Downtown Planning Study
The Illinois Times released an article this week on a draft study for improving Downtown Springfield and the Mid-Illinois Medical Corridor. Click here to read the story. I am deeply interested in economic development here in Springfield. I have also included a link to the study here. There are study review sessions tonight at 5:30 at the Memorial Learning Center, 228 W. Miller St., Springfield, and tomorrow morning at the Citizen’s Club of Springfield (originally ICON) meeting at 8 AM at the Hoogland Center for the Arts, 420 S. Sixth St., Springfield. I will be attending the Study session at Memorial Learning Center as I have a few questions to have answered before I take a position.
The study does a good job describing the transportation in and out of the Downtown and Medical Corridor areas. It was not updated to include the fact that some streets in Downtown have now been changed to be bi-directional instead of one-way streets. This was a recent change and was one of the recommendations from the study. I liked the fact that the zoning and building use of existing downtown properties was highlighted and the number of surface parking lots were reviewed as well.
The biggest concern I have is that the Sangamon Mass Transit District (SMTD) was not included in the study and didn’t appear to have representation at the brainstorming meetings. The SMTD is indirectly managed by the County Board as it appoints the district trustees. The plan calls for shunting bus routes on 4th Street and 9th Street. I take no issue with 9th Street as the new Hub project is off of 9th Street and the 4 lane with median street can accommodate high traffic. 4th Street cannot. It has been changed to a bi-directional street with a single median and street parking. This means traffic will halt when a bus stops to pick-up and drop off passengers. It is far better to have the busses on 5th and 6th if another north/south pathway for busses is desired other than 9th Street.
The study calls for 2nd 3rd and 7th Streets to be utilized for bicycle transportation. As you know, 3rd Street is slated to be a bike path and pedestrian area as it is too narrow to accommodate vehicle traffic. I object to 2nd Street as this is a MAJOR vehicular street for people entering and leaving the Capital Complex. Given that bicyclists will have free reign on 3rd Street, I do not see the need for 2nd Street to be modified for bicycles with the addition of bike lanes. In fact, the bike lanes will continually be occupied by parked vehicles for loading or unloading equipment or passengers into various state buildings on 2nd Street to the aggravation of bicycle enthusiasts. 7th does have some underutilized space but should that extra space be dedicated to bicycle transit? I don’t believe there is enough demand for all of this and I would prefer 2nd Street be dropped in lieu of making a commitment to making it work on 7th Street.
If you want to make your voice heard on how transit should be improved here in Springfield and Sangamon County, click here to fill out the planning survey.
Posted on 25 Oct 2024, 12:56 - Category: Campaign Platform