Earlier this year, the Issaquah, WA, council approved the city’s Downtown Streetscape Plan. The plan seeks to increase pedestrian friendliness, support local businesses, create a consistent downtown character, and make Olde Town a place where people enjoy spending time.
The plan includes creation of a festival street — a street designated for recurring temporary closure for pedestrian activities. The festival street allows for gatherings, community building, and visitor attraction in a part of the city that doesn’t have the need or land availability for a permanent public gathering space.
The plan notes that the Alder Street location (perpendicular to Front Street), is especially well suited to use as a festival street:
- It is a non-arterial within downtown that connects Front Street to surrounding parking and residential neighborhoods.
- It is part of the Front Street commercial area and, as a festival street, could reinforce adjacent commercial and cultural activities.
- It can enhance the quality of the pedestrian environment without conflicting with desired traffic circulation.
The creation of the festival street is currently considered part of Phase II of the overall project. But the report also recommends low-cost improvements that could be implemented quickly and demonstrate the value of the plan.
The full article on festival streets appears in the November issue of Downtown Idea Exchange.
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