Reimagining the Right of Way: Designing Streets as Environmental and Economic Assets for Active Living and Healthy Environments

Transcription

1 Reimagining the Right of Way: Designing Streets as Environmental and Economic Assets for Active Living and Healthy Environments Nathan Polanski, PE SvR Design Company 0 Second Ave, Suite 00 Seattle, WA 0 Ph: (0) -0 Fax: (0) -0 nathanp@svrdesign.com Total Word Count: Abstract word count: Text word count: References word count: Number of tables: (0 words) Number of figures: (0 words) Submission Date: November, 0 Submitted to for presentation and publication Sponsoring Committee: AFB0 Landscape and Environmental Design Addressing Key Landscape and Environmental Design Concerns in Transportation

2 N. Polanski Page 0 0 Reimagining the Right of Way: Designing Streets as Environmental and Economic Assets for Active Living and Healthy Environments ABSTRACT The public right of way has long been viewed as a space to move cars and a conduit for utilities. Traditional roadway practices have focused on maintaining vehicular levels of service, often at the cost of the pedestrian realm, and applying standard sections with little consideration for the context of the street or the community. However, this approach is changing as communities recognize the value and opportunity that exist within the public right of way and along our transportation corridors, and become involved as stakeholders during the design process. Community driven transportation projects are remaking streets in cities of all sizes and new best practices are being implemented to reclaim and activate underutilized right of way. As a result, public right of ways are increasingly recognized as environmental and economic assets that support active living and healthy environments The Federal Highway Administration acknowledges this shift in its Livability Initiative, which recommends design considerations such as complete streets, context sensitive approaches, green infrastructure, and sustainable roadway design. A core principle of FHWA s Context Sensitive Solutions approach is to exercise flexibility and creativity to shape effective transportation solutions, while preserving and enhancing community and natural environments. This paper explores three case studies across varying street classifications, scales, and land uses to see how program needs and design approaches initiated the reallocation of space within the right of way to benefit all users and achieve social, economic and environmental goals within an existing transportation network.

3 N. Polanski Page INTRODUCTION The design of our city s streets follows the guidance of AASHTO s Green Book, A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets. The Green Book dives deep on technical details but its foundation lies in the guidance to provide engineers and designers flexibility to create unique design solutions that meet the needs of the street while maintaining the integrity of the environment (). With rising year over year trends in bicycling and walking, including a percent increase in walking and biking trips between 00 and 00 (), the design criteria for streets is changing. Past vehicle-centric design standards targeting safety do not apply for non-motorized users (). To address this change communities are adopting Complete Street policies and implementing design solutions that change the way we view and use streets. The Green Book also notes that streets should serve as a catalyst for environmental improvement and that landscaping should mitigate the many nuisances associated with urban traffic and make streets better neighbors (). However, polluted stormwater from streets is recognized as a major contributor to nonpoint source pollution. In the Pacific Northwest stormwater from streets and urban areas is the biggest single source of pollution in the Puget Sound, and within the Chesapeake Bay watershed stormwater is the fastest growing source of pollution. To respond to and mitigate this environmental degradation cities across the country (Portland, San Francisco, Chicago, Kansas City, Austin, New York, and Philadelphia) are adopting and implementing Green Streets. Green Streets integrate green stormwater infrastructure facilities to manage stormwater runoff within the public right of way. These facilities intercept, treat, attenuate, infiltrate, and/or evaporate stormwater runoff. Typical strategies for use along streets include bioretention cells, permeable pavements, and trees. Bioretention cells temporarily pond stormwater runoff and use plants and soil to filter the runoff, either infiltrating or slowing the flows before they enter water bodies or the public sewer system. Permeable pavements reduce the effective imperviousness of a street and allow stormwater to infiltrate into the ground. In addition to the environmental benefits of green streets these facilities can also contribute to an inviting streetscape and pedestrian realm. Unfortunately, the core principles of the Green Book aimed at providing flexibility and protecting the environment often goes overlooked or unrealized in practice. Guidelines and manuals adopted at state and local levels focus heavily on car-oriented design standards with too little mention of context. However, there has been a resurgence to unglue practices of the 0th century, which separated the mobility function from the economic and social functions, restoring the overlapping functions of urban streets (). The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Urban Street Design Guide provides discussion and guidance for accommodating an expanding set of needs for streets, highlighting: streets as public spaces, their impact on businesses, designing for safety of all users, and recognizing streets as ecosystems (). The following pages explore three case studies for designing streets as environmental, economic and community assets. The context of each corridor is introduced to establish project needs and frame the design approach. Key elements of the design are described to understand how each street was designed to respond to the context and needs of the corridor and achieve project goals. The outcomes of each project are also discussed in terms of the street as a transportation corridor and economic and environmental asset. Table provides a summary of the existing and proposed streets characteristics and elements for each street.

4 N. Polanski Page TABLE : EXISTING AND PROPOSED STREET CHARACTERISTICS st Street Winslow Way Bell Street Corridor Character Neighborhood Downtown Commercial Downtown Main Street Commercial Street Access Project length 0. miles 0. miles 0. miles ( blocks) ( blocks) ( blocks) Project area. acres. acres. acres Functional Street Classification Collector Minor Arterial Local Posted Traffic Speed mph 0 mph mph % Traffic Speed mph not available not available ROW Width 0' ' ' Curb to cutb width ' ' ' No of Travel Lanes and Avg. Width, ', ', Varies ' On street parking type and dimension % of R/W dedicated to vehicular surface parallel, both sides; ' width (striped) pull in angle, both sides; ' depth (striped) parallel and pull in angle; ' width parallel, ' depth angle % % % Sidewalk locations and width Partial, both sides; ' Continuous, both sides; ' Continuous, both sides; ' Avg. Clear Sidewalk ' ' ' ' Bicycle Facilities None None Shared Lane Markings Transit Route No Yes Yes Existing Street Trees Existing Tree Pit Area None, pavement to base ' planting strip of trees ' x ' Water Quality Treatment Facilities None None % of R/W dedicated to vehicular surface % Traffic Speed % (0% reduction from existing) mph ( mph reduction) % (% reduction from existing) mph (anecdotally slower) Downstream sewer treatment plant % (0% reduction from existing) Data not available (anecdotally slower) Avg. Clear Sidewalk ' ' ' Bicycle Facilities, Proposed Bike Lanes Bike Lanes and Shared Lane Markings Shared Street Total Street Trees 0 Soil volume strategies for trees and typical volume Structural Soil; expanded planting area Suspended pavement system; expanded planting area Structural Soil; expanded planting area Water Quality Treatment Facilities Daylit creek channel, bioretention cells Bioretention cells, permeable pavement N/A (downstream treatment plant)

5 N. Polanski Page CASE STUDY ST STREET, PASO ROBLES, CA Context Paso Robles' existing street network, established in the 0 s along the Southern Pacific Railroad and Salinas River, is comprised of 00 foot long blocks that provide an ideal setting for pedestrian activity. Within this network st Street is a collector street. From a transportation perspective the street is one of only four railroad crossings in north Paso Robles, an access point for the California Mid-State fairgrounds, and a key connection between a local school and city park. The street is also a commercial corridor providing access to local businesses. When the city was platted, the alignment for st Street followed the path of the historic Mountain Springs Creek, a drainage course for 00 acres of west Paso Robles that discharged to the Salinas River. When the street replaced the creek no drainage infrastructure was installed. As the city grew and upstream lands developed, the burden for conveying runoff through st Street increased, and large storms frequently flooded the street, caused erosion, and created traffic hazards. The aim for a reconstructed st Street is twofold: improve safety and access for all users of the street and address historical drainage problems along the corridor. The existing two lane street did not have continuous sidewalks on either side of the street, had no bicycle facilities, and had wide travel lanes that encouraged speeds in excess of the posted speed limit. In addition, the street had no storm drainage infrastructure but had to function as the conveyance path for the upstream drainage basin. What became apparent early in the design process were the overlapping benefits that could be achieved by applying Complete Street and Green Street design principles. During project planning the project team worked with city staff and community and business stakeholders to develop the following complete and green street project goals, which were used to guide the development of the design: Reduce the th percentile speed of vehicles by 0% No increase in traffic accidents Increase pedestrian and bicycle miles traveled by 00% by 0 Capture and infiltrate runoff from 0% of storm events Maintain existing trees and establish at least 0 new street trees Increase cumulative value of properties fronting st Street by 0% Design Approach Examining the existing street cross section revealed opportunities to reallocate right of way to improve existing uses and incorporate new uses. Figure depicts the typical cross section of the 0 foot right of way and foot curb to curb pavement width. Two items that stand out in this cross section are the width of the existing travel lanes ( feet) and the unrealized potential of the right of way at the back of sidewalk. By reducing travel lanes to an foot width, consistent with the city s Specific Plan, and building out to the full right of way, feet of right of way became available for other uses. To reimagine st Street as a complete street the first move was to complete and widen existing sidewalks to a provide a foot minimum clear path and incorporate on-street bike lanes. This reallocation provided nonmotorized facilities while the additional layering of traffic calming elements, such as curb bulbs, crosswalk striping, in-pavement crosswalk lighting, and signage, resulted in a successful complete street. The next task was to provide storm drain infrastructure for the redesigned street and upstream drainage basin. The city s Storm Drain Master Plan called for a inch diameter storm drain pipe to convey stormwater through the corridor. The drain pipe was sized to convey the peak flow rate from a year storm event, equivalent to cubic feet per second. Recognizing that st Street had been a natural stream corridor, the project team prepared a hydraulic report to evaluate the space that would be required to daylight the storm drain pipe and reintroduce a creek channel into the public right of way. Through an iterative process that

6 N. Polanski Page 0 evaluated various channel depths, side slopes, and roughness coefficients a channel cross section (Figure ) was identified that could fit within the available right of way. Two locations were identified for the creek channel: along one side of the street or down the middle of the street, similar to a roadway median. The center location was preferred by the City and project stakeholders as it provided additional traffic calming along the corridor by reducing the usable width of the street. This location also separated polluted runoff on st Street from the stormwater being conveyed through the corridor from the upstream drainage basin. Additionally, with adjustments to the geometry of the typical channel cross section the project team was able to integrate street trees into the center channel. Center median trees would complement street trees along the sidewalk zone to provide vertical elements along both sides of the travel lanes, reducing the optical width of the roadway (physical relationship between the width of the road and the height of adjacent street trees/buildings) and reinforcing traffic calming goals (Figure ). To facilitate healthy street trees structural soil was used beneath the sidewalk to increase rooting soil available for new street trees while maintaining foot clear sidewalk widths. FIGURE Existing and proposed typical street cross sections.

7 N. Polanski Page 0 Having established the typical cross section the project team evaluated the corridor s plan layout for opportunities to integrate complete and green street best practices. Curb bulbs were integrated at each intersection along the corridor to shorten pedestrian crossings, improve sight distances, and provide additional traffic calming. However, rather than designing the curb bulbs as at-grade planting areas the curb bulbs were designed as bioretention cells. Breaks in the curb, in line with the gutter were used to direct surface runoff into the bioretention cells. The bioretention cells, ranging in size from SF to SF, were designed and sized to treat stormwater by infiltrating runoff for 0 percent of the annual average rainfall from contributing pavement areas. The design infiltration rate of in-situ soils was determined early in the design process so that bioretention areas could be designed to mitigate contributing drainage areas. 0 FIGURE Constructed center median channel section with cobble bottom and street trees. Bioretention cells were located along st Street and its intersecting streets. To integrate with adjacent pedestrian facilities the cells were designed with a maximum inch depth,.: side slopes, and foot bench along the sidewalk (Figure ). Along the street side of the bioretention cells a concrete curb or vertical plastic liner was installed and extended to the bottom of the pavement section to prevent water from migrating into and impacting the pavement subbase. Native, drought tolerant plants were selected for plantings to reduce long term maintenance and operations costs.

8 N. Polanski Page 0 0 FIGURE Typical bioretention cell detail. Outcomes Using a Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) design approach the project team reallocated right of way to successfully achieve complete and green street project goals. The project was completed in spring 0 and while post-construction data is limited early returns indicate the project may achieve each of its goals. After six months the th percentile speed has dropped mph (.%) and the street has had no traffic accidents. The City has not conducted pedestrian and bicycle counts, however, anecdotal evidence suggests an increase in both uses along the corridor. The project planted new streets trees and green stormwater facilities have contributed to less frequent and severe street flooding as well as increased sediment removal from upstream drainage basins. A majority of st Street lies within FEMA s 00 year floodplain boundary and the city hopes the new urban creek channel will aid in the redrawing of floodplain boundaries increasing property values. The project was awarded the 0 project of the year award from California s Central Coast Chapter of the American Public Works Association. In the years to follow it will be important to gather additional data to track the long-term success of the project.

9 N. Polanski Page CASE STUDY WINSLOW WAY, BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, WA Context Bainbridge Island is a small city located a -minute ferry ride from downtown Seattle in the heart of the Puget Sound. At the center of Bainbridge Island, only a five minute walk from the ferry is Winslow Way, a minor arterial, the city s downtown main street and vibrant business community, and an important transportation corridor. As a main street, Winslow Way is the heart of its community and an important economic center. The existing street functioned adequately for motorized vehicles but had narrow, inaccessible sidewalks, no bicycle facilities, and few healthy trees or landscape areas. When the city identified aging utility infrastructure in need of replacement along Winslow Way (water distribution, sanitary sewer, and storm sewer), it recognized the opportunity to remake downtown. The city also wanted to take measures to improve the water quality of Eagle Harbor, the downstream receiving waters that provide an important function for native habitat and recreational activities. Reconstructing Winslow Way was about providing a streetscape that balanced the competing needs of all users and uses in the right of way. The streetscape needed to maintain levels of service for motorized vehicles and transit, maintain on-street parking and delivery access, improve access for pedestrians and bicyclists, and provide opportunities for community gathering. It was also important the street character reflected the community s values and protected the natural environment. To achieve this balance a CSS design approach was used to target design strategies that provided for multiple uses and users along the corridor. Design Approach The existing foot right of way, bound by zero lot line developments, was dominated by asphalt pavement and a foot curb to curb pavement width. This pavement width generously accommodated motorized vehicles and allowed for unimpeded delivery and loading access in the middle of the street. However, it limited sidewalk widths to. feet including utility poles, signage, car overhangs, and other street furnishings (Figure ). Given the Main Street business context the first goal for reallocating right of way was to expand the area available for pedestrian use. Reducing travel and parking lanes, the curb to curb width was reduced to feet, allowing sidewalks to be increased to feet. To realize efficiencies in the geometric layout of on-street parking the project team consulted a publication that considered land-use, parking turnover, and street type to see that parking stall depths and widths were appropriately sized for context (), rather than following standard parking guidelines, which seemed to oversize stalls and adjacent lane widths. While the corridor was a popular bicycle destination, on-street bicycle facilities were not prioritized because of the limited right of way available; instead travel lanes included shared lane markings to provide traffic calming and take advantage of the existing 0 mph posted speed limit. The project team proposed to change pull-in angle parking to back-in angle parking, recognized for its safety advantages along heavily used bicycle routes, but did not due to community concerns. A unique feature of the existing street was that the north side of the street was one to two feet higher in elevation than the south side of the street. The existing street section accommodated this feature with an offset crown and steep cross slopes across the travel and parking lanes. The project team regraded the street, eliminating the crown, and sloping the entire roadway to the lower side. This configuration improved access, minimized cross slopes from curb to curb, and simplified storm drainage collection. The simplified storm drainage collection was important because green stormwater infrastructure was proposed, and consolidating infrastructure to one side of the street minimized impacts from integrating bioretention cells into the sidewalk zone. To further offset impacts from bioretention facilities the lower (south) sidewalk was increased to feet and the higher (north) sidewalk was reduced to 0 feet, allowing minimum foot clear sidewalk widths along both sides of the street. Figure shows the final cross section including the integrated drainage infrastructure.

10 N. Polanski Page 0 FIGURE Existing and proposed typical street cross sections. With the typical cross section established, the project team evaluated the plan layout for additional opportunities to expand the pedestrian realm and improve accessibility. To improve accessibility existing intersections and mid-block crosswalks were regraded to provide maximum two percent cross slopes following the guidance of the draft 00 Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines (). To expand the pedestrian realm the main strategy focused on reclaiming underutilized space from the parking lane where the typical cross section did not apply (e.g. along driveways and at alley entrances) and reclaim valuable space that otherwise had little value (i.e. cars did not have space to park and pedestrians no amenities or protection). Similar to the redesign of complex intersections to create public plazas, the transitions zones along the parking lane at crosswalks, driveways, and alleys were transformed to create small gathering areas enhanced with seating, lighting, bicycle parking, and planting (Figure ). In general, the following approach was used to facilitate this transformation:. At driveways, crosswalks and intersections the sidewalk was expanded by feet to include the parking lane. Two percent cross slopes were maintained across this expanded area to facilitate pedestrian use, rather than match varying cross slopes from the thrown street.

11 N. Polanski Page 0 0. The expanded sidewalk was also extended longitudinally along the street to reclaim space in the parking lane not available for on-street parking due to turning movements and sight distances.. Curbs, typically used to define driveways, curb bulbs, and changes to roadside geometry, were eliminated and replaced with graded planting areas and site furnishings, which defined the expanded pedestrian areas, provided a permeability at the edges of the space, and maintained access and flexibility.. Pavement finishes for the expanded pedestrian zone, including scoring, texture and color, were selected to match the sidewalk, signifying the priority towards pedestrian instead of infrequent vehicular movements.. Individual expanded pedestrian zones were then designed specifically for their location including the selection and layout of seating, site furnishings and plantings. 0 FIGURE Example of expanded pedestrian zone at driveway. This reallocation of space created 0 seating areas, ranging in size from 0 to 0 square feet, along the,000 linear foot downtown core that became gathering spaces to support the vision of a community street. The layering of green stormwater infrastructure provided an additional element that supported complete street goals, enhanced the pedestrian experience, and successfully transformed the streetscape into an environmental asset. Stormwater planters (bioretention cells with vertical walls) were integrated into the lower sidewalk to treat polluted runoff from the street (Figure ). The location, length, width, depth, edge condition, and plant selection for each stormwater planter were designed to integrate into the pedestrian environment, including bridge crossings that maintained access between the parking lane and sidewalk. A four inch vertical edge was provided along the edges of the planters to act as border along pedestrian paths. A larger bioretention cell, with

12 N. Polanski Page 0 side slopes instead of vertical walls, was integrated into the parking lane at the low point of the corridor and combined with a larger gathering area to highlight the community and environmental goals. Specially designed street tree pits were incorporated into the parking lane near the travel lane rather than the sidewalk, to visually reduce the width of the street and provide additional roadside friction for slowing motorized vehicles. To maximize the soil volume available for the trees, each tree was planted in a suspended pavement system that allowed the tree to be backfilled with loosely compacted soil that supported tree rooting (Figure ). Pervious concrete pavement was used on top of the suspended pavement system to facilitate water and air into the tree root area. This design allowed opportunities for large canopy, healthy street trees, and also functioned as a green stormwater facility by treating runoff that passed through the system via the pervious concrete. 0 0 FIGURE Detail of suspended pavement system and stormwater planter. Outcomes The impact of the reconstructed street has been significant in terms of the community, environmental, and economic goals. Traffic speeds through the downtown core have decreased. All stormwater runoff from pavement areas is treated in accordance with the Washington State Department of Ecology Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington (). Although the city does not track tax returns separately for its main street, anecdotal evidence from local business owners indicates a rise in business since the completion of the project. An article in Sunset Magazine s June 0 publication highlighted the streetscape improvements and noted that a local chef and business owner had opened a second business with outdoor seating to take advantage of the new wider sidewalks that allowed for outdoor seating. In 0 the project was selected Best City Project by the FHWA and the Washington State Department of Transportation and Dan Burden, a consultant with the Walkable and Livable Communities Institute called Winslow Way one of the best remade streets I ve seen anywhere in America.

13 N. Polanski Page 0 CASE STUDY BELL STREET, SEATTLE, WA Context Bell Street is located in Seattle s Belltown neighborhood, a unique area that links the city s waterfront, Pike Place Market, downtown, and Seattle Center. The neighborhood land uses are a mix of downtown commercial, office, and high density residential. As a downtown commercial access street, bus route, and a main point of entry for bicyclists into downtown Seattle the street is also a transportation corridor. The city s open space goals target seven acres of open space for Belltown. However, in 00 the neighborhood had just one half-acre dog park. Recognizing this gap the city decided to create new open space and improve the livability of Belltown by converting four blocks (. acres) of Bell Street into an urban park to be managed by city s parks department. The goal was to transform Bell Street into an urban park-like corridor that could be be used for festivals, markets, concerts, and other community events. However, the one-way street had to maintain its function within the downtown street network. To accommodate the varying expected uses the flexibility of the street became a critical design element.

14 N. Polanski Page FIGURE Aerial image and cross section of existing condition along Bell Street. Design Approach The existing foot right of way was typical of nearby downtown commercial access streets. Each intersection of the corridor had a traffic signal and the street had two, foot travel lanes, on-street parallel parking, and foot sidewalk zones (Figure ). Although several bus routes passed through the corridor there were no bus stops within the four block project area and both travel lanes included shared lane markings for bicyclists. Two opportunities were identified from this typical section to reallocate space and create flexibility. The first was recognized in a traffic model that showed the elimination of one travel lane could be offset with capacity on adjacent streets. The second reconfigured and eliminated some of the existing on-street parking. These opportunities established performance requirements for vehicular transportation and allowed the project team to explore design moves to establish the urban park-like setting (Figure ). The first move to establish an urban park-like setting was the elimination of curbing along the street. To do this the roadway was reconstructed level with the sidewalk, similar to a shared street or woonerf; a woonerf is a Dutch term meaning living street that prioritizes pedestrians and cyclists over vehicular traffic. While nonmotorized users weren t given priority along Bell Street this shift in the pavement plane provided flexibility in the street cross section. It also removed a characteristic typically associated with a street. The second move targeted the pavement. While many streets distinguish between vehicular and pedestrian areas through material changes (asphalt street vs. concrete sidewalk) and/or the scale of pavement (concrete street panels vs. pedestrian scale concrete scoring) the pavement design for Bell Street approached the street as if it were a plaza. The scoring of the entire pavement surface was constructed on a two foot square grid to relate to the pedestrian scale. The scoring was also twisted degrees from the centerline, lessening the feeling of a corridor and encouraging paths of travel other than those along the street. Pavement coloring was also used to both define and blur the lines between pedestrian and vehicular uses depending on the use of the street. The third move rethought the alignment of the travel lane. Lateral shifts, or chicanes, were incorporated into the street to provide traffic calming along the corridor. One to two shifts were incorporated along each of the four blocks and the shifts followed the degree scoring pattern of the pavement. This : taper was more aggressive than conventional lane shifts but coupled with the other design moves provided effective traffic calming along the street. No pavement striping or markings were used on the street, relying instead on the pavement design, while also reinforcing the aesthetic of an urban park when the street is closed for events. The lane shift and elimination of some on-street parking also created opportunities for wider sidewalks that supported seating and gathering areas.

15 N. Polanski Page. RECLAIM. ALIGNMENT. ELEVATE. BLUR. TWIST. PLANT FIGURE Graphic representation of key design moves used to recreate Bell Street.

16 N. Polanski Page 0 The fourth move carved out large planting areas between the travel lane and sidewalk zones. The planting areas added to the park-like setting and provided large soil volumes to maximize growth opportunities for new street trees. Structural soil was also used to allow street trees to be located near the edge of pavement without restricting root growth while also providing an element of traffic calming. Outcomes Bell Street Park was officially opened in spring 0. At the time of this writing post-construction traffic volumes and speeds were not available. However, it appears that both the traffic volume and speeds have been reduced. The city s parks department has closed one or more blocks along Bell Street for festivals and other public events several times this spring and summer (Figure ). Recognizing the economic potential of the new street, a restaurant owner coordinated with the project team to reconfigure the sidewalk and planting layout along its building frontage to provide outdoor seating, similar to a parklet. Interviews with neighbors, business owners, and commuters indicate the flexibility of the street is successfully providing for a variety of users and uses ().

17 N. Polanski Page FIGURE Aerial image of Bell Street park in normal use and closed for street festival.

18 N. Polanski Page CONCLUSION What makes each of these projects successful is the process and context with which they were designed. Working closely with community stakeholders each project recognized the unique elements that made them places for people, provided opportunities to transform the local economy, and worked to mitigate environmental impacts. Project stakeholders, including business and property owners, were identified during project planning to define core project principles and were consulted at various stages of the project to see that core project principles were applied and evaluated throughout the design process. Although there is a lack of quantitative data to support traditional transportation driven outcomes (travel speeds, crash data, traffic volumes, etc.) each of the reconstructed streets is recognized as an asset within its communities. (Note: It is the author s hope that in years to follow additional data can be obtained to document the efficacy of each project.) A second element that must be highlighted is how every design move was evaluated for its ability to provide for multiple uses. While public right of ways can make up to 0 percent or more of urban areas, individual right of ways rarely have space to provide for all of the competing demands. Uses must be prioritized and also layered to balance needs and allowing designers to fit 0 pounds of stuff into a 0 pound bag. The last element to evaluate is the process for funding these projects, which create such significant impacts on our environments and communities. Public works budgets for local and state agencies have seen significant reductions in recent years as well as backlog of maintenance costs. Each case study integrated new best practices and innovative infrastructure that required a clear cost understanding for long term operations. In each instance the project teams worked closely with the owners and operations and maintenance staff to identify design constraints and design details that would facilitate maintenance for the life of the project. The construction funding for each project also reflects the creativity to which agencies look for project funding. The City of Paso Robles worked with the State Water Board to transfer a fine for an illicit discharge from the city s sanitary sewer plant to fund the concept plan for st Street that was then used in an application for a State Urban Greening Grant that funded final engineering and construction. Winslow Way was funded with a combination of funds including a state sustainability grant, federal funding, and donation from the two largest property owners along the corridor. Bell Street was funded through a voter approved parks and green spaces levy.

19 N. Polanski Page 0 REFERENCES. AASHTO A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, th Edition, 0.. The National Bicycling and Walking Study: Year Status Report, Federal Highway Administration, Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, May 00. McCann, Barbara, Completing Our Streets, Island Press, 0.. ITE Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach, 00.. National Association of City Transportation Officials Urban Street Design Guide, 0.. Childs, Mark C., Parking Spaces: A Design, Implementation, and Use Manual for Architects, Planners, and Engineers, McGraw-Hill, January.. US Access Board Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines, Draft 00.. ashington State Department of Ecology Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington, February 00.. Gaydos, Tim, How useful is Bell Street Park, actually?, Accessed July, 0.