Is Riverside/Avondale Ready For Mellow Mushroom?

[mtraininjax]

If they are serious, they will buy the lot down the street that was used by the Town Center initiative and turn the empty lot into a parking lot, to allow for the overflow. Eminent Domain time. Or bulldoze Boone Park and put in parking there.

[cline]

Who are the City's "parking consultants"?

[tufsu1]

the picture shows Martha Moore and Mike Saylor...perhaps they'll be working on the study

[thelakelander]

Interesting.  Let's hope they do a good job!

[AvonD]

Well well well.  Councilman Love has introduced bill 2012 339 which will require contributing structures converting to any kind of alchohol sales to provide 50% of required parking spaces instead of 0%. 

[cline]

So is the building MM is going into considered a contributing structure?

[thelakelander]

Well well well.  Councilman Love has introduced bill 2012 339 which will require contributing structures converting to any kind of alchohol sales to provide 50% of required parking spaces instead of 0%.

This could do a few things:

A. Slow or stop the revitalization of Riverside/Avondale's commercial districts.

B. Reduce the value and usability of pedestrian scale commercial structures (structures built to the sidewalk).

C. Lead to non contributing structures (many of which are built before 1948) being demolished for parking lots.

I'd be careful with this one.  It has the possibility of backfiring with severe negative results on the character and scale of the neighborhood.  Hopefully, they'll get some real factual data and statistics on the pros and cons before pushing this through.

[Dog Walker]

This proposal would not stop development in the RAHD, just put additional contraints on business that serve alcohol.  Am I understanding the proposed legislation correctly?

[thelakelander]

^For the most part, it will prohibit any type of restaurant or bar serving alcohol from opening in Riverside without finding a way to build a parking lot.  Basically, no more Mossfire Grills, Bricks, Al's Pizza's, Pele's, etc. without them providing off-street parking.  The easiest way (other than avoiding the neighborhood completely) to provide off-street parking in a district not originally built to autocentric suburban standards is to find and demolish non-contributing buildings to replace them with surface parking.

[strider]

Well well well.  Councilman Love has introduced bill 2012 339 which will require contributing structures converting to any kind of alchohol sales to provide 50% of required parking spaces instead of 0%. 

I though the purpose of overlays that dealt with zoning for historic districts was to avoid this type of issue.  To allow for sensible development within the constraints of a historic/ walk-able/ urban district.  This seems to do the exact opposite.  It is fear driven and that is typically the worst kind of ordinance/ law.  At least this only deals with Riverside/ Avondale.

[JeffreyS]

Perhaps it will come full circle and RAP and councilman love will be wanting the parking garages and expressways they were formed to fight.

Can't have people walking. Perhaps more drive thrus and larger min setbacks. Riverside can be be Oakleaf with a lot of effort and a little luck.

It is just not meant to be a quite hood with parking in front of every door. RAP please start educating the area that you are an URBAN core neighborhood and call out councilman love on his stupid idea.

[AvonD]

Rap is supporting the bill as are many existing restaurants and i hear folks like Adam hollingsworth...

So is the check or checkmate for the mm fanboys?

[Tacachale]

Wait a minute. So to open up a restaurant in an existing building you'd be required to add parking that currently doesn't exist?

Lake is right, this would either artificially restrict infill, or force growth to take out existing structures for surface parking lots. No one seriously interested in the neighborhood's well being should support this.

[thelakelander]

Rap is supporting the bill as are many existing restaurants and i hear folks like Adam hollingsworth...

So is the check or checkmate for the mm fanboys?

MM should be fine.  In their situation, they have a whole non contributing gas station pump area they're working with.  Avondale may get a pretty ugly parking lot in the front instead of outdoor dining and green space but its doable.  What will get the shaft is historic buildings like the one Dahlia's Pour House and Salty Fig are going in on King Street. 

Considering we're in an economic recession, I'd hate to be an owner of a structure where what you can do with it is limited against your will.  Should it pass will their property tax rate be reduced to make up for this?

[strider]

The timing of this ordinance proposal reeks of fear - fear of whom may come into their community, fear of the additional cars that may or may not be an issue, fear of trash that may or may not be an issue.  RAP more than likely campaigned for the easing of parking restrictions but now that a couple of higher level commercial developments have come along, they are now against the overlay provisions they helped write and are for restricted development and the possible loss of additional structures to accommodate those restrictions?  Fear based decision making seldom results in what anyone wants or what is best for the community. One would think that RAP would look at the past in places like Springfield where fear based programs were the norm for a decade.  Didn't work too well there and will not here either.  Looking to folks like Lake and several others for reality based solutions to the problems is the answer that will give everyone what they want and need in the future.