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Not So Great Streets
The phrase “great streets” gets a lot of lip service in downtown stakeholder circles. This has been going on since 2000. We’re all familiar with 2nd Street District, and I think we can generally agree that the City/AMLI knocked it out of the park with this one. It’s a terrific pedestrian experience.
With the Great Streets Program available since 2000, not all buildings constructed since then have fully adopted the notion. Two examples:
1) Hampton Inn
Sure, the New Orleans style terrace is charming, but if you’ve ever walked by the hotel you were almost certainly dodging valet podiums, bellhops, guests, and tiny bistro tables that are so crowded that nobody uses them.
2) Champions @ Courtyard Marriot
If you know this corner, you know there is a string of cabs parked along 4th street. Here we see a hard fence forcing pedestrians towards the street, and creating an uninviting al-fresco experience for bar patrons. The far end of this fence terminates into a round-a-bout entrance into the Courtyard. A better alternative to activate this corner would be planters like we see at Annies, which would also provide an entrance to the the restaurant along 4th street.
photos courtesy of Mike McGill
About Jude Galligan:
Jude Galligan, Broker-Owner of RE/MAX Downtown Austin and publisher of Downtown Austin Blog (aka. "DAB"), is a veteran sales professional assisting buyers and sellers of downtown Austin lofts, condos, and real estate. A resident owner in downtown Austin and an active community stakeholder, Jude serves on the Board of Directors of the Downtown Austin Alliance (DAA) and the Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association (DANA).Contact Jude
Well said, Jude. While both projects delivered something better than what preceded them, they both fell short of doing as well as they could have. I feel that the Hampton in will regret this once the property to their north opens up with Great Streets. It is a relatively small detail that most people couldn’t explain, but they will inherently feel safer and be more interested in the area that adheres to true Great Streets standards.
Just heard about the “shuttle” that will cost city workers, $230/month. This city just let the Dillo die, how will the shuttle do anything more than the dillo?
The proposed shuttle is more for county workers, and would be more of an express bus service (meet at park-and-ride out in the burbs, ride together on bus all the way to downtown).