Median Mania at Commercial Street Open House Today; SESNA Meets Also

Commercial-Vista Corridor Study meets Tuesday the 22nd with an Open House to show off the latest proposals, solicit feedback, and hopefully to build support for them.

Beacons and crosswalks on Commercial should be a no-brainer

The proposals include buffered bike lanes. While these represent a meaningful improvement along here, they are mainly an incremental one, and the more substantial changes are those proposed for people on foot. Because of the paucity and wide spacing of signalized intersections here, crossing Commercial on foot here is difficult and too often treacherous. The study proposes a set of several mid-block crosswalks and medians.

Mid-block crosswalks and medians will help a lot
This is between Rock-n-Rogers and Fussy Duck

There's also a new proposal for the dysfunction junction of the Commercial-Liberty "Y." That looks promising as well.

Several of the proposed pieces are already competing for funding in the State "All Roads Transportation Safety" program, and at the moment, the totality of them looks very solid and hopefully the evaluators at ODOT will agree.

The Open House is in the old Safeway - which a while ago was announced to become a Wilco store, though that news now is stale enough that you have wonder if it's stalled or even dead. (Anyone know?)

Is this still going to become a Wilco?

The Open House for the design refinements is today, September 22nd, from 4:30 to 7 p.m. in the old Safeway store at 3285 Commercial Street SE.

For all notes on the Commercial-Vista Corridor Study see here.

SESNA

SESNA also meets, and they've been watching construction of the median and crosswalk at 17th and Mill over the summer. It looks to be complete now.

Crosswalk and Median on 17th at Mill

The medians are helpful with visibility for drivers operating at posted speeds and routine levels of attentiveness, but as you can see from the busted pole mounting in the median on 12th Street at Mill, they don't offer protection from speeding drivers, from inattentive drivers, or from impaired drivers.

Busted Post and Mount in Median on 12th at Mill

That center pole and sign got taken out! (2012)

That's not a reason to stop with them, of course, but it might be a reason to continue to plan and install other forms of traffic calming and to work on lowering speeds inside of the city. Spot treatments are great, but jay driving is a system problem, and we need more systemic solutions.

At the meeting they'll also be talking more about that parcel on 23rd Street south of Mission. At one time the proposed redevelopment was called "May's Landing," I believe, and it will be interesting to learn more about where a new iteration of the project is heading.

Cherriots' measure for evening and weekend service is also on the agenda.

SESNA meets Tuesday the 22nd at 7:00 p.m. in the Capital Park Wesleyan Church, 410 19th St SE.