With the sudden announcement of City Manager Greg Jones' resignation after a scant 19 months on the job, it is time for Chico to reconsider its form of government. Not solely because it is going to be devilishly difficult to recruit a new chief executive officer for the city, but also to address the problems that have led to this difficulty in the first place.

Not to discount any of Jones' cited reasons for leaving; his family situation does indeed sound as though he would be better off in the Bay Area. Still, it must have been frustrating trying to effect meaningful process improvements in a community that regards any change as a potentially fatal threat to All We Hold Dear. Any qualified candidate for the City Maager position who hopes to have a productive and rewarding career will almost certainly see Chico as a dead end opportunity.

A big part of the problem, in my view, has been the current form of government. The Council-Manager structure we have now is typically suitable for small towns. Citizens are elected to a council, where issues of budget and policy are determined, and a professional staff then executes these decisions in the day to day operations of the city. As Chico has grown, the problems facing it, particularly with respect to the budget and growth itself, have increased in complexity and consequence, whereas the particular expertise for synthesizing solutions has remained relatively static. Not that the members of the council aren't intelligent, well-intentioned, or diligent; only that they do not have specialized training and experience in urban planning, public administration, complex budgeting, or labor negotiations. They are increasingly dependent upon staff for advice and recommendations, yet remain obligated to their constituents, who also lack formal adminstrative discipline.

I believe it is time for the city of Chico to consider a transition to a Strong Mayor-Council form of government, and to district elections. In the Strong Mayor form, the mayor is an elected position, and is not a member of the council. He or she is the chief executive officer, responsible for submitting a budget to the council for consideration, and for appointing department directors. The Strong Mayor also has the power to veto legislation passed by the council, which may, with a supermajority, override the veto.

I believe that dilletante legislators, beholden to narrow special interests, have created this current situation. I believe that a popularly elected mayor, with the remit to shape and lead the civic authority, will be much more effective at both pursuing and implementing policy.

I also believe that councilmembers elected by district would eliminate a great deal of the polarization that currently afflicts the policy process today. I would like very much for downtown Chico to have explicit representation on the council, and I expect those in the Avenues and Barber neighborhoods would like their interests championed, as well. Certainly the other neighborhoods around the city have their own parochial interests that receive scant attention, and would benefit from district representation.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 10:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

While I've certainly been quite critical of the state of downtown's sidewalks, I should point out that some people are taking a proactive approach, and deserve recognition for their efforts.

John Kennedy
John recently relocated his commercial real estate practice in downtown, which is a refreshing contrast to the many commercial real estate firms who market and manage downtown properties, but are not located there. The other day I caught him hosing down the sidewalk in front of the Beach Hut Deli, and asked him if he was involved in the business. Turns out he was just doing something that needed to be done, with no financial interest at stake.

It's probably also worth mentioning that he was instrumental in addressing once of the "missing teeth"I pointed out recently; he was the agent responsible for signed the new lessee for the old Moxie's location. It's to be a "mediterranean restaurant and grocery" and is expected to open by this September. Great job, John!

John Barroso and Justin Bowman
A new pressure washing service has opened up in Chico, offering sidewalk maintenance services to downtown businesses. The new company, North Valley Renovations, also repairs fences, decks, concrete, houses, and can be reached by calling 592-9773, or via email at nvrestore@sbcglobal.net. They already have one downtown merchant client, and are eager to find more. Good going, guys, for recognizing a market opportunity.

Nancy and Hal Carlson
The proprietor's of the enormously popular new candy store, Powell's Sweet Shoppe, have engaged North Valley Restorations to clean the sidewalk in front of their store on Third Street twice per month. It's great when a new business in downtown recognizes the competitive advantage of maintaining a clean and inviting facade. Well done, Carlson's.

David Halimi
A lot of people like to criticize downtown's "absentee property owners" who don't take an interest in their properties, but David, owner of Diamond W Western Wear, is a local property owner who takes pride in his storefront, and of the other properties he owns in downtown. He's an outstanding example of someone who has made a significant investment in the city center, has gone to great expense to maintain his properties, and to provide good jobs. Just another good citizen, doing the right thing.

I'm actively seeking additional examples of "Local Heroes" who step up and make a difference in the quality of the downtown experience. Please send you nominations to axon@axonometrix.com

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 10:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Nothing contributes to the decline of a downtown so much as vacancy. Every empty storefront is a chilling sign of deterioration. Turnover is natural, and businesses that aren't successful will inevitably close their doors, but if there isn't a new operator to move in behind them, the effect on the block, and the entire district, is distressing.

Moxie's café is now officially out of business. There had been a coy "remodelling, open soon" sign in the window for a month or so, but now there's a For Lease sign on the door, and a look inside confirms that the site is lifeless.

I have fond memories of Moxie's. I played there many times with my trio, booked and promoted other artists there, and made several live recordings there. It was not an especially suitable venue in terms of acoustics, but it was one of the few venues in town where you could hear pretty much any kind of music, from entry level open-mike types to touring recording artists. They held poetry slams there as well, and while they served beer and wine, it was family-friendly, and a place where teens could hang out. Back in 1999, I installed and supported the computer network for patrons to surf the internet. It was, by a month or so, the first "internet café" in Chico (Has Beans opened shortly after the Moxie's network was available).

Perhaps Moxie's failure is a sign that downtown Chico has become overcaffeinated. It's not as though downtowners are at any risk of not being able to find a cup of coffee within a few steps of their door, after all. Since Moxie's opened at the old Sienna Café location, downtown has been inundated with coffeehouses. In addition to the aforementioned Has Beans, the Naked Lounge (my personal favorite even though it's terminally trendy, especially among the pierced-and-tattooed set), Augie's, Peet's, and Starbuck's have opened. Upper Crust and Brooklyn Bridge Bagel Works have been serving coffee for awhile, as well. Plenty of options for a cup of joe and a crust of bread in the city center.

Of all the coffee joints in town, Moxie's was probably the most "bohemian". It served as the unofficial gathering place for lefty politics, and was the main venue for election night return watching for the self-described progressive community. I can idly speculate that the demise of Moxie's might indicate an eroding momentum for the Esplanade League and its ilk, but it's a vain hope, certainly.

I'm much more likely to believe that Moxie's is the victim of accelerated mediocrity. Competition is stiff, and as Yogi Berra says, if people don't want to go the ball game, you can't stop them.

Of a larger concern is the absence of a tooth in a very prominent smile. That's the first block of Broadway, nearest the University. When a coffeehouse that explicitly caters to students and provides a casual, comfortable place to study and visit with friends can't turn enough business to thrive, something is wrong. When the students return in the fall, if that store is still shuttered, it's going to make a very bad impression on a critical market segment for downtown.

Confetti Party Headquarters is closing its doors, as well. This is also an unhappy sign. I'm told that the business is continuing, with an online commerce model, but no longer a downtown institution. This is troubling, inasmuch as these storefronts, in prime downtown locations, are joining the other 30,000 square feet of retail space in the downtown core sitting empty, and 30,000 feet of second-floor office and commercial space untenanted.

I hear people saying that the downtown is the heart of the community, but the truth is that Chico has heart trouble. Downtown is at a critical crossroads, and it could go either way. It could benefit from increased private investment, new businesses locating there, and more patrons visiting. Or it could continue to disintegrate as businesses fail or relocate and are not replaced.

There are no easy answers, but it is clear to this observer that the current strategies for sustaining the downtown as the community's cultural, civic, and commercial center are inadequate. And that makes me worry.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 09:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Two of the best things about downtown Chico are the Thursday Night and Saturday Farmer's Markets. Different in style, they are nevertheless complementary and share some of the same vendors and attendees. I know some folks who prefer the Thursday market, while others prefer Saturday, but I see a lot of the same faces at both events, whether inside the booth or browsing the goods.

Both are California Certified Farmer's Markets, of course, which sets the standards for the fresh produce segment of the program. Both also feature other goods as well, including apparel, jewelry, and crafts. The Thursday Night Market, produced for the last decade by the Downtown Chico Business Association, has more of a street fair sort of vibe, with as many as five musical performers at established locations, other exhibitions, as well as booths for a variety of other businesses, from retailers to real estate, from foot massages to financial services, from chiropractors to candlemakers.

The market is open every Thursday evening, from 6-9 PM, from April through September, weather permitting. The market is primarily down broadway, from Second to Fifth Streets, with additional exhibits on Third and Fourth streets, and in the new city plaza. It's usually quite crowded, as lots of folks get an early start on the weekend by kicking it off with a stroll through the market, grabbing a snack, then continuing the evening with dinner and drinks at one of the many dining establishments. I know one restaurateur in downtown Chico who says that his Thursday night business during the summer is as strong as on Saturdays. The DCBA estimates that 8-10,000 people visit the market each week.

One of my favorite vendors is Antonio Flores, who has the Rosarito Tamales stand at both markets. He and his family sell the best tamales I've every had, with their own homemade hot sauce, spicy or mild. These are the bargain comfort food of the market, just $1.50 per tamale, or $15 per dozen, and are available in chicken, pork, beef, veggie, and pineapple. You can get tamales from him at his retail location on West Ninth at Orange, or order them by phone (891-6097) with a day's notice. But a Rosarito tamale just makes the market that much more fun, which is why there's usually a line of people waiting. I almost always pick up some tamales at the Saturday market to have for lunch.

The Saturday Market is more like a village fair, with fewer non-agricultural vendors, and a decidedly tie-dyed and birkenstocked vibe. It also features some live music, typically buskers and jam scenes. The non-agricultural goods are fairly limited to homemade craft products, such as gardening items, pottery, and jewelry. It has a slower pace, with smaller crowds of people, but with longer hours, so there's still a respectable turnout. It operates every year-round on Saturday mornings, rain or shine, in the parking lot at Second and Wall Streets, from 7:30 AM to 1 PM.

Another favorite vendor at both events is Lodestar Olive Oil. Grown and processed in Oroville, Lodestar has been making award-winning olive oil for years, both under its own brand as well as private label. Many people are unaware that the orchards around Oroville produce 75% of the mission olives in California, so it's an important agricultural legacy. If you like artisanal olive oil, you've got to stop by their booth at either market at sample both the extra virgin and the lemon-infused versions. They've also recently introduced a Balsamic Herb Dipping Oil, so you'll want to give that a try, as well. Lodestar has a tasting room on their farm, but it's great having them at the downtown markets.

By the way, this is the best time to get fresh chiles. The vendor pictured above in the Saturday market photo has a terrific selection of fresh chiles. There are also a couple of vendors of grass-fed beef who sell on alternate Saturdays. Since this is the perfect time of year, I'm going to share my justly famous, award-winning recipe for chili. Pick up some beef shank from one of the grass-fed beef folks. Three pounds is about right for a good pot with leftovers. Get a pound or so of soup bones from them as well.

For each pound of beef, get one medium yellow onion, one Anaheim, one Serrano, and one Ancho chili. If you really, really like it hot, add one Habanero for the entire pot. It's best to cut up the vegetables the night before. Might as well get a head of garlic while you're at it; plan on using one clove per pound of meat. Be sure to wear latex gloves when chopping up the chiles, and wash your hands well afterwards, just in case. The first time you scratch your face or rub your eye could be very uncomfortable otherwise. Put the diced veggies in a plastic container overnight. Put the soup bones in a crockpot overnight with a cut up onion, a carrot, a couple stalks of celery, a clove of garlic, and a bay leaf. Cover with water, and simmer overnight on low.

The next morning, strain the stock and set aside. Put the thawed pieces of shank on the bottom of the crockpot, add the veggies, and start on the high setting. A few hours later, turn it down to low, and add a cup or so of beef stock, plus one tablespoon of chili powder per pound of meat. I like the chili powder at S&S, but any good commercial chili powder is fine. I wish Chico Spice Co., a Saturday Market vendor, would offer a chili powder so the entire meal could be provisioned at the market.

By suppertime, you can remove the shank bones, give it a could vigorous stirring, and serve one of the finest bowls of chili since the mind of man runneth not to the contrary.

Now that the city plaza is finished, there's been some discussion about locating both markets in and around the plaza. Traditionally, villages and towns grow up around a "market square". Anyone who's traveled to Europe or Latin America has seen the open air markets that have existed for centuries. One of my favorite things to do wehn south of the border is go to the Mercado. Rather than prowl through tourist shops offering tacky junk (often made offshore), a Mercado offers anything and everything that the typical local might need, and it's a great view into the merchant culture of another country. I think it would be terrific if the new plaza became the focal point for both the Thursday and Saturday markets. It's such a great location, and with the new fountain and bandshell, it's bound to attract more visitors to both events.

So get out to the markets, pick up some fresh produce and flowers, greet old friends or make new ones, catch an upcoming musician (tip: Karen Joy Brown at the Thursday Market is a special treat), and top it off with dinner at one of the many restaurants in the district. And tell your friends.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 01:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Any discussion of pedestrianizing the downtown must consider traffic calming tactics, and implement best practices in this area. The process is incremental, and not without some controversy, inasmuch as its explicit purpose is to reduce traffic velocity and volume. Motorists, understandably but mistakenly, want to cover ground with dispatch, what with time being money and all.

It's sort of puzzling to me, because we aren't born in automobiles. Every car ride begins and ends with a walk. So the reflexive hostility that motorists and pedestrians routinely exhibit for each other is strange. When driving into downtown, the driver sees each pedestrian crossing the street as an obstacle, but as soon as he's out of his car and crossing the street, he sees other motorists as the enemy, and purposely slows his gait to further inconvenience the oncoming soccer mom in the Escalade bearing down on him.

No wonder people go to the mall. Once safely inside the climate-controlled uberstore, the gravest hazard they face is indigestion from the food court.

Traffic calming is not a new subject in Chico. In the recent redesign of East Eighth street, for example, three roundabouts were planned, specifically to calm traffic while facilitating smoother traffic flow. Were the residents along the corridor happy about this? No. Instead, they mau-maued the designers, insisting, essentially, that they don't like their traffic calm and smooth, they like it frenetic and rough. Go figure.

But other neighborhoods around Chico, confronted with thoughtless drivers speeding along residential streets, have petitioned the city for increased traffic calming measures, and where they've been implemented, they've been effective.

Usually, this means "speed bumps" (or, as they're called in Europe, "sleeping policemen"). But this is only one of many weapons in the traffic calmiing toolkit.

The Project for Public Spaces has a comprehensive catalog of traffic calming measures, summarized on the next page.

Diagonal Parking

Chico is starting to do this already, more for the purpose of increasing available parking in high-demand areas, but it also has a traffic calming benefit. According to PPS, it changes both the perception and the function of a street. Because both parked and oncoming motorists must be increasingly alert to one another, this increased awareness improves awareness of pedestrians.

Changing One-Way Streets to Two-Way

I discussed this on last Wednesday's entry, and pedestrian convenience was one of the benefits of considering changing Third, Fourth, Main, and Broadway to two-ways. And because it also increases motorist convenience, the potential for motorist frustration to result in a pedestrian injury is reduced.

Narrowing Lanes, Widening Sidewalks

This seems self-evident. The wider the roadway, the faster the motorist thinks he can safely travel. We see this every day on Broadway at First Street. Drivers that have been blissfully cruising along at 27 miles per hour on Esplanade suddenly speed up and shift from lane to lane trying to achieve some competitive advantage even though the lights are metered for the same speed they've been traveling. Another advantage of narrow strees with wider sidewalks is that pedestrians have shorter crossings, plus more space on the sidewalk for foot traffic.

Bulbs, Chokers, Neckdowns

We already have bulbs at many intersections in downtown Chico. These serve as refuges for pedestrians waiting to cross the streets. They also shorten the crossing distance, define parking bays, and provide space for amenities like trash receptable, bike racks, trees, etc.

Chicanes

This technique uses extended portions of sidewalks to give a street a "curving" aspect. Drivers instinctively slow down when the road goes from straight to curved. One way of using chicanes on a three-lane one-way street would be to extend the sidewalk from the right-hand sidewalk at the beginning of the block for about a quarter of the way, and extending the left-hand sidewalk at the end of the block for the last quarter. This encourages through traffic to stay in the center lane, and discourages left-turns, which tend to cause traffic latency, increasing congestion and emissions.

Traffic Circles and Roundabouts

We've been having a lively discussion of traffic circles in Chico for several years, and while some people are still stubbornly opposed to them, I think they've proven their value in selected circumstances. They are especially useful when more than two streets converge on the same point. For example, the intersection where Park Avenue, East Ninth Street, Humboldt, and Oroville Avenue all connect (shown at right) would be well served by a traffic circle that would permit a smooth flow of traffic without stopping.

Raised Medians

A new on of these was recently installed at Vallambrosa and Mangrove, to discourage traffic in and out of the new corporate shopping center there from crossing to or from the eastbound lanes. But they also serve to slow traffic, and provide pedestrian refuges between lanes.

Tight Corner Curbs

The sharper the turn, the slower the driver. This technique also provides pedestrians with greater visibility of oncoming traffic, and gives motorists better visibility of pedestrians. It also creates additional sidewalk space for pedestrians, and typically shortens crossings, as well.

Diverters

This is a technique to force traffic to follow specific patterns, essentially dedicating some roadways to vehicles, freeing up other corridors for pedestrian and bicycle traffic.

Speed Bumps

These would be very useful to slow down traffic approaching downtown from either direction of Second Street, which, combined with diverters, could encourage more motorists to use Third and Fourth as their through streets, rather than trying to cross the downtown on Second. These would also be useful on Broadway and Main to reduce through traffic and the "raceway effect".

Of course, these techniques can only be useful as part of an overall traffic management strategy for the city center. Applying them like band-aids to problem spots only tends to rrelocate the problems elsewhere. Access and traffic management have always been an important part of the ongoing discussion about downtown, and I hope that some of these mechanisms can be adapted to downtown Chico's unique requirements.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I should, properly, disclaim that I served on the Citizen's Transit Advisory Comittee, the last two years as chair, just prior to its decommissioning when transit services throughout Butte County were consolidated under BCAG in 2005. But my observations today are from the perspective of a citizen and downtown activist. Still, I gained some insights into how sausage is made, and I confess it has influenced a rather jaundiced view of the policy process administering transit strategies.

One thing I learned, early on, is that the purpose of mass transit is not to furnish needed transporation services, to decrease traffic congestion, reduce air pollution, or improve public safety. No, as it happens, the purpose of mass transit is to ensure that no state or federal subsidy monies go unspent.

I shouldn't have been surprised. After all, I lived in the Bay Area for 20 years, where the Muni system served as a sort of dumping ground for incompetent civil servants from other departments in the city. Still, I was astonished.

I should also observe that Chico, like similarly-sized communities outside of urban centers, receives far less in the way of subsidy money per capita than the large coastal metropolitan areas. In fact, Chico itself receives no transit subsidy money; that is allocated to the county, and administered by BCAG. Butte County gets first crack at the cash, though, and counties like to build bridges and roads. So the amount that BCAG receives is already diminished, and Chico's priorities, while not ignored, are rationalized to the overall transit needs of the county as a whole. This is a done deal, spilled milk, and all that, so developing new strategies for transit services in Chico itself is probably an exercise in speculative fiction.

Not that some investment can't occur outside the BCAG ambit. Indeed, the construction of the new transit center on Lot 2 proceeds at feverish pace, bought and paid for exclusively by the City of Chico. This is notwithstanding the appallingly misguided location of it. In my discussions with various business and civic leaders, I know of no one who approves of this site for a master transfer hub. Nearby businesses bemoan the loss of business and mutter darkly about potential litigation. The University is not happy about it, either, preferring that the eastern gateway to the campus not become a magnet for the career homeless.

Plans to construct a transit center at this intersection have been under development for years. Fortunately, Chico's charmingly parochial process has repeatedly confounded its implementation. The initial proposal comes with a modest cost. Then the various special pleadings begin, requiring photovoltaic power systems, public restrooms, art installations, etc. Then the project goes out to bid, and the proposals received all exceed the budget, so the plans go on the shelf.

When Proposition 1B passed last year, the money appropriated was specifically intended to fund "ready-to-go" transportation projects, not for the development of new projects. (A cynical observer would conclude that it was intended exclusively for freeway projects in large urban centers. An even more cynical observer might wager on whether any of that money would ever find its way north of the Tehachapis. That observer would be David Little.) But Chico had a project ready to go, having everything it needed -- CEQA compliance, EIR certification, a stack of responsive proposals -- except the funding. See my earlier comment about subsidy money going unspent. So we're going to get the wrong project, at the wrong location, at the wrong price, but just in time for the resumption of classes.

The best practices in transit are "intermodal". A bus transfer station that provides no connection to rail, inter-regional, or air services is a transit island. The ideal location for the transit center would be at Fourth and Orange Streets, adjacent to the Amtrak station and Greyhound depot. Since a great many of the B-Line's riders are CSUC students, this location is as convenient to the campus as the current site, and much closer to the south campus neighborhoods where services for the student community are concentrated. Normal Street Bar's loss would be Riley's gain.

In the event that commuter rail service is created to connect Chico to Sacramento and Redding, the railway station at Fifth and Orange Streets is the most likely terminus. Should that happen, folks wanting to use this service to travel to Sacramento, Yuba City/Maryville, or Redding would be required to drive to the depot, and park in one of the most parking constrained areas of the city.

The first transit system in Chico was not funded by state or federal transportation subsidies. It was built entirely by private industry. A streetcar system was built by the Diamond Match company for the very practical purpose of getting the worker bees into the hive. Today, private employers in the downtown are facing the same problem. Perhaps a public/private partnership might be possible.

Just because the B-Line and the bus routes it offers are under the authority of BCAG doesn't mean that other alternatives are off the table. Work Training Center, for example, operates a large fleet of jitney coaches to transport the hundreds of clients participating in adult daycare and workshop programs. WTC is a "private, not-for-profit" entity, not a government agency, although the vast majority of its funding comes from public sources. So it's not only possible, but apparently sustainable, for a private entity to operate a transit service.

In some conversations I've participated in recently, there's been some enthusiasm for a small, downtown-centric, shuttle service. A central loop route, running clockwise and counterclockwise concurrently, connecting the downtown with Enloe and the medical service community along the Lindo Channel, as well as to the growing commercial and residential corridor along Park Avenue, with 4- or 5-per-hour headways, could be a unifying element in creating a cohesive city center community. Parking facilities could be located at the periphery of downtown, with the shuttle loop providing the essential connective tissue and circulatory system of a Greater Downtown.

I'd love to see the old streetcar rail system resuscitated, and while the capital investment is probably prohibitive, light rail connectivity between Chico's anchor employers -- Enloe, CSU, and Sierra Nevada Brewing Company -- and the urban core would be a sensational attraction, and sensible transportation policy to boot. Too bad we didn't have a plan like that on the books when the 1B money became available.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Dan Burden, Director of Walkable Communities, Inc. cites Chico as an example of a "walkable community". I found this interesting, inasmuch as I've thought we come up short in that area. Certainly projects like Meriam Park offer walkability as a competitive advantage, so it's reasonable to assume that the rest of Chico is less than optimally pedestrianized.

So I wrote to Burden, who very graciously replied that Chico has "excellent block form (level of networking streets), quality buildings and intact town center, level of aliveness of streets a number of hours a day ... good nearby parks, investment in the town plaza, new investments in downtown, most government services and postal service located in downtown, presence of the campus in a central town location, care of historic homes, good streets, number of "complete streets" and streets with bike lanes, numbers of streets undergoing traffic calming, especially near the hospital."

When you put it that way, well sure, Chico looks pretty good. Still, there is room for improvement. Some of the suggestions he offers include "reduction of one-way streets, downtown traffic management plan update, improved pedestrian crossings, added traffic calming". Since we recently conducted a charrette considering both parking and access, we have some ideas on the table for these perceived walkability deficits.

I was particularly interested in Burden's recommendation to reduce one-way streets. That idea came up during the charrette as well, and while various configurations were presented, the advantages of doing so were not clearly identified. So I did a little digging, and I found some interesting thoughts.

The advantages of one-way streets are primarily about expediting traffic flows. This is largely the exact opposite of what is called "traffic calming", so there may be good reason to reevaluate our downtown street network strategies.

Disadvantages of one-way streets include:
• Large blocks require more driving to circle a block
• Higher speeds discourage pedestrian activity
• Reduced pedestrian traffic deters business
• Increases emergency response time
• Increases volumes on other streets
• Increases weaving between lanes

As it happens, the one-way artierials of Third and Fourth Streets exhibit all of these disadvantages. Despite posted speed limits, motorists traveling either of these corridors exceed safe speeds routinely. They do indeed cause more driving to navigate the downtown, and whereas Second Street has abundant foot traffic, on Third and Fourth there is very little pedestrian activity, which certainly is bad for the businesses located there.

Part of the problem is that people don't really use these streets as intended, to carry "rush hour" traffic into and out of the downtown at peak demand times. Most people still use Second Street as their primary East/West access/egress venue, resulting in nightmare congestion as people try to make left turns onto Main or Broadway. Clearly, this strategy is a failure, and should be reconsidered.

Downtown Chico has a lot of events that take place on the streets, resulting in frequent street closures. Because Third and Fourth Streets are one-way arterials, this requires whole blocks to be closed down even when they aren't being used for event exhibitors or activities. This takes close-in on-street parking off the game board during these events, increasing parking difficulty at high-demand times.

Curiously, the charrette discussion of one-way vs. two-way configurations never examined Third and Fourth Streets. That discussion was centered on the Main/Broadway couplet, and offered various approaches to reducing both the number of lanes and concommitant speed of vehicles. I have my doubts that these streets will be redesigned as two-way streets (although I think reducing total lanes could help calm traffic), specifically because people do use them as a principal North/South corridor. So I think segregating the traffic on these streets makes sense, but we do have to slow it down. The transition from two lanes southbound on Esplanade and Shasta Way to Broadway invariably results in a "raceway" effect as motorists, perceiving faster traffic flows (incorrectly; the lights are timed for 25 MPH) jockey for position, accelerate unsafely, and imperil pedestrians.

The city's Capital Projects Services Director, Tom Varga, does not believe that reducing the number of lanes on Broadway and Main is a good idea, citing double-parked delivery trucks as impediments to traffic. I agree that they are impediments, but I believe this can be mitigated by restricting access to downtown streets for deliveries to off-peak hours. Why beer truck drivers insist on making their deliveries at the shank of the lunch hour remains a mystery. Certainly their customers have their hands full serving the public at that time, and must find receiving goods at noon quite inconvenient. I think if you restrict deliveries in downtown to before 11 AM, everyone can be well-stocked, and traffic can flow easily, if at a reduced speed, so that motorists can see what delights the downtown offers, and so that pedestrians can enjoy safer surroundings.

Burden concludes that Chico is "head and shoulders above the majority of towns looking for a way to drown themselves by kneeling on both knees or bending over backwards in the fast moving tidal waters." Rejoice, therefore, but let's keep moving in a positive direction.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This week I'm going to ask the question "What if?" In this instance, I'm asking "What if we had a downtown ballpark?" When we examined best practices in other communities, we saw that the construction of a new ballpark in the downtown had a significant economic development impact in San Diego. Of course, Chico doesn't have a major league team, but as a community, we've been pretty supportive of baseball. Having a nationally-ranked team at Chico State has certainly encouraged interest in the national pastime. The Chico Heat, although part of a struggling and ultimately failing Western Baseball League, was enormously popular over the years. The Chico Outlaws, having just won a team record 11 consecutive games, may become as successful at putting backsides in buckets as they've become at winning games.

Nettleton Stadium is a nice ballpark. But it's probably not ideal for the Outlaws, inasmuch as they must share it with the University. Certainly the possibility of including a baseball facility in Meriam Park stems from long-term plans for a dedicated venue for the Outlaws to play. So it's not as though the status quo is indefinitely acceptable.

The photo above shows Nettleton Stadium relocated, through the magic of Photoshop, in downtown Chico. The infield is approximately where the US Bank branch at Second and Wall is currently located. That, and the old laundry building on that angled spur of First Street, would need to be removed, as well as a chunk of Parking Lot 5. The Sierra Central Credit Union is left alone in this fantasy, resulting in a shorter right field than "the Nett" currently has, but that's okay; more home runs. Hey, people like offense.

More importantly, people who attend baseball games have discretionary income to spend on entertainment. What if there were an additional 1500-3000 people in the downtown area an average of fifteen nights per month when the students are gone? What sort of impact would that have on the economy downtown? Right now most games start at around 7 PM, so regular patrons who may not be interested in a steady diet of hot dogs and peanuts might patronize the many restaurants that suffer a huge hit every summer when Chico State is not holding classes. People who are already in the downtown might be inclined to bridge the workday and the ballgame with a happy hour or two. Certainly retailers would be encouraged to stay open until 7 on game days. People who have money to spend on game tickets, souvenirs, and refreshments also have money for apparel, decor, giftware, and especially sporting goods.

With the transit center located a few blocks away, a great many fans could take the B-Line to the game, which is difficult at the current location. Of course, the buses would have to run an hour later than currently, although that's a service that would certainly pay for itself. Alternatively, gametime could be pushed up to 6 PM, since the shade pattern would be more favorable as depicted above. This would make it easier for families with children to enjoy the game, even on a school night, since most games would be over before 9 PM. Probably add some late evening dollars to restaurants' cash boxes.

Some might ask about parking. The lot at Nettleton Stadium has approximately 180 spaces, and seems to be nearly adequate to the purpose. The lot at 2nd and Wall has 173, so it could be argued that that lot, plus the remaining parking west of the stadium in the photo above, would be enough. That said, building the stadium would take a significant number of long-term (10-hour) spaces off the game board, so they'd need to be replaced somewhere. Moreover, it's not as though the game is the only draw in the downtown, particularly with the Thursday Night Market and Friday Night Concerts at the same time as the games. Other entertainment options would likely spring up with so many people leaving the stadium at that time of night, as well.

So realistically, before something like this could happen, investment in new parking facilities would have to happen first. Adding 1500-3000 people to the urban core four nights a week all summer would consume existing capacity and then some. So the real question is "What if we had an additional 500 parking spaces at Second and Wall Streets?"

And the answer is not necessarily "a downtown ballpark". I'm not sure that's the best use of that parcel. But the idea of luring a great many more people into the city center during the summer is certainly a good one, as the Thursday Night Markets and Friday Night Concerts demonstrate. But in order to accomodate them, however they happen to be attracted, more parking will certainly be required.

Posted by Alan Chamberlain at 06:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)