Taking Back the Streets

Eli Sanders wrote about this a while back, but I think it's something thats been on many of our minds. Inaugaration Day and Snowpacalypse gave us all an opportunity to wander on foot the sacred cement usually reserved for those on wheels. Slowly, quietly. It inspired something within us. Opened our eyes to the realization of how much space in our city is devoted solely to the use of automobiles. Just imagine all the wonderful spatial creativity we could have without a system based around cars!

Now, the sporadic events that led to these conclusions can't be forced. But as the sun comes out and the Cascadian Summer approaches, there are a number of ways in which we can make our city a little more pedestrian friendly.

* Repair an Intersection: The CD did it. Wallingford mastered it. I think it's about time Capitol Hill displayed some of its quirky culture in paint form on the street. If you have an idea but don't know where to start, check out this handy guide to painting your street. (If anyone is serious about doing this, let me know.)

* Unpave Paradise: Right now the corner of Summit and John is a big old parking lot. But not for long! The people at Unpaving Paradise have big plans for a pretty park and a number of P-Patches. See what you can do to help make sure this becomes a reality!

*Throw a Block Party: The city has waived all fees for throwing block parties. So all you need to do is pull out the BBQ, tell the neighbors, fill out an application, and you've got yourself a genuine street party!

These are just a few examples of things you can do. To find out how to make an even bigger impact join the Seattle Great City Initiative for its Streets For People Campaign Kickoff! (Full disclosure: I'm their intern). This event will be an excellent opportunity to find out and connect with all the projects and ideas floating around on how to improve Seattle's streets. As well, there will be a great talk by Renee Espaiu from the NYC Streets Renaissance on what New York has done and how they did it. The event is free and guaranteed to be awesome! Unfortunately you will have to venture off the hill to participate:

When: 5-7 p.m., Thursday, February 12

Where: Armory at Lake Union Park, 860 Terry Ave N. [map]