Accessible Not The Same As Walkable

Walkability & accessibility are two subjects that are important to me. Ideally places would be both walkable & accessible, but that is rare.  The minimum, for me, is accessible.  But being accessible, ADA-compliant, isn’t remotely close to being walkable.

Walkable, in my mind, requires active tree-lined streets with generous sidewalks.  In residential areas the buildings may be set back a bit from the sidewalk, but not too much.  Someone on the sidewalk should be able to converse with someone on a front porch.  Residential sidewalks should connect to a nearby commercial area no more than 1/4 mile away.  The commercial district will have a variety of adjacent buildings all fronting onto the public sidewalk.  Building fronts shall mostly be glass windows & doors, not blank walls.  Public transit is available in walkable areas.

Accessible, in my mind, means a disabled person can navigate the area.  This includes someone in a wheelchair as well as deaf or low vision/blind persons.

The CVS and Arby’s are both accessible but neither is walkable.  Yes, someone can walk there along the accessible route but neither contributes to a walkable environment.

I reluctantly accept that not everyplace is going to be built walkable but I refuse to accept anyplace not being accessible from the public sidewalk adjacent to the property.

The Starbuck’s, above, closed after being open less than a year.   It was drivable, but not walkable or accessible.

– Steve Patterson

Poll on Missouri Proposition B (Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act)

Next week voters in Missouri will decide if they want to pass Proposition B:

“Shall Missouri law be amended to:

• require large-scale dog breeding operations to provide each dog under their care with sufficient food, clean water, housing and space; necessary veterinary care; regular exercise and adequate rest between breeding cycles;
• prohibit any breeder from having more than 50 breeding dogs for the purpose of selling their puppies as pets; and
• create a misdemeanor crime of “puppy mill cruelty” for any violations?

It is estimated state governmental entities will incur costs of $654,768 (on-going costs of $521,356 and one-time costs of $133,412). Some local governmental entities may experience costs related to enforcement activities and savings related to reduced animal care activities.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend Missouri law to require large-scale dog breeding operations to provide each dog under their care with sufficient food, clean water, housing and space; necessary veterinary care; regular exercise and adequate rest between breeding cycles. The amendment further prohibits any breeder from having more than 50 breeding dogs for the purpose of selling their puppies as pets. The amendment also creates a misdemeanor crime of “puppy mill cruelty” for any violations.

A “no” vote will not change the current Missouri law regarding dog breeders.

If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.”

The poll this week seeks to get a sense of how readers feel about this issue.

From the pro side:

“Missouri is home to an estimated 3,000 puppy mills, breeding hundreds of thousands of puppies, far more than any other state in the country. Dogs at puppy mills typically receive little to no medical care, live in squalid conditions with no exercise, socialization or human interaction, and are confined inside cramped wire cages for life. Dogs at puppy mills must endure constant breeding cycles. Dogs from puppy mills are sold in pet stores, online and directly to consumers with little to no regard for the dog’s health, genetic history or future welfare.” (source)

From the con side:

“As families in Missouri struggle to make ends meet, radical animal rights activists are using emotional ballot language to push economy crippling legislation. If Prop B were to pass:

• BLUE RIBBON KENNELS WILL BE FORCED TO CLOSE DUE TO EXCESSIVE REGULATION AND PENALTIES
• JOBS WILL BE LOST AT PET STORES, KENNELS, AND FOOD PRODUCERS WHO EMPLOY TENS OF THOUSANDS OF MISSOURIANS STATEWIDE
• HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF TAX DOLLARS A YEAR WILL BE WASTED ENFORCING NEEDLESS REGULATIONS ON MISSOURI’S RESPECTED, LICENSED DOG-BREEDERS, WHILE THE UNLICENSED PROBLEM-BREEDERS REMAIN UNCHECKED

While unemployment rates continue to rise, Proposition B will cause more small businesses to go under and put many Missourians out of their jobs.” (Source)

Further reading:

• Ballotpedia
• Supporters (Missourians for the Protection of Dogs)
• Opposition (Alliance for Truth)
• ‘Puppy mill’ proposition divides state (Columbia Daily Tribune)

The poll is in the upper right corner of the blog.  The final results will be presented before the vote on Tuesday November 2, 2010.

– Steve Patterson

The Galleria Revisited

On October 11th I posted Reaching The Galleria Not Easy For Pedestrians and noted the accessible route let to the one entrance that didn’t have automatic doors.

I wrote: “On my next visit I will see if I can go around the former Mark Shale space to reach the entry by Restoration Hardware.” I visited again on Wednesday and discovered I could reach an entrance with automatic doors.

More distance but hey I’ve traveled a long way already.

So I can access the mall without working my way through the parking lot or struggling with a manual door.  But nobody should have to travel that far to reach an accessible entrance.  The Galleria needs to look at building some new structures between Brentwood Blvd and the mall, aligned with the Galleria Parkway that leads to the transit station.

– Steve Patterson

St. Louis’ Great Divorce Finalized 134 Years Ago Today

One hundred thirty-four years ago today The City of St. Louis divorced itself from St. Louis County, becoming an independent city.

“The vote took place 22 Aug 1876, and the initial count indicated that the separation question had failed by just over 100 votes. Supporters of separation then brought charges, including fraud, and a recount was ordered. The recount took four months so it was late 1876 before it was determined that the vote for separation had passed.” (source)

Further reading on the “great divorce” here and here.

Past attempts at a reconciliation have failed but leaders in both the city & county are again talking about getting back together. But these talks are a point of disagreement in the race for St. Louis County Executive between Charlie Dooley & Bill Corrigan:

“Bill Corrigan, the Republican candidate for St. Louis County Executive, spoke out this week against any proposed merger between St. Louis City and County.

“Inheriting all the economic problems that exist in the city, and the funding liabilities that the county would incur by merging the two,it would be an economic disaster for the county,” Corrigan said during Thursday’s edition of St. Louis on The Air.

Corrigan’s opponent, Democratic incumbent Charlie Dooley, told the Post-Dispatch last month that a city-county merger would make government more efficient. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay expressed support for that idea after his re-election last year.” (KWMU)

Originally the city saw the county as a financial liability.  Now Corrigan thinks the city would be a burden to the county.  In an “us vs them” mindset, he is right. In a “we are in this together” mindset, he is wrong.

The issue of the region’s governance is a huge, complicated issue.  The options include:

1. Do nothing.
2. Make the City of St. Louis the 92nd municipality within St. Louis County.
3. Create one large city-county government that includes most, or all, of the city & county.

The last option is the best option from a regional governance perspective, but it would also be the most complicated. Instead of 92 mayors, a county executive and hundreds of aldermen/council members having a single mayor, city manager and a dozen elected representatives?

For more on modern regional governance check out “Moving Toward Regional Governance Incrementally: The St. Louis Case“ by E. Terrance Jones & Don Phares, the two leading local scholars on the issue.

– Steve Patterson

Pedestrian Improvements At Utah Place & Gustine Ave

I recently noticed some pedestrian improvements at Utah Place & Gustine Ave.  To note the changes we need to look at a similar intersection, Utah Place & Spring Ave:

Scroll up and look at the aerial again, the ramps on west side of Gustine crossing Utah point into the center of the intersection, not at the crosswalk.  These new improvements are a step in the right direction, but not without flaws.

– Steve Patterson