STL Downtown Multimodal Study Engagement Week Begins Today

Today kicks off a week of events, from the Facebook Event page:

You’re invited to join the City of St. Louis as we talk about the future of our Downtown transportation system. Join any of these half-day workshops. We hope you are able to attend and take part in the discussion!

The week includes 8 half-day workshops scheduled around various topics. Please review the engagement week flyer pictured for more information about the schedule breakdown. Each workshop consists of different activities to gain feedback important to the study.

Walkabouts in Downtown will take place periodically throughout the engagement week. If you have an interest in participating in this portion, please contact Jacque at JLumsden@cbbtraffic.com.

For more information contact Jacqueline Ann (Jacque Lumsden) at JLumsden@cbbtraffic.com (CBB Transportation Engineers + Planners) or at (314) 449 – 9565.

City of St. Louis Project Manager: Dan Buschmeyer, Board of Public Service.

The schedule is as follows:

• Monday 9/18
  • Morning: bike
  • Afternoon: pedestrian
  • Evening: general session
• Tuesday 9/19
  • Morning: event traffic management/traffic
  • Afternoon:parking
• Wednesday 9/20
  • Morning: transit
  • Afternoon: technology
• Thursday 0/21
  • Morning: hot spot locations
  • Afternoon: policy issues (freight/travel demand/curbside issues)

All will take place in the 1st floor boardroom at 1520 Market. Foe more specifics see the Facebook Event page.

— Steve Patterson

‘The Walk’ Two Decades Later

Twenty years ago today a small group of fellow Gen-Xers gathered in a pretty dead downtown St. Louis. Their goal was simple — keep businesses open later than 5pm.  Thursday they’ll meet up again, from the event page:

On Thursday, Sept. 11, 1997 a few fine folks came together and walked to a few bars in downtown St. Louis with the simple premise of trying to keep downtown St. Louis alive after 5, one bar at a time. The Walk, as it quickly came to be known was the staple, weekly event for Metropolis St. Louis for a number of years. Many memories and lasting friendships (and more) were formed. Some even credit Metropolis with kickstarting the revitalization of downtown into what it has become today!

Somehow 20 years have flown by. And we’re here to celebrate that with another Walk.

We will meet and be prepared to leave the starting point of 8th and Pine at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 14 (read: be ready to head out at 6:30) and walk to three locations — four if you’re adventerous. If you’re driving, you might want to park around the 10th & Olive area.

Since technology has advanced just a wee bit since back in the day, there will be no Walk phone. Join us at 8th & Pine or catch up at one of the following places:

6:45 – Jack Patricks
7:45 – Hair of the Dog
8:45 – Missouri Bar & Grille
9:45 – ….We’ll tell you later, but promise it will be fun!

In the meantime get prepped to hear “WE’RE WALKING!” on Sept. 14.

The City is back. Back the City.

While I participated in The Walk a number of times back in the day, I don’t think I was present on the first. I was not a leader in Metropolis, but did participate at times. I was 30 when the first The Walk took place, I’d bought a 2-family in Dutchtown 3 years earlier, living previously in Murphy-Blair (now recognized as Old North St. Louis). Downtown was nothing really, though I moved here 27+ years ago I have few memories of downtown in the 90s.

The lsat Walk I participated in was in early 2006 in the Ville, see Metropolis’ Walk Heading To The Ville.

— Steve Patterson

One Building On Locust Being Renovated While Another Awaits Demolition

Over 4 years ago the then-owner of a couple of buildings at 10th & Locust wanted to raze them for a hotel driveway for the 3rd building, the tallest. Many objected, the city’s Preservation Board repeatedly said no to demolition.

I’ve not followed the current project, but work is underway at at least two of the three.City records show a demolition permit was issued on 8/17/2017 for the 3-story on the NE corner of 10th & Locust (923 Locust St.), with the later Tudor-revival facade. The exterior isn’t original to the building, but it’s important to have massing on this corner.

Hopefully a new building will be built on the corner, ideally taller — at least as tall as the adjacent building being rehabbed.

— Steve Patterson

The Civic Center MetroBus Transit Center Reopens Today…Smoke-Free!

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A look back at the original Civic Center MetroBus Center. The block North of Spruce had many trees.

The new design is substantially different, it has 3 times as many bus bays. First we have to get to it. For both the ribbon cutting (8/10) and open house (8/11) I arrived from the North on the West side of 14th Street (next to Peabody Opera/Scottrade Center). Both times I had to take a detour, hopefully this morning this is open.

At the ribbon cutting on Thursday Metro Transit Exec Dir Ray Friem was adamant Civic Center would open allowing smoking, like their other bus centers. I argued this was the perfect time to make Civic Center smoke-free. Metro staff told me their inconsistent policy of no-smoking on train platforms but smoking at bus shelters on their private property had been the subject of many internal debates over the years. Friem said Metro would go smoke0-free, he just didn’t know how or when.  I rallied others to talk to Friem. It worked.

Metro has announced Civic Center is opening smoke-free, other bus transit centers will go smoke0-free  next month. Finally I can change buses at a transit center without having my eyes water or throat close because of smokers around me.

Four bus routes are being split up:

• The #30 is being split into the #19 St. Louis Ave and #30 Arsenal
• The #32 M.L. King-Chouteau is being split into the #31 Chouteau and #32 M.L. King.
• The #40 Broadway route becomes the #20 S. Broadway and #40 N. Broadway  — yes, both are being routes through Civic Center.
• The #99 Downtown Trolley is having a West portion split off into the #96 Market Street Shuttle.

You can read all the changes here.

— Steve Patterson

Pine @ Tucker Treated Different Than Locust @ Tucker

In April I wrote how some drivers get confused on one-way Locust approaching Tucker — some turn left from either lane because it’s not properly marked. Two blocks directly South, on Tine St, is the identical situation but properly marked.  Pine is also a 2-lane street one-way Westbound.  But the city treats Locust very different than it does Locust.

Locust has no pavement markings or signs to indicate where drivers should be.

Pine, however, has both pavement markings and at least one sign.

Maybe AT&T got the city to make this intersection less confusing? Two blocks away is the same type of intersection treated very differently — untreated. I favor having traffic that wants to continue Westbound being in the right lane. with the left lane for left-turn only traffic. When I drive Westbound on Locust I stay in the right lane to cross Tucker, allowing me to get through the intersection and not be caught behind cars waiting on pedestrians to cross Tucker.

Locust should be treated just like Pine.

— Steve Patterson