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Clinic wants to create a public square on Euclid
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The Cleveland Clinic wants to divert car traffic off of Euclid Avenue and create a public square between E. 86th and E. 105th streets.
“Removing cars would create a pedestrian-friendly ‘campus center’ along Euclid, as the nonprofit behemoth seeks to green up and soften its institutional look,” The Plain Dealer’s Tom Breckenridge reports today.
A city official familiar with the proposal says, “It reminds me of the 16th Street Mall in Denver,” the 16-block long pedestrian and transitway mall that serves as the retail core of downtown Denver.
It's great that the Clinic is thinking about a more welcoming presence in the city after decades of building fortress architecture (Cleveland State University offers a good model). But the timing of this proposal has created panic at RTA because it threatens to delay construction of the long-planned Euclid Corridor bus rapid transit project — a delay that could jeopardize tens of millions of dollars in federal transit funding.
Other issues and questions:
- City of Cleveland officials are concerned about funneling more traffic on to E. 86th Street, where new housing is being developed.
- How would removal of cars from that stretch of Euclid affect local businesses and churches? (Euclid Corridor planners have already spent years resolving access issues.)
- What would happen to the Euclid Corridor bike lane, which is planned to be the essential bike link between downtown and University Circle?
What are your thoughts?
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Mayor Jackson weighs in on Clinic proposal
Susan Miller Says:"You can't have our streets" (read — "step back" in the language of the hood). Jackson's response to closing 20 blocks of major artery here
In short, the mayor doesn't support closing Euclid Avenue to cars. But, the Clinic has hired a traffic consultant to look at the plan, and says it will continue to work with the mayor.
A terrible idea!
Stephen Gross Says:I'm happy that a big institution is excited about prioritizing pedestrians in urban design, but this is not the right project for now. The Clinic campus, as it currently stands, does not encourage any kind of street life. Closing off vehicle traffic will only make its pedestrian-unfriendliness *worse*. It will turn into a dead zone, and probably attract loiterers / petty criminals.
It's important to keep in mind that prioritizing pedestrians doesn't necessarily mean getting rid of cars from a district. It is possible to make a district more pedestrian-friendly without getting rid of other forms of transportation.
Why them? Why there?
curatorius Says:Some of us around here have advocated for car-free districts like this for years if not decades. My first question is, will doing this proposal steal the thunder of other possible locations for such ideas for the immediate future? And if so, why should CCF, which hasn't always been a leader in progressive urban design, get the benefit of pioneering the pilot project? Are they more worthy than Playhouse Square, West 6th, or Coventry Village?
car-free districts
John McGovern Says:First off, how can this be compared to the 16th street ped-mall in Denver when there is no street frontage retail on the Clinic Campus? Is the clinic planning to reconfigure current retail to be ped friendly?
As for the bike lane, this is an integral feature of the Euclid Corridor and many Clevelanders have advocated for it, often against the wishes of ODOT, in order to preserve it as a right of way for cyclists.
It will, at the very least, connect Cleveland's two dominant urban universities.
Again, the bike lane is integral to the project, so I'd be curious to know where the Clinic stands.
As to Curatorius' comment:
I agree with your statement about CCF's lack of urban design awareness. Most buildings have no interaction with the street and the pedestrian experience is a hundred fold better on the interior than the exterior of said buildings. It's as if the Clinic has determined that the outside environment is unhealthy and offers little or nothing in terms of wellbeing.
As for stealing the thunder from other possible car-free districts, I suppose it is a possibility if the car-free idea is not "successful". Then I suppose other areas will be more reluctant to try it.
I suppose if CCF is to get the benefit as the first car-free district in Cleveland, we ought to ensure that it is done properly, so it doesn't fall flat on it's face.
What do you see as requirements for this district?
-bike lanes and bike parking
-retail on the street with parking in the back!
-wide sidewalks
-what else?
If done properly, in a way that caters to pedestrians, it could serve as a model for the city.
Suggestions?
big solid walls don't interact
Susan Miller Says:I can hardly imagine it except to think that there has been scant traffic in that area anyway for years. Who has wanted to drive down Euclid amid all the CCF construction?
But the big issue for me with all these behemoth buildings is that they don't breathe, they don't respond in conversation. You can't have a dialogue with them. You try to peer in and they just stare back, cold and reflective. You can walk for blocks and no one reaches out a hand, a visual clue, a "hello, how are you today". Sterile: that's what it is. Could taking the road away help? Probably, but I agree--leave the bike paths. Campus, campus! Campuses are scary places to walk around with long impermeable surfaces. Take heed of Zagara’s in Cleveland Heights. A lovely design in many aspects, but they blew it when it came to the Lee Road frontage. If they would take down those hideous paintings and let passersby see the kitchen that is behind them, the street would be more lively. What sort of human interaction could be opened up in a hospital campus? Waiting rooms full of worried souls? The retail across from the Clinic is also hideous.
Still car free districts are a good idea if they can work around the RTA. As they wake up to the green revolution, they might consider a suggestion made at a recent E4S gathering -- powering their new laundry facility with solar energy. How much hot water do they use anyway? They could use pavers for any additional parking, installing green roofs and onsite storm water management the next time they dig a hole.
big solid walls
JohnMcGovern Says:Yes, I agree the big solid oft reflective walls do not provide interaction between the inside and outside, but little can be done about that now.
What can be done is to improve the exterior aesthetics and function. A green space with reconfigured retail could certainly provide this. If I lived in Beacon Place/Woodhaven, I would certainly support this idea. Where else is there to take a walk, or walk a dog? The Burger King parking lot?
Also reconfigured retail should, as you mention, incoporate green building features, as much for the health benefits as the lifecycle cost.
Interesting commentary on the proposal at Design Rag, a local blog critiquing architecture and design.