Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
CURA applying for a grant to help plan aesthetic and walkability upgrades on Virginia Street East, presumably from the Elk down to Clendenin St. This is sorely needed to enhance pedestrian circulation from the hotels down to the Civic Center/Mall/Auditorium, though the current land use in those couple blocks don't help matters.
There's also a couple blurbs about Phillip Chin (who owns the New China Building) wanting to buy 1212 Quarrier St, Chamberlain Court, and another house to redevelop. I'd be happier if he just got a tenant for the New China Building, but we'll see what happens. Since his proposal wasn't on the agenda, he'll come back next month with a presentation.
That's good news! That is easily the ugliest entrance into downtown. What would really help is putting some trees in there.
That's a much better location. Once Brawley/Slack Plaza is finished, that'll be a perfect spot for the project.
I agree. However, that proposed shinny new apartment building on Capitol would have been awesome! That concept looked great, and it would have certainly made that stretch of street appear more dense.
I agree. However, that proposed shinny new apartment building on Capitol would have been awesome! That concept looked great, and it would have certainly made that stretch of street appear more dense.
The one building I have thought that was misused is the Daniel Boone Hotel. A lot of money went into making it a Class A office building and to be honest, it has not been a good Class B office building. Half of the time the HVAC is out or the elevators are out of commission; this building has serious management issue. But, it would be a good target for condos and the HOA would stabilize the maintenance aspect because residential leases are longer term than are the types of business currently in there.
Personally, I think the best area for residential development downtown is on Hale street and between Capitol and McFarland on Virginia and Quarrier. There are lot of nice high rises in those blocks that could be great living spaces.
IF........and that's a big IF,.........Charleston can get rolling with the new Convention Center, reenergized mall, pedestrian walkways etc, I think a great use for the Daniel Boone is...... OK get ready............."The Westin Daniel Boone". It has great bones and has been a hotel at one point. If they can get the convention business going there could be a need for another high end hotel maybe in another part of downtown closer to the Clay Center and Capitol Street and the banks. It would be cheaper to renovate than a ground up build, would put the current tenants into other office space in downtown and would be a jewel on Capitol closer to the Capitol Market and the CBD. Westin likes these rehab projects. Pittsburgh's Westin is in the old William Penn Hotel.....equally as historic and opulent.
Thanks for the interesting article links, ELewis7! Is Kanawha Blvd to some extent more of a free-flow urban bypass than a stop-and-go urban road?
Much more so. Besides right around Haddad downtown, and maybe the Capitol, you can go long stretches without having to stop at a light. It really is a pleasant little drive, but it can be a better holistic public thoroughfare, IMO.
But you still feel it is the kind of road those studies mean when they talk about narrower being safer?
For me, undoubtedly. The posted speed limit is 40 mph, but many people go well above that because of the relatively sparse traffic, compensating for the increased stoppage through downtown, and the build of the road that makes it conducive for faster speeds.
So you have a road, especially on the West Side, that isn't as functionally necessary in its current configuration (thanks to MacCorkle on the other side of the river, the Interstate, and most importantly, the decreased population) that poses a threat to pedestrians crossing the street and other users. A narrowing of the lanes will force drivers to pay more attention to the road and, in turn, will cause a subconscious calming of speeds (to a degree). Any reduction of speeding and a heightened environmental awareness of drivers is a boon to safety across the board.
One question of safety, however, would be the loss of the median. Its proposed removal is double-edged: you remove it and get extra space for the bike lanes while retaining parking on the north side of the road for most of its length. However, now you increase the chance of collisions without that barrier, plus then there would be no pedestrian refuge for (albeit technically illegal) mid-block crossings. But retaining the parking has its benefits beyond a place to park - it acts as a physical barrier between sidewalk users and vehicles as well as helping to buffer noise from passing cars.
So do the benefits outweigh the costs in this scenario? Where are you prioritizing safety and efficiency? I'm not sure; I'm not a traffic planner and, admittedly, I'm not a daily user of that stretch of the Boulevard. I will say that I was a proponent of reducing the number of lanes altogether, keeping both the parking and the median, and still having plenty of space for the bike lanes, but there was absolutely no way that was going to fly with Council and other decision-makers.
Last edited by elewis7; 01-18-2017 at 06:46 AM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
