Poll: St Charles County is considering banning bikes from some state highways

The poll this week is about bicycling:

Q: St Charles County is considering banning bikes from some state highways

More info:

A bill that would ban bicyclists from using state highways in southwestern St. Charles County will be introduced during the St. Charles County Council’s meeting Monday night.

Councilman Joe Brazil, R-District 2, requested the bill.

“We spend millions of dollars a year on parks and trails,” Brazil said in a news release issued by the county. “The bicyclists need to stay on the trails that were made for bikes and off the roads in southwest St. Charles County.”

The proposed ordinance would prohibit bicycles on highways DD, D, F and Z and Highway 94 from its intersection with Highway 40 west to the county line. The ordinance would apply to highways that lack shoulders or bicycle lanes.  (Full story)

The poll is in the upper right hand corner.  Please vote and add any comments you have below.

– Steve Patterson

The skate park under the Kingshighway bridge

The Kingshighway bridge over the railroad track (South of I-44) is falling apart.  But directly underneath the crumbling bridge something interesting is evolving.

A skate park is being developed in the space under the South section.  I love the idea of putting this space to use but this is no substitute for a well designed skate park where there are lights, restrooms, water and seating.

– Steve Patterson

New construction and predictions for 2050 and beyond

Nothing is getting built because of the economy, right? Wrong. Seems there are renovation & new construction projects popping up in neighborhoods throughout the city.

The following is a combination of an educated guess based on demographic forecasts, trends and wishful thinking.

I see the 21st century as a mirror of the 20th century.  The first half of the last century started with the earliest suburbs as a means of escaping the industrial city. The initial movement was limited to the wealthy but as time passed the growing middle class sought residences in the new suburbs.

This century I see the wealthy locating in walkable neighborhoods closer to the center and near mass transit.  But more and more people want to experience real places and they realize suburbia (driveable, not walkable) don’t offer the lifestyle they seek.  By 2050 I see the general public seeking to live & work in walkable locations with the option to use mass transit.

Those parts of our region, and other regions, which do not adopt a pedestrian-friendly form will be increasingly viewed as undesirable by most of the population.  The secluded residential subdivision of today that requires a 5-mile drive to reach the grocery store will be the slum of 2075.

During the second half of the 20th century walkable urban centers tried to remake themselves in a way to retain population.  The attempts, which made the core less walkable, failed to retain those who desired life in the new suburbs.  But this century the efforts to retrofit suburbia.

Ellen Dunham-Jones describes it best:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_uTsrxfYWQ

She mentions ArtSpace at Crestwood Court.

I’ve never been more optimistic than I am now.  I’ll be an old man by the time this all happens but I look forward to watching the change happen.

– Steve Patterson

Motorcycle & scooter parking needed in our region

Before my 2008 stroke I got around on a 49cc Honda Metropolitan scooter.  Because of the small displacement engine it did not need to be licensed by the Missouri (some states require registering all scooters regardless of engine size).  I’d park in out of the way places but at times I’d get notes from officers suggesting I park in a metered parking spot.  My scooter was tiny and would be lost in a space.

Recently I noticed a much larger scooter parked at a meter on Lindell Blvd near Grand Ave. What I don’t know is if the space was empty when the scooter was parked or if the owner slipped in front of a car that left before I took the photo.  Either way you can see the ridiculousness of having fixed-length parking – the one-size-fits-all formula that wastes lots of space.

In high demand areas we need to have motorcycle & scooter parking. In the space of one car you can fit in parking for 3-6 motorcycles/scooters.  For payment you use pay-per-space machines:

You pay for the number for the slot you park in. Regular meters can also be used where you have 2-3 spaces.  By creating the spaces perpendicular to the curb line you can fit in many motorcycles & scooters.  Motorists will be less frustrated by not having a scooter taking a full space.  Riders will be happy having a designated space for their compact tw0-wheeled vehicles. The city will collect additional revenue.

– Steve Patterson

Many readers pleased with Judge Dierker’s ruling on the NorthSide TIF

Last week there were 314 votes in the weekly poll.
Q: How do you feel about Judge Dierker tossing out the $390m TIF for Paul McKee’s $8.1b NorthSide project?

1. Great, now voters need to toss out the Aldermen that voted in favor of the TIF 113 35.99%
2. Bad, the area needs redevelopment 56 17.83%
3. Mixed feelings 53 16.88%
4. Good, too much public subsidy 49 15.61%
5. Horrible, TIF is a good way for the public to partner in such a project 32 10.19%
6. Other answer… 8 2.55%
7. Unsure/no opinion 3 0.96%

Other Responses were:

1. the area needs the development but Mckee could have gotten a sum thru investors
2. The idea was a bold and positive one. The TIF was too large of an area, however.
3. Great, plan wasn’t concrete enough; not enough guarantee of financial succe
4. New ordinances needed
5. Paul McKee had not an ounce of good intentions for the area in question, greed.
6. Good – a new plan w/ more community-based redevelopment needs to be made.
7. We need the north side redevelope.
8. Good: Needs more details

So what to make of these votes? I personally fall into the “mixed feelings” group, although I wouldn’t mind seeing many of our elected officials replaced with some fresh faces. The city stopped setting a vision for much of the area in the large TIF boundary, something had to be done.  I share the feeling that the community should have input into the planning of such a large area of the city.  McKee says the project will move forward:

In his 51-page ruling, Dierker raised questions about the development’s economic projections, the city’s approval process, city officials’ reliance on market studies provided by the developer and McKee’s ability to pull off the project and deliver on his promises to transform 1,500 acres. McKee wants to partner with homebuilders and other developers to build up to 4.5 million square feet of office space, 1 million square feet of retail space, 2,200 new single-family homes and 7,800 apartments over the next two decades – a plan that Dierker said puts the “idea of rosy scenarios to shame.”  Full story: Paul McKee: ‘I’m too German and too Irish to walk away from it’ – St. Louis Business Journal

Stay tuned!

– Steve Patterson