Downtown street to remain closed to traffic
Press release from City of Gainesville
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Changes are coming to the “Streatery” downtown, after the Gainesville City Commission today approved a plan for road repair and construction to SW 1st Avenue, between S. Main Street and SW 2nd Street. The renovations will transform the downtown corridor into a walkable thoroughfare designed to better host art festivals, farmers markets, food-truck rallies, and other activities.
Renovations for the designated corridor include a curbless street with new outdoor lighting, 40 electrical outlets for food trucks, and improvements to correct drainage issues and to meet standards as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Design plans include planting six new trees along the corridor; 11 existing live oaks would be preserved.
“The City is excited to move forward with the next phase of this project,” said Andrew Persons, City of Gainesville Chief Operating Officer. “The Streatery has the potential to be a true downtown gem. We’re looking forward to making the improvements needed to turn it into a long-lasting and valuable community asset.”
Construction is scheduled to begin in late 2025. Once complete, the Commission also decided the Streatery will serve as a festival street, open to pedestrians but permanently closed to traffic and parking. The designated strip originally was closed to both during the pandemic to create additional outdoor seating for restaurants and bars. Since then, the Streatery has become a venue for special events and activities.
“We need to use our spaces for people to come downtown,” said Sara Puyana, owner of Flaco’s and a member of the City’s Downtown Advisory Board.
The infrastructure improvements are estimated to cost between $2.4-2.8 million, and staff is expected to return to the Commission early next year with funding options.
Earlier this year, local engineering firm JBPro was selected to develop conceptual designs for the Streatery, prepare construction cost estimates, and gather feedback on the design. A public workshop to gather input on options such as the use of concrete or brick surfaces is anticipated later this year.
There’s more than water that needs to be drained from downtown.
Those electrical outlets will be used more by the homeless than food trucks.
Watch and see.
Fortunately the homeless will strip out the copper lines on the very first night, so when they set up their new tent city in the middle of downtown at least we won’t be paying for their electricity.
(Of course the costs to remove the used needles and human waste will be astronomical instead.)
Some of the local business owners are also concerned about the piles of bricks that will be left around within throwing distance of their windows, but Mayor Ward promised that by the time the bricks arrived, the businesses will have long since closed due to the construction.
The picture is inaccurate if they plan not to allow any cars. And there wouldn’t be more than two or three people outside on a normal day. Maybe some vagrant drug addicts smoking their drugs and/or harassing potential customers (scaring them away, making them decide never to come back there again). I have to wonder if the quote from Sara Puyana is being misused since the advisory board recommended reopening the street to traffic. The possibility of a police cruiser pulling up out of the blue is no longer a possibility with the roads barricaded, which means there will be more crimes of opportunity and criminal activity.
Too dangerous for me to take my family into Gainesville .
City of Gainesville, how many tax dollars are being used for this misadventure? You mentioned ADA compliance. How close and how many handicapped parking spaces will be made available? Where is the nearest parking for your planned “festivals”? Which are the nearest E/W and N/S thru streets?
Closed road works fine as is.
Somebody will get a fat slice.
Follow the money trail at city.
Exists now w/o ambassador.
Renovations for the designated corridor include a curbless street with new outdoor lighting, 40 electrical outlets for food trucks, and improvements to correct drainage issues and to meet standards as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Design plans include planting six new trees along the corridor; 11 existing live oaks would be preserved.
*The infrastructure improvements are estimated to cost between $2.4-2.8 million
*staff is expected to return to the Commission early next year with funding options
$ 2.4 – 2.8 MILLION and this is all the citizens get, but wait we don’t know how we’re going to pay for it yet!
If the businesses on that road are struggling now, then they are pretty certain to go out of business while this construction is underway.
You have to really admire making the city of Gainesville and Alachua County beautiful on the outside while the inside rots and stinks of debt and corruption. No one is ever fooled by putting lipstick on a pig. You rich ‘leaders’ who control our money, you have to pay our bills. You waste money and think the other cities admire you. We who live here, know the truth. Beauty in our town is really only skin deep.
Mary, you’re an inspiration.
The tree in the Alachua County seal must be a water oak. What a perfect metaphor for the county.
Oh, it looks nice when spruced up, all pruned and shaped. But inside, it’s rotten to the core and will one day collapse.
Referendum on the next ballot about blocking streets?
“Walkable” means “no parking anymore” in Dem cities.
what a waste of tax payer money. Only helps the property owners of this block.
What a colossal waste of money! Although, I’m sure at least 25% of that will be pocketed by the powers that be enlisted on the bill of some ridiculous charge. As someone who is downtown two nights a week for activities, this is not going to go over well. The homeless situation is definitely going to become a problem
I carry just to walk back to my car because I have been accosted so many times. The garbage and human urine / feces all around that area might also put a damper on things. I feel so sorry for those businesses that will have to close while this project is being complete. When they reopen, there will be a completely different world because nobody will be going down there. Nobody wants to park in the rape boxes AKA parking garage, and nobody wants to deal with the homeless. The parking lot in the area used to be for citizens, until it was bought by the hotel who now Boot cars at will and stand behind the hidden sign that claims the action. Maybe if we got the crime rate under control, this might be a good idea. However, I don’t see that happening anytime soon since there’s at least two or three calls to the downtown area a week for some violent crime.
This would be a great idea in a smaller town like High Springs,Alachua or Newberry (HUGE IF) if traffic could be rerouted. And parking figured out. Might work in High Springs but I aint no traffic engineer.