 10:19:06 PMIn addition to the characteristics already mentioned, new urbanist Andres Duany mentioned a couple of technical reasons why these streets are so appealing - the tight height to width ratio for the individual buildings (or facades) as opposed to one or two wide buildings per block, and that the buildings are lined up. I know the second one seems really obvious but I'm always shocked at the ability of architects to "articulate" and ignore something so basic.
There's one street in downtown Atlanta in the historic heart of the city that has most of these characteristics.
Broad street