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brokebike
cutter
Joined: 21 Oct 2007
Posts: 2434
Location: local
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 Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 1:53 pm Post subject: Did you folks see this? |
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http://www.bizlex.com/Articles-c-2009-06-05-87613.113117
| Quote: | LEXINGTON, KY - There is mixed reaction, ranging from angry to enthusiastic, among business owners along a major downtown Lexington corridor as the city reveals plans to close the street for improvements next month. City officials said they will temporarily close all or at least a significant portion of South Limestone, between Avenue of Champions (Euclid) and Vine Street beginning in July and continuing through late in the year to accomplish simultaneous projects designed to make the street connecting downtown with UK more attractive and pedestrian friendly.
The project will replace failing sanitary and storm sewer lines, establish a dedicated bike lane, install streetlights similar to those on Vine and Main streets, bury utility lines and install wider sidewalks, according to Michael Webb, Commissioner of Public Works and Development. "Doing projects simultaneously saves money and reduces the impact," he said in a statement. "Generally, the cross streets (High, Maxwell and Euclid) will be open. An ambulance access lane will be open on South Limestone to serve Good Samaritan Hospital."
Webb said the ultimate goal of the project is "to improve pedestrian and bike access to encourage more interaction between downtown and Transylvania, and downtown and the University of Kentucky. Plans are to line the street with trees, rain gardens and markers made of limestone with a lighted element at the top, used as a means to identify Collegetown, which ultimately will link UK, downtown and Transylvania."
Among businesses along the corridor concerned that the choke-off in traffic threatens their futures is Beth Hanna, owner of Hanna's on Lime, a popular downtown breakfast and lunch spot. " Until two days ago, no one had told the business owners --we had not heard from anybody from the city-- that the street would be closed to through traffic from July of '09 through July of 2010, with complete closure for four to five months within that time frame. You're talking about small businesses that won't have any vehicular traffic for a year, which will basically put a lot of us out of business."
"This is our busiest time of the year, for all of us starting in July," fretted Isaac Kurs, co-owner of the Soundbar/Blu Lounge which opened last month next door to Hanna's after costly renovations. "For us on a personal level it's just that we put all this money in the new building and our first year is the most important for us, the one that decides if we make it or break it that's really a big concern for us." Kurs said
"If they close Limestone, we won't make it," said Lisa Hendley-Betz, owner of Faitle, the Irish Import Shop across S. Limestone from Hanna's and Soundbar. "I think it's going to be a great thing when it's done, but unfortunately I don't think my business will be here to see the aftermath of it."
"We started public meetings on this project for those businesses in the winter of '08," said Susan Straub, spokeswoman for Mayor Jim Newberry. "We have gone door to door. We sent certified registered letters for property owners and went door to door for businesses for the last meeting because people were not coming."
A more supportive point of view was heard from business owners in the next block to the south. "Honestly, I like the idea," said Mamadou Savane, owner of Sav's Grill & West African Cuisine, located on the corner of South Limestone and Maxwell. "I did see the plan and I love it. It's an improvement and I'm sure it will be inconvenient for people for awhile, but once it' done, we're all going to benefit from it."
Across the street and to the south is the record shop CD Central where owner Steve Baron also views the project as a temporary inconvenience for a permanent improvement. "In general, I'm willing to put up with a little pain for the longterm benefit. I think the project, in general, is going to be a real boon to the merchants on this street and to the city. This is something that every consultant has said - that we should improve Limestone to make it this pedestrian-oriented corridor between UK and downtown, to Transy, if possible. Link all these institutions. I'd love to see better sidewalks, nicer street lighting, bicycle lanes and all of those amenities that they've talked about doing. So, I don't want to do anything that would be an obstacle to accomplishing that goal. The only thing I would ask the city is to do it in such a way, if possible, to minimize the impact on the businesses because anything they do to discourage people from coming downtown is going to hurt us."
"We share the concerns of the businesses in the area and will do everything possible to assure that they can receive their deliveries, that there is pedestrian access and to address concerns," said Commissioner Webb. He noted that businesses on North Limestone had similar concerns when those blocks were closed during the construction of the new courthouses "and, while it was difficult, the city was able to work with them to resolve many concerns. We anticipate using the lessons we learned from that project to do the same for the businesses located along South Limestone."
Bids on the project are scheduled to be opened on July 12. |
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elzie5000
cutter
Joined: 25 Oct 2007
Posts: 1177
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| Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 2:12 pm Post subject: |
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Alleycat with dirt jumps on Lime this fall then?
Of course the writer totally misses that the difference between the supportive and non-supportive businesses is that the supportive ones get mostly pedestrian traffic from campus to begin with.
I like the irony of closing a street to cars for a year to make it more pedestrian friendly. |
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alex
I break bones for polo.
Joined: 23 Oct 2007
Posts: 309
Location: at home
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| Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 2:57 pm Post subject: |
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is this a spoof? seriously? is this from the onion news, cause that's not how newberry rolls
who walks around downtown anyway? just dirty hippies and unemployed drunken hipsters
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How about, "Can you NOT rip a giant hole in our downtown and erect a big goddamn penis full of crappy chain businesses?"
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knuckles
training wheels
Joined: 19 May 2009
Posts: 24
Location: Lex, Hoodwill
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| Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 11:49 pm Post subject: is it just me? |
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is it just me, or does it seem like this project is designed to route college pedestrian traffic to the hole that was NEVER REALLY going to be centerpoint?
it appears that Mr. Webb (god help us) is involved in a project designed to improve the value of the dirt that was underneath the places that I loved. It appears that the city will undertake yet another project designed to kill existing local businesses, and improve the rental values of the vacancies they leave behind, along a narrow corridor to an entire block where they killed all the local business, this must be very profitable for somebody.
this may be good for Lexington, but that is pretty much a side effect... I bet it'll be just like downtown disney...and no matter where you stop to spend your money, none of your money stays in Lex. just like a mall without the roof.
I'm still bitter about the Ben Snider building ("lessons learned from our new courthouses".. I want to spit!) I love this town... I'll shut up now.
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The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.
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taylor
hipster
Joined: 30 Mar 2008
Posts: 59
Location: Woodland Park
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| Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2009 10:17 am Post subject: |
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interesting dilemma here...
we all bitch pretty constantly about how there aren't enough bike lanes, maintained sidewalks, public spaces and our city's urban design is something a toddler could come up with (no offense to the toddlers out there in cyberspace, as I wouldn't want to lump them in with the LFUCG riff raff) - and that's not to mention our bitching about the power going out during icepocalypse because our utilities aren't underground...
but when the city finally gets around to doing all these great things, there are some potentially fucked up consequences for local business, and for mobility in general. I'll be interested to see how the street closings actually work out, as far as being closed to pedestrian and bike traffic, and at what times what parts of Limestone will be closed. As I understand it, Diane Lawless has been fighting to keep the street as open as possible while all this happens, but probably to no avail.
I'm not so sure the intent is as malicious as knuckles makes it sound, although the reality of the situation could very well end up being that way. Put me in the camp of people that will be super happy when this is done, but will continue to piss and moan while streets are torn up until July 2010. |
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elzie5000
cutter
Joined: 25 Oct 2007
Posts: 1177
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| Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2009 7:53 pm Post subject: |
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I don't think Michael Webb is related to the bad Webbs, is he?
Anyway, the sewers under Lime are so F'd that there is really no alternative but to dig up the entire street. I'm very reluctant to eat anywhere on lime because of how often you can smell sewer gas inside. |
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knuckles
training wheels
Joined: 19 May 2009
Posts: 24
Location: Lex, Hoodwill
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| Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2009 9:21 pm Post subject: |
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| elzie5000 wrote: | I don't think Michael Webb is related to the bad Webbs, is he?
Anyway, the sewers under Lime are so F'd that there is really no alternative but to dig up the entire street. I'm very reluctant to eat anywhere on lime because of how often you can smell sewer gas inside. |
Oh ok, I can't keep my Webbs straight...
That isn't the sewer your smelling, its Tolly-Ho... and I still eat there.
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The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.
Nietzsche |
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metro biking
hipster
Joined: 16 Mar 2008
Posts: 64
Location: Lexington, KY
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| Posted: Sun Jun 07, 2009 7:56 pm Post subject: Mike Webb and the South Lime Project |
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Mike Webb is not related to the Webbs as far as I know and I have known Mike since 2nd grade.
Mike retired as regional service manager for Columbia Gas a couple of years ago and went to work for the City part-time.
The City has since promoted him to director of Public Works due in part to his experience in infrastructure work in the public right of way.
Mike Galbraith
Metro Biking
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caine1975
hipster
Joined: 23 Jan 2008
Posts: 51
Location: lex-vegas
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| Posted: Sun Jun 07, 2009 9:06 pm Post subject: |
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ok...so i just did a research project for my environmental sciences program at bctc and...theres gonna b a lot of roads here in lex gettin F'D up and inconveniencing a large part of town here in the next 2 to 3 years. That lovely sewer smell is just that and the USEPA and the city of lex have entered into a consent decree to perform a wide range of remediation projects as well as the outright rehabilitation of miles of our outdated and extremely underperforming combined sanitary sewer systems. We need this as a city
...and as taxpayers as otherwise Lex is gonna get hit with a multo million dollar fine for our forefathers in city hall did jack to address the problems when they woulda been a LOT cheaper to fix...
...
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