Our Opinion: Eye on the prize
Tallahassee Democrat –‘G St. District’ as destination, not racetrack
Tallahassee Democrat Editorial Board
June 13, 2010
A lack of imagination and a human resistance to inconvenience makes the uprooted look of Gaines Street this summer a tough sell in some areas.
Envisoning a new “G St. District” as a place that distinguishes Tallahassee as a college town worth “discovering” is, however, what hundreds of folks have had in mind for years.
It’s a mix of vision and optimism that, after a dozen years of community conversation, has finally launched the physical transformation of Gaines.
From a vaguely shabby chic thoroughfare loosely connecting the airport to the Capitol, this old, familiar south-side street is en route to becoming a much more attractive gathering spot, tourist draw and economic engine.
Beyond that, it has the potential for integrating the youthful interests of Florida State and Florida A&M universities, which traditionally have been more separated by Gaines Street than connected by it.
Once completed, the $41 million public investment — with design features such as extra-wide sidewalks, textured crosswalks, extensive landscaping, water elements, benches, fencing and custom street lamps — will change the feel dramatically for pedestrians.
And shopkeepers, some of whom are pessimistic now in the early development stages, will see far more than vehicles zooming by on four narrow lanes — and with just a few dusty lots for motorists to pull over, park and participate in the life of Gaines.
As senior writer Jeff Burlew reports in today’s issue of the Tallahassee Democrat, slated projects include the four-story retail, restaurant and condominium LOFTS on Gaines at Woodward; a new arts supply store, Utrecht Art Supplies, on the retail floor of the Residence Inn; and the Seminole Boosters mixed-use center for housing, shops and entertainment at Madison and Woodward just north of Gaines.
Farther on down the road, the Arts Exchange for artists to live and work, and a performing arts center will add long-awaited luster to the area.
Of course traffic-moving is, as always, of premier concern to urban planners. And sometimes it’s more ideal to slow traffic down a little for both safety and aesthetics than to center the whole dream around a blur of fast-moving vehicles passing through.
Gaines will be changed from four lanes to two, with traffic going in either direction and separated by plant-filled medians. The first phase of construction started last month and should be finished in February, pausing for football season, naturally. The entire road project is expected to be completed by early 2012.
To help motorists adjust to lane reductions and alternative routes, the city is doubling bus service and working on future plans with neighborhoods and others to enhance routes that pair with Gaines more effectively.
The plan isn’t perfect, and it’s frustrating for some who have had little objection to the status quo. But as City Commissioner Mark Mustian observed, though “it may take a little while for it to all fall in place,” over the next several years, we’ll see a lot happening in the G St. District. The public redevelopment, the private investment, and a draw to the community, customers and visitors will be unlike Gaines has ever known before.