Friday Night

The text below is from an email I received earlier today from Allied Arts. I heard Mark Hinshaw lecture at UW earlier this year and it was very informative, so I recommend this presentation to anyone reading this site. I was planning on going to the Capitol Hill Block Party tomorrow night but I may end up at Weber Thompson instead.

Downtown Streets:
Places for People or Designed for Cars?

July 25, 2008
We'll start at 6:30 p.m.
Program begins at 7:45
Event Location:
Weber Thompson
225 Terry Avenue N. Suite 200

RSVP: 206.624.0433
ezrab@alliedarts-seattle.org

What makes a downtown street work for people? Is it just well-designed sidewalks next to cute shops? Or is the juxtaposition between vehicles and pedestrians important? Can we accommodate trucks and buses with people and bikes?
The Governor is talking about getting rid of the curb-parking on downtown avenues - what would that do to the human experience? Should we ask the trucks that use the Viaduct to move to 2nd & 4th Avenues? Are we being forced into a "devils choice" between a pedestrian oriented downtown and a great waterfront?

Different streets meet different needs: green streets, main streets, transit streets, walking streets, boulevards, commerce streets, and café streets. What's the right mix of streets for Center City? How could our city creatively use public art and open space funding to make our streets match our status as an international city?

What ideas do you have from your visits to other cities? What do you think Seattle does well and what could we do better?

Join us for a fun look at what will make our downtown streets work for people. We'll hear from a panel of experts who will discuss the many ways we can find clever ideas to create a vision for Seattle as a place with inspiring public spaces.

Panel & Presenters
Mark Hinshaw, Author, True Urbanism, and Director of Urban Design, LMN Architects
Gary Johnson, Center City Strategy Coordinator, City of Seattle
Peg Staeheli, Principal, SvR Design
Moderated By: Brian Steinburg
Senior Associate and LEED AP, Weber Thompson

Hosted By: Weber Thompson

aarts@speakeasy.net
Allied Arts Beer and Culture Nights

Allied Arts was founded in 1954 under the name of "The Beer and Culture Society." More than fifty years later, we still like that name so we're honoring it with our "Beer and Culture Nights."

By convening groups of smart, energetic and public-spirited citizens in an informal setting and by providing snack food, beer and a hot topic, we hope to inspire free-ranging and uninhibited discussion that will be enormously fun and can lead to civic action.

Attendance to the event is free -- all donations are appreciated, regardless of size. Your contribution supports Allied Arts.

Allied Arts of Seattle | www.alliedarts-seattle.org
RSVP to: ezrab@alliedarts-seattle.org or (206) 624-0433