This is one of those things that SOUNDS great at first, but really starts to fray after some thought and reflection.<br><br>Valencia and Mission, although a block apart, are as different as night and day. Valencia has trendy shops, cafes, strolling foot traffic, underground streetlamps, and stores generally stay in their boundaries. It feels cleaner, feels safer, and is an inviting place to read a book, people watch, and hang out. People are generally there because they choose to be there. It is the current boundary of gentrification... which has steadily moved east from Church Street, the demarcation line 20+ years ago.<br>
<br>Mission, is far different, and-- stepping back and thinking it through for a second-- is quite different. First, what is around us? An SRO across the street, a vacant building, and a Pentecostal Church that seems to be visited by the cops more often than Jesus. We a have a store downstairs that spills out onto an already overcrowded sidewalk, a bus stop, and people passed out on the sidewalk. People are there because they have to be-- either waiting for the bus, going on their way to do their business, or because they live there and have no better place to be. Look at people's faces as they walk down it vs. Valencia; they say "I'm on my way, I coming through" vs. "Let's linger and browse and check things out." Mission is DIRTY, crowded and feels unsafe. It's not a cafe/parklet/strolling kind of street, it's urban chaos & congestion. It's buses, trucks (LOTS of trucks), and spit from the fire escape.<br>
<br>This would be an interesting experiment, particularly as it would pull Noisebridge out from behind its gates and force it to be a more integral part of the neighborhood and involved in the world around it. However, given location, location, location... I think it is an idea that is just a little before it's time and one that deserves a bit more percolating than rushing to apply in the next two weeks. Has anyone even talked to the grocery store downstairs? If so or when they do, I hope they'll update here.<br>
<br>Now a roof garden like Medjool or the public one at Crocker Plaza? Absolutely! :-)<br><br><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Sat, Nov 19, 2011 at 5:43 PM, miloh <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:froggytoad@gmail.com">froggytoad@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">re: this parklet. obviously doesn't have to be in the yellow zones outside nb, there are regular metered parking zones out there too... perhaps it could be a partner project, I think that's an interesting idea to explore...<div>
<br></div><div>and also, yup, there are lots of parklets on Valencia... and in San Francisco. <div><br></div><div>anyone have photos of all of them? whats the best place to look for a consolidated photo pool of the parklet....</div>
<div><br></div><div>some links about sf parklets:<br><div><br></div><div><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212798053680911513793.0004955d73950fdbb6356&msa=0&ll=37.700664,-122.35611&spn=0.380299,0.681152" target="_blank">http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212798053680911513793.0004955d73950fdbb6356&msa=0&ll=37.700664,-122.35611&spn=0.380299,0.681152</a></div>
<div><br></div><div><a href="http://spur.org/blog/2011-07-12/mapping-parklet-craze-where-see-urban-design-trend-year" target="_blank">http://spur.org/blog/2011-07-12/mapping-parklet-craze-where-see-urban-design-trend-year</a></div>
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</div><div><a href="http://sfgreatstreets.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ParkletStudy_InitialConditions.pdf" target="_blank">http://sfgreatstreets.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ParkletStudy_InitialConditions.pdf</a></div>
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<div><a href="http://sfgreatstreets.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ParkletStudy_InitialConditions.pdf" target="_blank">http://sfgreatstreets.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/ParkletStudy_InitialConditions.pdf</a></div></div>
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