New Urban Progress

Church Street Marketplace in Burlington, Vermont.

Placemaking at its finest. As one of the only successful American "pedestrian only" streets in an urban environment, this main street in the heart of Burlington is a rare gem. The street teems with public life. Cafes, street performers, hippie transients, shoppers, interactive public art, bars, and a viable mix of independent and chain establishment are the norm here. I believe that much of its success is derived from an intelligent parking strategy and narrow cross streets that are open to traffic flow. This makes it both accessible to the throngs of cars that descend upon the city in the summer, and pedestrian friendly. I spent much of the summer of 2004 working for the Vermont Forum on Sprawl and basking in the urbanism of Church Street.

Since I have increasingly litte free time to write meaningful posts to this blog, I have decided that in the busiest weeks I will simply upload a picture with a brief explanation. However, with two major planning projects in the works, and an article that should appear in the upcoming issue of Places, I should have plenty of material to share over the coming months!