Dear City Council- Thank you for your tireless contributions to our city, and in particular to Council Members Nash and Meuller for their work on a Santa Cruz closure plan. While I am very excited to see the Council move quickly on the downtown street closure, one that creates a safe, attractive pedestrian shopping experience with strong support from the community, the Chamber plan falls short of capturing this once-a-generation opportunity. The Chamber plan is overly auto-centric, creating a chopped-up downtown with minimal pedestrian access, allowing cross traffic on every street dissecting the business district, thereby creating dangerous pedestrian navigation points at every intersection. The plan is out of step with the community desire for a more pedestrian-friendly street closure; allowing all merchants, not just restaurants, to spread out beyond their store interiors. A more complete closure will be a huge draw for the community, driving more downtown business revenue. This closure will be a pilot. Why not start with a plan that could draw shoppers in large numbers. For the sake of moving quickly, I urge the Council to approve the Chamber plan with the additional closing of Crane Street, thereby creating a contiguous pedestrian mall from Evelyn to Chestnut, while still allowing adequate crossing access for automobiles. With respect, Bill Kirsch -- Bill Kirsch Costella Kirsch 650-867-5343 www.costellakirsch.com http://www.costellakirsch.com > Lending to emerging growth companies since 1986 Received on Tue Jun 16 2020 - 18:15:35 PDT
