In the Seattle of the future, portions of Third Avenue, downtown’s belittled boulevard, will be transformed into a royal road. Pedestrians will bustle along sidewalks that reduce pollution. A longer bus stop in front of Macy’s will give bus riders ample room to shoulder backpacks. Artwork will grace buildings; businesses will throw open their doors; trees will provide shade. And city dwellers will express a sense of civic pride about downtown’s most travelled thoroughfare.
That’s the gist of a plan called “Third Avenue Streetscape,” presented on April 9 to the city council’s Transportation Committee. The plan proposes a handful of architectural, cultural and infrastructure changes along the four-block stretch of Third that runs from Stewart to University streets. Changes could be in place by year’s end.
The project was conceived to make Third Avenue a place that feels inviting to everyone, including families.
“We’re not trying to solve the social issues that exist and the civility issues that exist on Third Avenue,” said Bill Bryant, transit program manager for the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT).
But city officials have long known those issues are what most people associate with Third Avenue. Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell wondered why those issues weren’t part of the discussion.
“The elephant in the room as we attempt to aesthetically improve it,” said Harrell of Third Avenue, “is trying to make it safe.”
Streetscape planners said addressing safety issues isn’t part of the scope of the proposal. “We’re under no illusions that capital investments in Third Avenue are going to address all the issues that exist on Third,” Bryant said.
Feeling safer now? A Seattle Police Department (SPD) report prepared earlier this year for city councilmembers indicated the street is already safer than it was a few years ago.
SPD statistics revealed that along Third Avenue, calls for service for crimes against people dropped 28 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared with the same quarter of 2011. Calls that requested service for suspicious persons, trespassing and other “quality-of-life” disturbances dropped 21 percent.
Still, money has poured in to the Third Avenue Initiative, a program spearheaded by Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, the transportation committee chair, to enhance the look — and feel — of the street. In 2012, the city council dedicated $350,000 in capital improvement funds to Third Avenue.
Proposed changes include installation of a chemically treated sidewalk that decreases smog while lowering ambient temperatures; a host of construction alterations along the “Macy’s block,” including adjusting the size of the bus stop on the northeast corner of Third and Pine; the addition of trees; and the potential for displaying or projecting art installations on buildings.
Through the addition of federal grants and matching funds from the city and county, the dollar amount of the kitty for Third Avenue has ballooned. City officials estimate more than $9.4 million is now available for capital improvements along Third Avenue, though the majority of those dollars are devoted exclusively for transportation issues.
Nonetheless, Lesley Bain, consultant on the streetscape proposal and architect with urban design firm Weinstein AU, said that changing the atmosphere along Third Avenue will be a challenge.
“Third Avenue has a bit of a bad reputation, but it’s full of great stuff,” Bain said.
Souped-up sidewalks Pedestrians who beat the pavement between Stewart and University streets could soon find their feet stepping upon photocatalytic concrete, a material that’s generating buzz in construction circles. Bain said that in an effort to improve downtown life, streetscape organizers were leaning toward using the new chemically treated sidewalk material, which has the ability to lower temperatures along with decreasing smog and pollutants. She said the material has been successfully used abroad, in Italy and Japan, and in the U.S., in Chicago.
Streetscape organizers have contacted Bellevue-based Mutual Materials Co. about placing photocatalytic sidewalks along Third. She said the four-block stretch of downtown has multiple buildings just a few stories high, which increases access to sunlight within that area. When sunlight strikes a photocatalytic sidewalk, released chemicals absorb smog.
“We’d love to see it used here,” she said.
Richard Crooks, director of business development for Mutual Materials Co., told Real Change a photocatalytic sidewalk is made from concrete, which contains cement treated with a number of chemicals: titanium dioxide and other proprietary ingredients.
“It works kind of like a catalytic converter in your car,” he said, referring to a device that helps to detoxify vehicle emissions.
The added chemicals would lighten the surface color of the sidewalk, which would create solar reflective qualities. The company has placed the material in a driveway for 21 Acres, a nonprofit in Woodinville that supports sustainable agriculture. Crooks said he has not heard of any negative side effects from the chemicals used to create photocatalytic concrete.
Crooks said the company has yet to determine the cost of a chemically treated sidewalk paver. An untreated
2 ft.-by-2 ft. paver costs $15, he said, and he estimates a photocatalytic paver may cost 15 percent to 20 percent more.
“We’re still figuring out how much,” he said.
Treated concrete can also be poured for a sidewalk, he said.
He said the company is excited to use the material along Third Avenue, and he praised the benefits for urban dwellers and visitors.
“Better living through chemistry,” Crooks said, paraphrasing an advertising slogan by DuPont, the chemical company.
The bus stops here Three of the four blocks highlighted in the streetscape proposal are transit blocks. The busiest bus stop downtown is on the northeast corner of Third and Pine, right in front of a Macy’s entrance: Data presented to the committee showed that each weekday, the stop generates more than 10,000 boardings.
SDOT’s Bill Bryant said organizers are in conversation with Macy’s
officials to see if the department store will permit buses, during certain hours of the day, to use six additional feet of sidewalk. The extra footage encroaches upon the southern half of the store’s loading zone.
“We’re working with Macy’s to ensure they’re all happy with access to their loading docks,” Bryant said.
Streetscape organizers referred to the area between Stewart and Pine as the Macy’s block. The block could also come in for increased lighting as well as a photocatalytic sidewalk.
But the proposal didn’t just look at the street in front of Macy’s. It also took in the view above.
A fifth-floor skybridge connects the east and west sides of the streets. Macy’s owns the skybridge and to continue to operate it, the company must renew a 10-year contract with the city this year.
Part of the renewal contract must include some benefit to the public.
City officials said that at this stage, discussions with Macy’s have been fruitful. Streetscape organizers said they hope any issues with the loading zone will be resolved and improvements to lighting and the sidewalk will be finished by the “holiday moratorium,” which occurs around Thanksgiving.
Art attack Officials hope that a more inviting Third Avenue will not only pull in residents and visitors: They hope it will also attract artists.
Architect and consultant Bain said Seattle is home to many digital artists, and that buildings along the corridor could provide a palette for art projects. She referred to a late-March art installation at the Seattle Art Museum, where multimedia artist Doug Aitken showed a video installation by embedding LED screens in the museum’s façade.
Bain said art could be projected from Benaroya Hall onto the outside of the U.S. Postal Building across the street. She showed slides of art installations in other cities, including Paris and London, and spoke of poetry trucks in New York City. She said similar artistic endeavors could happen locally.
“I think Seattle ought to be on the forefront instead of lagging behind,” Bain said.
Councilmember Jean Godden brought up buskers: Since the street performers are so popular at Pike Place Market, might they also bring music to Third Avenue?
Bain said she wasn’t so sure, since street performers gravitate toward locations they’ve found to be successful. And she added some people might not want to play, or hear, certain music along certain parts of the roadway.
Godden agreed: “One person’s music is another person’s noise.”
But Bain said she believed artistic programs could work well on Third and having business owners in the area support streetscape programs could benefit everyone.
Streetscape organizers estimate that a final design package for the four-block streetscape, with costs, should be complete by mid-May.