Steve Patterson
Recent Posts
A Look At Kansas City’s New Modern Streetcar
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Last week leaders in the St. Louis region argued publicly over future pubic transit: St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay has made clear his support for a north-south MetroLink expansion, saying it’s a top priority in his final year in office. But a recent push for money to plan such a ...
17th Street Connects Locust, Olive, Pine, Chestnut, and Market to Washington Ave
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For years now I’ve tried to end the week on a positive note, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult for me to be optimistic about St. Louis’ future. Today is the final vote on BB64 to give public land to a developer, cutting off others from Washington Ave. The following image ...
Poor/Inconsistent Pedestrian Experience: 18th Street & Olive Street
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I thought I was done pointing out glaringly bad intersections for pedestrians, but on Saturday I went through one that was odd. Yesterday I returned to study. Usually when I cross Olive Street at 18th I do so on the East side of 18th. Though I’ve lived nearby for over ...
18th & Market St: Pedestrians Must Wait While Vehicles Turn Opposite Direction
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Pedestrians have the right-of-way except in cases where vehicles are given a specific signal such as a left arrow. In this cases pedestrians must wait, but in the example the only turning cars would be NB ones turning right onto EB Market -- they'd yield to pedestrians crossing the street -- like most intersections. My guess is this is another instance where the city just didn't think about pedestrian users.
We Must Ask Different Questions Before Expanding Our Convention Center
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St. Louis is again considering keeping up with the Joneses: The city’s convention center complex should expand to more than 900,000 square feet, half again its current size, according to a report given Thursday to the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission. Such improvements would bring a “minimum” 37 percent ...
8th & Market: Vehicle Stop Line Where Pedestrians Should Cross 8th Street, No Marked Crosswalk
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Last week, while we were out at 8th & Market. I noticed another design flaw in St. Louis’ pedestrian network. This is between Citygarden and Ballpark Village/Busch Stadium. The stop line and markings are recent. The detectable warnings on the sidewalk/ramp are there to help guide the visually disabled. Vehicles ...
Big Box Blues: Sears, Kmart, and Sports Authority
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I remember trips to Sears with my mom in the early/mid 1970s, plus I’d look through the Sears catalog at home. Much of my early wardrobe was from Sears. I also remember trips to the same Sears with my dad to buy/replace Craftsman tools. My parents had our new house ...
Replacing Our Chinatown With A Baseball Stadium Was One Of Many Mistakes
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In the 1960s Urban Renewal was in full swing — remaking/destroying cities on a large scale. The majority of people approved — few protested. The powers that be had dismissed Jane Jacobs’ 1961 critique: The Death & Life of Great American Cities. Forty city blocks of our original city had been ...
The ‘Great Streets’ Project on Natural Bridge, Part 2
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Natural Bridge received a ‘Great Streets’ road diet and makeover, yesterday I looked at the North side from Lucas & Hunt to Hanley Rd — see Part 1. My May 2012 visit was exactly four years ago today. In today’s post we’ll look at the South side on the return ...
The ‘Great Streets’ Project on Natural Bridge, Part 1
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In May 2012 I posted about a plan to make a stretch of Natural Bridge in St. Louis County less hostile to pedestrians, see Redeveloping Natural Bridge & The UMSL South MetroLink Station. Natural Bridge was to become one of East-West Gateway’s “Great Streets Initiative“: Great Streets are representative of ...
Deutsch Family Has Profited From Public Right-Of-Way For Nearly Two Decades
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Some take big all at once, but others take just a little over a long period — the latter can continue with few noticing and nobody able to stop it. Seven years ago I posted about theft of public property, see Stealing a Sidewalk (images since lost). Since then nothing has changed. In ...
Olive & Tucker Designed for Pedestrian-Vehicle Conflict
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The intersection of two major downtown streets — Olive St & Tucker Blvd — is poorly designed for pedestrians. The are a number of problems, but this post is about poor communication to pedestrians that puts them in harms way. Specifically, vehicles that get a left-turn arrow from Tucker to ...