Denver Living Streets

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Living Streets Initiative in the news

Amy Allen of the Washington Park Profile profiles the Living Streets Initiative and reports on the city’s nascent Multimodal Access and Connectivity Plan, which will examine how the on- and off-street bicycle and pedestrian network provides connectivity and access to key destinations such as parks and recreation centers, schools, neighborhoods, commercial and employment districts, and transit centers. (1/10)

Margaret Jackson of the Denver Post reports on the Living Streets market opportunity study conducted by Progressive Urban Management Associates and funded by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, noting that “cities that have adopted similar policies have seen significant economic impact on both commercial and residential real estate.” (10/13/09)

The Denver Post editorial board and columnist Vincent Carroll suggest that living streets are not appropriate for Denver, writing that the initiative “may be a dead end” (11/14/09) that will merely result in more “traffic jams” (10/15/09). See if you can follow the editorial board’s reasoning and let them know what you think.

In a guest op-ed, Living Streets Task Force Chair Dr. Eric France responds to the Denver Post editorial board, writing that “we have a choice for the future of our public roads and our cities: more of what we have today, or we can work to build an alternative solution.” (12/02/09)

Denver Infill webmaster Ken Schroeppel responds to the Post editorials on his blog, saying the newspaper’s position “boils down to: we're all for fixing the problem as long as the solution doesn't affect what's causing the problem.” (11/22/09)

Peter Marcus of the Denver Daily News reports on the initiative’s relationship to the City’s new zoning code, observing that after Colfax Avenue was rezoned to a Main Street District, “there has been a surge in small boutiques and restaurants—all highlighting the possibilities that lie within [roadway] redesigns and rezoning.” (6/08/09)

Laura Lieff of the Glendale-Cherry Creek Chronicle reports on the US EPA-assembled team of consultants looking at Leetsdale Drive under the Smart Growth Implementation Assistance awarded to the initiative, noting that local businesses hope to “raise the bar” on Leetsdale. (1/09)

Nick Carter of 9News and Ernie Tucker of Examiner.com report on “Travel Like Me Day,” an interactive event run by the Denver Office of Disability Rights, an initiative partner agency, to promote awareness of the mobility and accessibility challenges everyday life in Denver can pose for the physically disabled. 9News interviewed Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. (10/08)

Nick Carter of 9News reports on the launching of the Living Streets Initiative and interviews Task Force Co-Chair Dr. Eric France (9/08)

National News

The Streetsblog Network is focused on sustainable transportation, smart growth and livable streets issues and compiles the best postings from more than 300 blogs across the country and beyond. Bike Denver is the Denver affiliate of the Streetsblog Network.

The National Complete Streets Coalition monthly newsletter, is a round-up of updates on federal, state, and local complete streets policies, other news from the campaign and across the country, and a summary of resources.

Follow the daily battles on reauthorization of the federal transportation bill on the Transportation for America campaign blog. T4America is a broad coalition seeking to align national, state, and local transportation policies with an array of issues like economic opportunity, climate change, energy security, health, housing and community development.

The Infrastructurist is a blog containing the latest news of interest to transportation enthusiasts.

“Complete streets” program gives more room for pedestrians, cyclists (USA Today. 7/29/07)

Our Ailing Communities: Public-health advocate Dr. Richard Jackson argues that the way we build cities and neighborhoods is the source of many chronic diseases (Metropolis Magazine, 10/11/006)