New Street Typologies/New Street Types - Getting more out of the same R.O.W.: Overlap Space Street Types -- Greg Tung - CNU 17

New Street Typologies/New Street Types Getting more out of the same R.O.W.: Overlap Space Street Types CNU 17 June 12, 2009 Gregory Tung, Principal Freedman Tung & Sasaki San Francisco, California www.ftscities.com

Street Types and New Urbanism The body of work of new urbanists (and in recent years, working with partners like the ITE) has been instrumental in laying out a range of street types and elements tied to the urban transect. Source: SmartCode v9.0

From The Lexicon of the New Urbanism

American street designers (and users) have often been “jealous” of what European street designers achieve as apparent “standard practice” – e.g. various types of shared & multimodal street spaces Gothenburg, Sweden Gothenburg, Sweden

But we’re seeing that type of “adaptive re-use” of American street spaces starting to happen Photo: John Marshall Mantel, NY Times Photo: Hiroko Masuike, NY Times

City of Huntington Beach Life Magazine YET: one of our biggest challenges is the retrofitting of suburbia (and of suburban forms imposed on our older cities)

Single-purpose, “zoned” street types are deeply embedded in our engineering, design, and maintenance cultures

Forces of economic and demographic change create needs and opportunities for restructuring of focal places and streets

As we retrofit our suburban districts and corridors, streets need to be similarly “retooled” to support the desired multimodal, alive, beautiful and loved public places we know they need to be

Source: AASHTO

“Street Type must match Development Type” “Street Type must serve Development Type”

Let’s assume that your property frontages are correct for the district…

Does your street type serve your development type / place type?

It takes few vertical elements to effectively buffer pedestrians from traffic

...and with plenty of $$$ and space, a great street can readily be created

Source: ITE

The “turfs” of the street section – pedestrians vs. automobiles © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

East 14th Street (CA-85) in San Leandro, CA 1991 EXISTING: • Wide enough sidewalk, few pedestrians • 4 lanes • Curbside parallel parking • No bike lanes • Almost no trees or furnishings

East 14th Street (CA-85) in San Leandro, CA TODAY CHANGE: • Continuous Street Tree Canopy Planting • 4 lanes to 3 lanes + narrowing • Added Bike Lanes • Basis for sidewalk “zones” established NO CHANGE:: • No R.O.W. expansion • Same curbside parallel parking • No curb reconstruction • No changes to drainage

Building prototype in corridor Streetguidelines East 14th design Enhanced Corridor Street Type as a (State Highway 185) in 1991 condition for new Corridor Development Type New Senior Housing - linked to corridor transit th East 14 Street Today © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

…But what if you need to do more with the R.O.W. than the existing width allows?

Two Techniques of Existing ROW / Street Modification that can squeeze more functions – especially the usually minimal pedestrian “share” - out of the same right-of-way: 1. Spatial Overlap 2. Use Overlap

The usual “share” of street use zones © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

Source: ITE

The Strategic Placement of Street Verticals – the “Strong Force” in streetscape design

Whittier Boulevard in “downtown” Montebello, CA circa 2003 (relinquished segment of State HIghway 72)

Corridor Revitalization Concept and Streetscape Support © Freedman Tung & Sasaki “Broad Brush” Concept Diagram © Freedman Tung & Sasaki Streetscape Plan with Segmentation

CONVENTIONAL ARTERIAL STREET DESIGN Auto-dominated space Sparse street tree planting has limited buffering effect HEAVIER T RAFFIC Building architecture “armors” itself - becomes less permeable, more inward-focused - in response to unpleasant setting © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

STREET TYPE MODIFICATION: SPATIAL RETROFIT OF THE EXISTING CONVENTIONAL ARTERIAL STREET DESIGN Ped Auto-dominated space Ped realm realm Existing 80’ R.O.W. © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

Whittier Boulevard in Montebello – “before” (2004)

Whittier Boulevard in Montebello – retrofit concept © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

Whittier Boulevard in Montebello – retrofit concept built (2007)

Whittier Boulevard in Montebello – retrofit concept built

Whittier Blvd in downtown Montebello, CA TODAY SUCCESSES: • “Healed” street proportions (though not as emphatic as on narrow main street type) • Recognizable downtown segment along strip • “Family of objects” furnishings & landmarks LESSONS/OBSERVATIONS: • Some trees & pylons have been hit by cars – arterial setting less tolerant than main streets • Streetscape completed in 2007; infill development interest is present but proposals slowed by recession

School Street circa 1994 School Street in downtown Lodi, CA today

sidewalk circa 1994 School Street sidewalk in downtown Lodi, CA today

School Street in downtown Lodi, CA TODAY SUCCESSES: • “Healed” street proportions • Larger tree canopies, better shade in 100º sun • Sidewalk colors/paving help define zones • “Family of objects” furnishings & landmarks LESSONS/OBSERVATIONS: • Bollard tree protection @ parallel parking tree islands didn’t work well (OK w/mature trees now) • Remaining complaints about lost street parking due to trees despite new parking structure 1 block away

Mission Boulevard, Mission San Jose District of Fremont, CA

Auto-dominated space – before and after SUCCESSES: • Improved street proportions • Modest cost, modest intervention • Lighting operates well • Reinforced pedestrian scale

Pedestrian realm – before and after LESSONS/OBSERVATIONS: • Effect not as strong as trees in parking, but still useful

Key Streets in Downtown Phoenix, AZ: Second, Adams, Monroe 1994: #1 Issue of Downtown Visioning – Lack of Pedestrian Friendliness

Second Street before project 2nd Street’s verticals in parking lanes – pylon streetlight columns - reproportioned the street

SUCCESSES: • Improved street proportions • Modest cost, modest intervention • Reinforced pedestrian scale LESSONS/OBSERVATIONS: • Effect not as strong as trees in Monroe Street before project parking, but less problematic for visibility Other streets were reproportioned with palms and shade trees centered in parking lanes, and 1-way to 2-way conversions

Summary – Spatial Overlap at the pedestrian/car interface (using verticals) • Allows the reproportioning • Tree in pkg. feasibility a of ped/car “turfs” where no function of U/G utilities additional ROW is available • Trade-off of lost on-street & w/out curb moves “teaser” parking, may • Most effective overall at require district parking narrower streets (2-3 supply & strategy lanes), but sidewalk space • Trade-off of higher always made better maintenance costs • Efficiency of investment – • Snow area issues “spend $$ on verticals, it’s • Young tree trunk protection what people see” @ parallel parking an issue • Regular spacing important • Tree pits may merit load • Tree or pylon uplighting bearing design such as recommended in focal structural soils or “Silva areas cells”

The Strategic Placement of Horizontal Surface Types – the “Weak Force” in streetscape design

Colored textured asphalt topping at center turn lane narrows visible roadway width, changes the “feel": State Highway 114, Barrington, RI

Colored textured asphalt topping at aprons narrow the visible roadway width, articulates bikeway/shoulder: State Highway 16, Capay, CA

Summary – Spatial Overlap at pedestrian/car interface (using horizontals) • No interference with • Topping products are only existing road space usable for low traffic allocation applications (shoulders, • Effect is purely visual - no “medians”) and do not safety conflicts, but effect have the lifespan of unit also not as strong pavers or stamped • As such, more readily concrete approvable by DOT’s • Pavers are expensive and • Relatively new topping require higher product treatments make maintenance in most cases this more affordable than unit pavers

…OK, but what if overlapped visual space is not enough – what if I want pedestrian activity to expand – especially if there isn’t enough R.O.W.?

The “Flexible Zone” Main Street: A Use Overlap © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

First Street (CA-84) in 2004

First Street after streetscape (2006)

First Street (CA-84) in 2004 First Street today (with flexible zone café space)

First Street sidewalk in 2004 First Street sidewalk today (with flexible zone café space)

Google search: Livermore permit "flexible zone" Source: City of Livermore

Former slip lane and traffic median at crossroads…

…converted to a new town green with interactive fountain

New Investment: Shops, Offices, & Entertainment Anchors

The First Flexible Zone Main Street: Mountain View, CA (1989)

Castro St. in 1982 t Stree tro Ca s wa y P ar k el ine Shor

The Latest Flexible Zone Main Street: Plumas Street in Yuba City, CA (2008) Plumas St. in 2005

Middlefield Road in 2004 “Theatre Way” Today

“THEATRE WAY” - Section “On Broadway” Multiplex Fox Cinema- Theatre Retail & ground complex floor shop- fronts Ground floor restaurants Flexible Zone Dining Terrace © Freedman Tung & Sasaki Underground Public Parking Structure

Flush (no step) flexible zone

San Jose Mercury News - August 2, 2007

Summary – Use Overlap at the pedestrian/car interface (Flexible Zones) • Accommodates change of • Trade-off of some lost on- parking/pedestrian use per street “teaser” parking - changing business needs, requires district parking w/out construction supply & strategy • Maximizes the visibility of • Trade-off of higher pedestrian retail district maintenance costs assets – on street parking • Snow area issues AND street life activity • Needs permit procedures • Relatively higher cost due & required furnishings for to wall-to-wall re-do and outdoor dining uses plus regrading “early adopter” incentives • Requires a 2 step curb OR • Requires specialized a flush transition between furnishings (“level change sidewalk and flexible zone, devices”) and tree well NOT a single level curb detailing

ANOTHER STREET TYPE WITH INHERENT FLEXIBILITY: THE MULTIWAY BOULEVARD Slow lane, Slow lane, parking, parking, walking, Arterial Traffic walking, shopping, 4 lanes + left shopping, outdoor dining turns outdoor dining © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

Downtown Bothell, WA – SR-527 New Expansion Opportunity SR-527 today SR-527 Historic Downtown Core Main Stree t R SR-522 ealignment Park at Bothell iv er Landing Sammamish R

An essential factor in livability is “buffering” of fronting rooms of buildings from the effects of fast traffic

Would you want your living room this close and this exposed to arterial traffic? Will this hold value over time?

Avenue Daumesnil, Paris Dwellings are buffered from fast traffic by 2 rows of trees and slow speed, pedestrian friendly environment Photo: Payton Chung

Ground floor shops activate a downtown pedestrian walking environment with curbside parking and a slow lane for cars and bicycles; also works well for residential ground floor Ground floor storefront or residence © Freedman Tung & Sasaki

Octavia Boulevard, San Francisco, CA

Boulevard D’Arcole, Toulouse, France Flexibility: Individual block-lengths of side lanes may be closed off to host farmers’ markets, street fairs, etc.

The Multiway Boulevard is a composition of two “opposite” AASHTO street types Source: AASHTO

MULTIWAY BOULEVARD DRAINAGE CONCEPT Pervious Rain Impervious Sheet Unit Gardens Paving Drainage Pavers © Freedman Tung & Sasaki The drainage concept for the Multiway Boulevard uses pervious unit pavers and rain gardens to reduce runoff for cost savings and sustainability reasons. Unit pavers also contribute to the multiway boulevard concept by distinguishing pedestrian-oriented “slow lanes” from higher speed asphalt arterial lanes.

Pervious pavers at side slow lanes Pervious drain runoff water Unit into structural soil Pavers beneath, and provide tactile Rain and visual design Garden cues for slow speed and pedestrian use. LED streetlighting also reduces energy & maintenance

As we build more compact (and dense) communities, so must we increase the quality and variety of urban open spaces – including streets – to live up to promises we are making about urbanism

Gregory Tung, Principal Freedman Tung & Sasaki gregory@ftscities.com www.ftscities.com

New Street Typologies/New Street Types - Getting more out of the same R.O.W.: Overlap Space Street Types -- Greg Tung - CNU 17

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