Public Right of Way
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Open Space Public Open Space—streets, sidewalks, alleys, and parks large and small—have the potential to be one of the most significant contributors to the sustainable urban community and can amount to 30 or more percent of the total developable land. Multiple methods can serve to mitigate environmental challenges in these public spaces, while simultaneously contributing to the economic and social vitality of the community. Plant material, in particular trees, can be one of the most significant contributors to the amelioration of the heat-island-effect: the relative rise in average temperatures in urban settings. By absorbing sun light, trees and other plants capture and convert heat to bio-mass, storing energy while shading surrounding surfaces, and introducing color and texture to the streetscape. Simultaneously, plants, especially trees, sequester carbon, the primary pollutant implicated in climate change. Yet the urban setting can be a harsh environment for plants, and careful selection of varieties that can withstand the initial heat and glare, potentially restricted root zones, and air quality is critical. Trees that can be pruned as they mature, to lift their canopies above trucks and buses and promote views to storefronts, are most appropriate. Techniques exist to increase rooting zone below paving, whether “manufactured soils” or structural geometries, promoting growth to optimal size. A range of materials, color, and surface textures can introduce patterns and accents into the paving, to enhance visual interest, and reinforce the image of North Park as a special place. Clear demarcation of pedestrian areas from those of vehicular-use, and barrier free travel from disembarkment to destination, will make improvements universally accessible to all. A technique increasingly used in communities to calm traffic and enhance the pedestrian experience is the use of “pop outs”, places at intersections or mid-block where the sidewalk expands out into the former parking bays to create pockets of seating and planting, creating places to pause, or stay and converse. These have the added benefit of reducing crosswalk length, contributing further to a pedestrian-friendly community. Another contributor to the vibrancy of the street experience, where sidewalk width allows it, is the introduction of outdoor eating or retail displays. A selection of well designed street furnishings which share a theme—common elements of character and color—will contribute to the identity and sense of place of North Park. These pieces of furniture—seating, information kiosks, planters, bicycle racks, bollards, etcetera— provide essential functions while contributing to the visual amenity. Banners become a source of color and interest; many pedestrian and street lights incorporate systems for the attachment of permanent and transitional banners. Conveniently located trash and recycle containers managed on a district-wide basis will promote point-of-source sorting, contributing to the goal of sustainability. Increasingly efficient lighting fixtures, such as LEDs are becoming available. More than just the minimum required for pedestrian and vehicular safety, sufficient lighting will contribute to an inviting and vibrant evening setting. The incorporation of power outlets coincident with street furniture or tree locations will provide opportunities for “festival” or “event” lighting, whether twinkle lights in trees or other embellishments.
Public Open Space—streets, sidewalks, alleys, and parks large and small— about 30 percent of the total developable land.
The handling of storm water runoff is a continuing concern in San Diego. Reducing the volume of runoff, and filtering out the pollutants, are twin goals for a sustainable North Park, and indeed, the region and State. Permeable pavements, which provide pedestrian or vehicular use while allowing rainfall to percolate into the soil to reduce runoff, are available. Additionally, permanent or temporary storage of storm runoff in above-or-below-ground containment, whether tanks and vaults or porous gravel beds, are potential approaches. Alleyways, in particular seem likely candidates for these techniques. Alternatively or additionally, street runoff can be diverted from the ubiquitous curb-and-gutter, through openings into abutting planting bays in the parkway, absorbing and filtering the storm water through the plants and groundcovers, before returning excess runoff back to the gutter. Alleys in North Park, as in many communities, are underutilized merely as barren shortcuts for “those in the know”, and routes for trash pickup or other utility services, and access to back lot parking. Yet there is the potential, here, to enhance these forgotten corridors as pedestrian amenities, links to the North Park fabric, and components of significant environmental mitigation—from pleasant pedestrian throughways, to greenways, or use of permeable pavements and/or below-grade storm water storage.