CONNECTING
BROADWAY-FILLMORE
COMMUNITY GROWTH
Introduction
The Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood faces many challenges that hinder its future development. The first section of this chapter provides an overview of three broad challenges that cover the scope of issues identified in the area. Based on these challenges, the second section identifies three broadly defined goals that will overcome the challenges. The third section delves into a number of strategies that may be undertaken to reach each goal and lead to the improvement of the study area.
CHALLENGES
With regards to the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood, the team identified three challenges that cover a broad scope. The three challenges are:
STREET CONDITIONS
Streets are an important part of any neighborhood that help set a tone and sense of safety and security. It allows people to commute on foot and can add to the aesthetic of any commercial store. It is therefore essential that streets are maintained and can deliver their functional purpose to help uplift the community.
The challenge of unsafe street conditions covers a multitude of issues on the neighborhood’s streetscape. The team considers the following as part of the overall challenge of unsafe street conditions:
1. Lack of adequate sidewalk infrastructure
Many roads of the neighborhood have sidewalks that range from average to very poor condition. On certain streets, sidewalks are deteriorated to the point where the pedestrian must walk on the roadway. Other areas, specifically in the immediate area around Broadway Market, feature somewhat damaged sidewalks that are still possible to walk on. Sidewalks are not ADA-compliant, with many blocks featuring curb cuts that do not connect to sidewalks.
2. Poor Road conditions
The neighborhood has generally been ignored by the department of public works and as a result, the roadway conditions are subpar. Roadways are cracked and riddled with potholes that could potentially cause damage to vehicles.
3. Lack of lighting
There is no lighting on neighborhood side roads within the study area. Residents have mentioned that they are not comfortable walking in the area at night, and the lack of lighting contributes to this. Lack of lighting often opens an area up to criminal activity during the late hours of the evening.
4. Lack of Bike Infrastructure
Tours of the neighborhood have revealed bicycle use as a common form of transportation for neighborhood residents. However, no infrastructure dedicated to bike travel exists. This creates dangerous conditions for cyclists as there is no separation between them and fast moving motor vehicles.
5. Excessive Speed of Cars
Roads in the neighborhood are designed in a grid pattern and are wide. This creates conditions that allow drivers to travel at excessive speeds through the area. This creates hazards for users of alternative transportation uses (pedestrian, biking, skateboarding etc.) as well as for children who play near the roads.
HOUSING DIVERSITY
Housing diversity refers to the types of housing that are present in a given place. They give people a wide variety to choose from that fits best with their family and finances. It adds another layer to the sector breaking the monotony. This range welcomes more people to move in and thus helps in building a dense and connected neighborhood. A challenge in the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood is a lack of a diverse housing stock within the study area.
1. Affordable Housing
Through neighborhood studies conducted by the studio and engagement with community stakeholders and residents, it has been determined that there is a lack of affordable housing options available to residents. The lack of affordable housing limits the amount of feasible housing options that are available for the area’s lower income residents and new immigrants.
2. Financially inclusive housing options
For the proper development of a neighborhood, it must serve people of different income tiers. There is a general lack of flexibility in housing in the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood. As a result, residents may choose to not remain in the neighborhood if they begin to earn higher wages.
3. Different types of housing development
Slow zones of transition for different housing types, with higher (“missing middle”) density closer to corridors. “Missing middle” refers to a spectrum of housing density which is greater than but visually compatible with single-family residential. Examples might be duplexes, rowhouses, etc.
The neighborhood requires higher levels of single and multifamily development to supplement the influx of immigrant populations into the area. Existing housing is generally too small for large immigrant families.
Local resident opposition to multifamily housing may pose an obstacle to implementation of this goal.
AMENITIES
Building community isn’t about just housing. Other aspects like amenities play an integral role that encourage people to interact and socialise, take part in events, work on fitness and health, understanding the neighbors and their culture etc. There this aspect of amenities refer to a wide range of features that are seen as “desirable” to residents and important for the neighborhood.
1. Amenities that would be helpful
Recreational facilities like gyms, pools, bowling alleys, and other sports facilities.
Community gathering spaces like bars, restaurants, coffee shops, and parks.
Stores including grocery and corner stores, pharmacies.
Cultural Centers including various types of worship centers and performing art centers.
Schools and childcare facilities.
Services like banks, post offices, libraries. In portions of Broadway-Fillmore, fewer than 40% of homes on a block have Wi-Fi. Libraries can help fill the connection gap.
2. Amenities that sparse and would helpful if developed
Recreational Facilities: Lack of any outdoor sports facilities. In terms of indoor facilities, there is one gym located adjacent to the Broadway Market and other vacant facilities scattered throughout the area.
Community Gathering Spaces: Concentrated around Broadway and N Fillmore Ave. There are limited options of bars and restaurants within the interior of the study area. There are a few public parks, but these parks are deteriorated to the point where they are nearly unusable.
Stores: Many corner stores that operated on interior streets of the study area are now closed. Grocery stores and pharmacies are concentrated along Broadway, but few options are available.
Cultural Centers: While there are a multitude of worship spaces, there is only one performing arts center.
Schools: Discussions with residents have made it apparent that area schools are not adequate. There are also very few childcare options available.
Services: There are few bank and post office. There is also a scarcity of public libraries located in or near the neighborhood. The former library branch is now a hardware store.
GOALS
Our vision for a reimagined Broadway-Fillmore that uses vacant land as an asset to create a gently densified residential neighborhood with homes and amenities to support existing and future residents and their needs, connected by a more attractive and safer streetscape. The team has identified goals that would address the challenges identified in the section above.
Improved streetscape: Crime Prevention Through Design is a tool which if used effectively can make a humongous difference in a community.
Develop diverse range of housing
Improve amenities: Reclaiming vacant lots and unkept parks with green infrastructure
STRATEGIES
To bring about a change in the neighborhood it is essential that we implement the goals. These would perhaps bring a positive transformation that would help the residents feel more at home and safe. In order to take the plan further the team proposes strategies that would realize the goals in the previous section.
GOAL 1: IMPROVED STREETSCAPE
Creation of Complete Streets
Complete streets should be built on the higher traveled roadways in the study area such as Broadway, Fillmore Ave. and potentially Memorial Dr. and Paderewski Dr. A complete street is a traffic engineering concept that ensures the safety, convenience, and comfort of travel for all types of uses. This would involve the separation of uses--cars, bikes, pedestrians etc.--that makes up the entire streetscape. New and improved bike and pedestrian infrastructure would create a safe environment for the community members who rely on biking and walking to get places. These would be accompanied by improved street lighting.
Creation of Shared Streets
The shared street strategy targets the less traveled interior roads of the study area. A shared street differs from a complete street in terms of roadway design. Rather than separating uses, everything is thrown together with the goal of slowing down traffic. In turn, safer conditions for cyclists and pedestrians are realized. The creation of bike lanes and designated on street parking narrows the thru lanes of the roadway, resulting in slower traffic and higher driver alertness. This creates spaces for cyclists and pedestrians to travel safely. This strategy would be accompanied with improved sidewalks and new street lighting options that could deter crime and improve neighborhood safety at night. An example of a shared street layout is shown below in Figure 10.3-B.
Active Sidewalks
Active sidewalks should be created along the commercial corridors of Broadway and Fillmore Ave. Sidewalks that are activated consist of different uses and features. For example, outdoor seating areas can be created along cafes and restaurants that line the Broadway-Fillmore strip. These seating areas are separated from the pedestrian section of the sidewalk by plantings and/or visually permeable fences that match the character of the storefronts. Additionally, there can be a line of tree plantings on the edges of the sidewalk that both serve as appealing features and provide shade for pedestrians and customers of businesses.
Sidewalk activation can coincide with the construction of complete streets along the commercial corridor. It is important to note that this strategy will only be on Broadway and Fillmore Ave. Other streets within the study area do not feature the same level of commercial development, and activated sidewalks are not necessary.
GOAL 2: DEVELOPMENT OF A DIVERSE RANGE OF HOUSING
Explore Diverse Housing Options in Different Areas of the Neighborhood
This strategy takes advantage of Buffalo’s form-based development ordinance to diversify and mix housing options throughout the study area. This would promote density, deter crime, and assist with the development of new residential connections while preserving the character of the neighborhood. Currently, the interior of the study area features a high number of vacant homes and vacant land. This existing stock of vacant property opens up the opportunity for redevelopment of existing housing and the development of new housing. It is important that these new homes are developed with the goal of providing housing options for current and projected residents of the neighborhood, rather than to gentrify the area.
The southwestern section of the study area, south of Paderewski Dr, features the largest amount of vacant land. Since vacancies on this block provide more room for development, this is where larger single family homes that serve higher income or larger households could be built (Fig. 10.3-E).The commercial strips on Broadway and N Fillmore Ave. are where mixed use development could occur. This mixed use development could be something like a building with a storefront on the first floor with residential units located on the upper floors (Fig. 10.3-E). The area around the Central Terminal could serve a variety of housing types. This would be a good section of the study area to locate a variety of both single and multi-family affordable housing options. Examples of this type of housing development is shown in Figure 10.3-D. Development of vacant land on the block would be necessary, but there are many vacant homes here that could be redeveloped into adequate affordable housing.
GOAL 3: IMPROVED AMENITIES
Implementation of Green Infrastructure
Implementation of green infrastructure in the neighborhood would result in the creation of new green areas and improvement of existing ones. It would overlap in some ways with recreational amenities, such as permeability improvements to Sears-Paderewski park that have been proposed by the Regional Plan Association. Other additions of green infrastructure would involve reuse of some existing vacant parcels already owned by the City of Buffalo. Portions of the East Side have suffered from flash flooding from previously record-breaking rainfalls which are set to become more common.
Work with Current Park Infrastructure in the Area
There is currently a deteriorated public park located at the intersection of Paderewski Dr. and Sears St. Tentative plans are in place to develop the land into a small community gathering space that includes a pavilion and a playground surrounded by various green infrastructure.
Interlink of previous strategies to promote new amenities
If strategies outlined for goals one and two are realized, it would create better conditions within Broadway-Fillmore for the concentration and improvement of amenities. It is important to improve neighborhood conditions and promote increases in population density. A densely populated, well designed neighborhood increases the attractiveness of the community, which would likely result in more investment in the area. Investment into existing indoor recreational facilities, community gathering spaces, stores, and services, as well as into new amenities such as outdoor recreational facilities would be likely to occur in these conditions. Commercial amenities would be located on Broadway and the northern part of Fillmore Ave, while other recreational and community amenities can be situated on both the commercial strip and the interior residential area of the neighborhood.
CONCEPT
All goals and strategies are interlinked in the concept diagram as shown on the left. The new proposed greenway on Memorial Drive follows and enhances the complete streets to be implemented along that roadway, while other improved complete streets will receive new amenities to serve the community. All the while, denser residential housing will be connected to amenities and green space via shared streets. New green space and amenities will support a denser population who will live in planned infill housing, with higher density north of Paderewski and closer to the redeveloped Central Terminal. Planned improvements will be placed on the parcel level on the site plan in the following section.
SITE PLAN
Streetscape
A more in depth outline of the streetscape plan is present on the concept plan in the previous section. The site plan depicts a greater concentration of trees along planned complete street routes (Broadway, Fillmore, Paderewski, and Memorial). While trees on the interior roadways are sparse in the site plan for the purpose of clarity, increased tree plantings are encouraged along shared streets as well.
Housing
The plan for the neighborhood includes housing types such as single family, row, mixed use, and double loaded housing. The majority of larger single family development (Figure 10.3-F) is concentrated in the southwestern section of the neighborhood, where there are the most vacant parcels.
Row housing, seen in the earlier segments, is placed closer to commercial corridors and the planned Buffalo Terminal upgrades. These areas include the northern section of Clark St, on a piece of vacant land on the eastern side of Playter St near the intersection with Paderewski Dr, on vacant land on the western side of Houghton Ave, and on open space along Lombard and Clark St. south of Paderewski Dr. Double loaded homes (seen in the earlier segment), which are single structures that house two or more dwelling units, also populate the areas of the neighborhood where medium density and mixed use development is encouraged. Finally, mixed-use structures, which are structures that include both commercial and residential space, are planned along the commercial corridors of Broadway and Fillmore Ave. in the study area.
Amenities
Amenities identified in the site plan consist of projected local retail and community centers, as well as a library and a new pocket park. These amenities are located close to the commercial strips of Broadway and Fillmore Ave. A library would be located at the intersection of Fillmore and Paderewski, with a new community center at the same intersection. Ideally, the new community center will contain a small gym as well as fulfilling the roles of the former community center which relocated to the new Jericho Road building on Broadway. Though we understand that the market for retail is low, we believe that new infill housing would be well-served by a new corner store, also located on Paderewski, which we project to be an “auxiliary” main thoroughfare once new housing and the Buffalo Central Terminal are completed. Finally, the projected greenspace that would encompass the current Sears Paderewski Park is noted as well as a new greenway that would connect Broadway to the Central Terminal via Memorial Drive.
CONCLUSION
The Broadway Fillmore neighborhood is of vital importance to the City of Buffalo. Once Buffalo’s bustling “second downtown,” it is now a culturally significant place that has experienced new demographic shifts in recent years. Existing conditions in the study area provide ample opportunity for new development and redevelopment of roadways, vacant land, vacant structures, and greenspace. The goals and strategies outlined in this report are made to serve as building blocks for the rejuvenation of the neighborhood. Given the neighborhood’s diverse and growing population combined with relatively low land values, it is important that a development vision be created as soon as possible. We believe that the development patterns we envision are ideal changes to the urban fabric to uphold our vision of a lively and livable residential neighborhood. Not a “new downtown,” but a new Broadway-Fillmore.
BLOCK DESIGN: INTRODUCTION
The block chosen for this exercise is the block directly south of the Broadway Market, bounded by Paderewski Drive, South Market Street, Lombard Street, and Gibson Street. The location straddles the boundary between planned mixed-use and single-family areas and is a tentative site for a community center in the concept diagram.
On this particular block, there are many vacant lots, including multiple located directly across from the market. The four streets, with a particular emphasis on Paderewski Drive, are very wide which results in people driving extremely fast in a mostly residential area. Infrastructure for pedestrians or bicyclists is poor or nonexistent, and other than vacant lots which will hopefully be infilled, green infrastructure is limited. Furthermore, plans for the improved Broadway Market remove the ground floor parking and extend market operations to the South Market Street edge. The challenge was to link this block with the existing/planned amenity of the Broadway Market, while densifying housing, without compromising the neighborhood’s quiet residential character
BLOCK DESIGN
Existing Conditions
As noted in the introduction, the block has many vacant lots, some of which are used by residents for parking. The lots directly across from the Broadway Market are currently vacant, creating the opportunity to link activity on this block to operations of the renovated market which extend to the rear entry. The primary building type on this block is single-family residential homes, many of which are built using the “telescope” style. Given neighborhood needs, infill residential should be added to the block. In order to respect the current neighborhood character, it should fit well with existing single-family homes while adding gentle density, with multi-family concentrated adjacent to the market/Broadway corridor.
PHASE 0
Infill Design/Activating Empty Lots
Building construction is a prolonged process and in the meantime, lots should have active uses as the adjacent market becomes a greater destination and occupies more of its building footprint. Interim uses for the lots can be undertaken on a tactical basis, with short-term and easily removed interventions (See Phase 0 site plan, Figure 10.5.1-A). Given proximity to the Broadway Market and its upcoming new ground floor space, the northernmost vacant lots are activated using an outdoor seating area which offers space to pop-up food trucks. Further south on the block, lots are initially which may be organizationally connected to the nearby Common Roots Urban Farm. Urban food production is a family-friendly “third space” activity which also adds appealing, well-maintained permeable surface to a neighborhood. Additionally, urban gardening is a land use which can be linked to existing on-site food production at the Broadway Market.
PHASE 1
New Construction
Vacancy is prolific on the block and infill is proposed through three different typologies (Figure 10.5.1-B). The new block structure draws inspiration from ideals of new urbanism that aim to reintegrate the components of modern life including housing, shopping and recreation. Though street-level retail has been decaying in recent years, planned investment into the Broadway Market is expected to create necessary activity density to incorporate ground-level retail with upper-floor multiunit housing. Residential density will be increased by the addition of new units, meant to increase the affordable housing stock in a growing neighborhood. Looking at the block from the Lombard Street side, only a few houses create an occupied, residential sense on the street. To make it more lively and to have the ‘eyes on the street’ concept of Jane Jacobs, the new plan proposes four single-family units in the middle of the block and two mixed use units to the north and south. Both typologies are shown in elevation in Figure 10.5.2-B.
TYPOLOGY 1
Single- Family Residential Unit
The first housing type is the single-family residential unit, with a living space in the front and an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) located to the rear of the building (Fig. 10.5.2-C). In addition to mimicking the look of existing telescope houses on the block, the ADU housing style allows flexibility for multigenerational households or young people looking for an affordable rental. The main house is 50 feet long with a four foot wide porch. This encourages socialization, which in turn promotes a sense of community and safety, all while connecting existing and new households on the block as neighborhood demographics shift. The backyard allows its residents to spend time outdoors and indulge in activities such as gardening. To further utilize the space, the 25 foot long ADU has two floors. The first floor houses a garage, which may be used for either parking or general storage, and the second floor accommodates a small living space. Figure 10.5.2-D shows detail of this typology in context with the current building scale.
TYPOLOGY 2
Mixed Use Unit
The second typology is the mixed use structure on South Market Street (Fig. 10.5.2-E). Given its location opposite the Broadway Market, the first floor houses retail stores and a restaurant in recognition of high foot traffic at this location. The shape is chamfered in the corner in recognition of the architectural context of the site, maintaining a view of the steeple of the Corpus Christi church from Gibson Street. The second and third floors are residential units with an approximate area of one thousand square feet each, adding gentle density to the block at the edge of the Broadway commercial corridor. The entrance to these floors are from Gibson Street (not redesigned in this report, though the structure would follow that of Lombard) along with a few parking spaces, mindful of resident concerns about parking pressures in the event of increased densification and visitors to the market.
TYPOLOGY 3
Mixed Use Unit
The last typology is a single building on Paderewski Drive which follows a similar concept to that of the second typology, with a commercial space on the first floor and residential on the second and third floors. Instead of being retail, however, the first floor will serve as a community gathering space, hosting small art exhibitions, block potlucks, and other similar events. Ideally, it might also contain some library services such as computers and free WiFi, as Broadway-Fillmore has quite low Internet access rates for an urban area. It is like the third place that allows the community to bond. The choice of this building use is a response to resident concerns that shared community spaces are limited, particularly moving away from Broadway. The location on Paderewski makes this community space accessible to both residents of the block and those in the entire “triangle.”
Overall, the new block design both on Paderewski and South Market adds 11 apartment and 7 single family units of residential additions and 5 units of commercial, adding to 9170 square feet of the latter
SOUTH MARKET STREET
South Market Street is an east/west route located directly south of the Broadway Market. In its current form (shown in 10.5.3-A), it is a wide open, empty two way street that has fallen into disrepair.
There is a deteriorated 20 foot wide sidewalk located on the northern side of the street, with a smaller one located on the street’s south side. The roadway is wide, riddled with potholes, and lightly used by vehicles.
SOUTH MARKET STREET
As a part of the Phase 1 implementation, South Market Street will be transformed from two way to a one way west to east directional roadway heading towards Lombard Street, which runs north to Broadway and the Broadway Market parking garage. This change is not expected to create any congestion problems, as the street currently is seldom used and the new driving lane will still accommodate delivery vehicles.
As seen in Figure 10.5.3-C, the Phase 1 design includes the conversion of the southern sidewalk into a patio space to accommodate outdoor seating for the market and for restaurants occupying the mixed use buildings. The patio will be 17 feet wide and feature seating in the form of two lines of picnic bench style seating, each providing umbrellas for shading. Adjacent to the north of this patio will be a ten foot wide sidewalk, which will allow pedestrians to access the patio area and each end of the roadway. Tree lined benches serve as an eight foot wide buffer between the sidewalk and the roadway while also providing additional shaded seating. The roadway itself will be shifted closer to the market, eliminating most of the unusually large sidewalk that currently occupies that space. The roadway will be a total of 19 feet wide, with eight feet designated for parking space, and the remaining 11 feet for a shared use of various transportation modes. The northern sidewalk, which will provide access to the Broadway Market, will be reduced to a more easily maintained six feet in width.
The overall goal of the plan for South Market Street is to integrate the redevelopment of the Broadway Market into the overall plan of the neighborhood. It is important to create public space that may be used by residents of the neighborhood as well as the greater numbers of people projected to frequent the market. The creation of the new space will symbolize the development of the block and the Broadway Fillmore neighborhood into a vibrant area. By extending amenities associated with the market to the adjacent block, the market will be more clearly integrated into the neighborhood in terms of form and function.
LOMBARD STREET
Current
Lombard Street in its current design features a right of way that spans 44 feet, with traffic that follows a northerly one way pattern. The roadway itself spans 30 feet in width. Parallel parking on each edge of the roadway takes up a total of approximately 16 feet, leaving the remaining 14 feet to serve as the travel lane. However, there are no specifically designated areas for parking on the road, so at times the travel lane is wider or narrower. On each edge of Lombard Street are four foot wide sidewalks that are separated from the roadway by three foot wide grassline buffers.
Upkeep on Lombard is minimal, as the asphalt and adjacent sidewalks lie in disrepair. The street lacks proper markings to designate different uses, as well as lighting which befits a growing residential neighborhood. Moreover, the width of Lombard's travel lane enables vehicles to travel at speeds deemed unsafe for a neighborhood setting, creating a hazardous environment for area residents, pedestrians, users of alternative transportation, and fellow motorists. These factors, as well as the projected increase in usage as part of a larger neighborhood redesign, were taken into consideration when developing a plan for the street.
Phase 1 Option 1
Changes to the street layout on Lombard reflect an attempt to retain the street’s quiet residential character even as traffic is anticipated to increase with infill residential development and new visitors to the Broadway Market and Buffalo Central Terminal. The Phase 1 design represents a “full build out,” meaning that the roadway is anticipated to feature this design concept if the project was undertaken in full. For Lombard Street, two potential Phase 1 full build out options will be presented. The first is shown in Fig. 10.5.4-B.
The design is a hybrid shared street model of Lombard Street. As mentioned in Section 10.3, a shared street combines various uses into one with the goal of limiting the speed of motor vehicles. This is achieved through the creation of a space that promotes the usage of other low speed transportation and by pedestrians. What makes this design a “hybrid” shared street is the preservation of sidewalks to create a separate space for pedestrians while motorists, cyclists, etc. will share the main roadway.
As part of the first proposal, the roadway will remain as a one way street heading in a northerly direction. Parallel parking on either side of the street will be replaced with alternating perpendicular parking sections with each space following the traditional 9’x18’ design. The southernmost section closest to the intersection with Paderewski Drive will feature nine parking spaces on the eastern side of the road. The middle section will alternate to the western side of the street and feature ten of these spaces. The northernmost section alternates back to the eastern edge of the roadway and will feature six spots. Due to the presence of the intersection with South Market Street, this section could not be expanded farther north.
Bump outs will be utilized to shield the parking areas from oncoming traffic. As shown in Fig. 10.5.4-B, the bump outs occur directly before and following a parking section. Each will feature greenspace that may include trees, bike racks, or other small park infrastructure that will offer new recreational space, as well as areas of shade for residents of the street. It is recommended that trees located on the bump outs are either set back from the street, or be of a species that grows a higher canopy to avoid creating dangerous blind spots around the bends of the roadway. The new bump-outs will calm traffic, provide amenities, and create a more permeable surface to offset potential stormwater issues of new construction.
Fig. 10.5.4-C shows the projected dimensions of the Lombard Street right of way after full build out. Existing sidewalks and buffers remain on either side of the roadway and maintain their original widths of four feet and three feet respectively. Parking areas will accommodate 18 feet of the width of the roadway, while the remaining 12 feet will be shared by various transportation uses.
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Phase 1 Option 2
The second Phase 1 design mirrors the previous option with the exception of roadway and bump out design. This option, shown in Fig. 10.5.4-D, features 45 degree reverse angle parking rather than perpendicular parking. The layout will require drivers to reverse into parking spots, as opposed to providing the option to either back in or pull in. In addition to changes to the parking design, slight tweaks to the shape of the bump outs have been made to better accommodate the angled design. Regardless, they will remain as greenspaces for residents to enjoy.
Each angular space is measured at 9’x19’, which are the generally accepted dimensions. The southernmost and middle parking sections on the street will feature nine spaces, while the northernmost section will feature four.
Figure 10.5.4-E depicts the projected dimensions of the Lombard Street right of way after the second Phase 1 build out option is completed. While sidewalks and grass buffers have maintained the same width as seen in the first option, major changes have come to the layout of the roadway. Parking takes up much less space in this application, with 9’x19’ angled spaces taking up 13’ 5” of the roadway, leaving 16’ 7” remaining for various modes of transportation. This leaves more room on the road for cyclists, skateboarders etc., as well as space for cars to pull off to the side in preparation for reversing into the parking areas. While in theory the widening of the travel lane would increase the tendency of drivers to overspeed, it is anticipated that road conditions created by the combination of vehicles frequently parking/pulling out of spots, the presence of other transportation uses, and frequent bump outs will serve as traffic calming measures. If deemed necessary, additional traffic calming tactics such as the construction of speed bumps may also be utilized to further improve traffic safety.
While debatable, the second option is likely to be the more feasible of the two given the dimensions of Lombard Street’s right of way, and it is anticipated that public discussion will favor this design as it did in the final stakeholder presentation. 45 degree street parking is more accepted than 90 degree street parking, having been implemented in various street redesigns across the country.
In addition to the drastic changes to the roadway, both Phase 1 designs discussed above will also feature improvements to sidewalk infrastructure and street lighting. This is projected to include the installation of new sidewalk slabs and a series of 15 foot tall lantern style street lights that are commonplace in Buffalo neighborhoods. The design does not include a specific number of lights, but it is anticipated that a 15 foot streetlight will be placed every 45 feet alternating on each side of the road. The new lighting will address resident concerns that the neighborhood is simply too dark to safely walk around at night.
The overall Lombard Street design will promote slow driving among motorists. A winding road created through the strategic placement of parking areas and bump outs, the prospect of cars parking or pulling out of designated areas, and the presence of other modes of transportation will compel drivers to use extreme caution while travelling through the neighborhood. When coupled with the improvement of sidewalks, street lighting, and the addition of small greenspaces, the design will improve the overall aesthetics of the neighborhood, as well as create a safer environment for those who live on and/or use the roadway. With the likelihood of increased traffic from development of new infill housing on the street, as well as the development of mixed use buildings along adjacent streets, these designs would preserve the overall residential neighborhood character.
PADEREWSKI DRIVE
Current
The Paderewski Drive right of way spans 82 feet, large for a thoroughfare in a residential neighborhood. On the north side of the street, the sidewalk is eight feet wide with a six foot grass median. The southern sidewalk space contains a nine foot median with a five foot sidewalk. The street itself is 54 feet wide, a factor which likely contributes to high vehicle speeds. Though there are no official parking lanes, red paint markings on a site visit suggested an attempt by residents to delineate “unofficial” parking spots.
Roadway condition is overall poor, with significant cracking on asphalt and around manhole covers. Street lighting is sparse and not at a pedestrian scale. Especially given large swathes of vacant land which diminish lighting from buildings, the light infrastructure is insufficient for pedestrian activity on the block. Sidewalks are in fair condition, overall maintained with some patches of overgrowth.
Given plans to turn the Buffalo Central Terminal into a regional destination, Paderewski Drive should be treated as a major road within the study area and therefore receive “complete street” treatment. Paderewski can be expected to be more highly trafficked with both residential densification and people being attracted to the new destination of the redeveloped Buffalo Central Terminal. Additionally, people may use Paderewski Drive to access the Broadway Market via Lombard Street. In the current (rather large) right-of-way, treating the street as a major road translates into narrowing travel lanes and adding new curb bump-outs and bicycle lanes to facilitate pedestrian safety and connectivity in a newly densified highly trafficked block.
The street is currently wide and underutilized (Fig. 10.5.5-A), but the street section in Fig. 10.5.5-C shows the width of different components of the proposed street right of way. On the north side of the street, the current sidewalk and grass median width of eight feet and six feet are to be maintained, while the median on the south side of the street should be narrowed in favor of more sidewalk space. For both sidewalks, the curb line is not being moved except with bulb outs at intersections and in the middle of the block (Fig 10.5.5-B and 10.5.5-D), which shorten crossing distances, slow cars, and add sorely needed street trees and permeable surface. Six foot bike lanes are placed on both sides of the street and marked with green paint. Two foot landscaped buffers add permeable surface and protect bicyclists from cars moving in and out of parking, while eight foot parking lanes on both sides protect cyclists and mitigate potential parking issues which may emerge from increased residential and activity density. Keeping driving lane width at 11 feet keeps a clear path for emergency vehicles and also allows the potential addition of a bus route later. Given the relatively large distance from the Terminal and the nearest bus stop, around three-quarters of a mile, a new bus “spur” or shuttle may be advisable as the Terminal comes into use. Further, the neighborhood is growing and relatively poor—new public transportation infrastructure may prove necessary with densification. Planned upgrades to the street improve permeable surface and safety while making the street more beautiful and usable for both residents and visitors to the block.
STREETSCAPE PHASE 0
South Market Street
Streetscape upgrades to South Market Street, Lombard Street, and Paderewski Drive form a major portion of this redesign. Though changes will hopefully be implemented permanently, redoing a street is frequently in the tens of millions of dollars per mile. Costs are much lower with initial interventions using paint to mark the new curb line and bump outs and bollards to prevent vehicular traffic from entering space newly set aside for pedestrians and bicyclists. The site plan for Phase 0 (Fig. 10.5.1-A) shows all initial upgrades together, and they will be briefly discussed separately in this section.
Figure 10.5.6-B shows the projected Phase 0 design for South Market Street. In this design, both sidewalks remain at their current widths, while the roadway is split up between uses. 11 feet of the roadway will be used as a one way driving lane, while the adjacent eight feet will accommodate parallel parking. The remaining 11 feet of roadway will be painted in a deep blue shade to represent an extending pedestrian use space that may contain various activities.
STREETSCAPE PHASE 0
Lombard Street
Fig. 10.5.6-C depicts the application of the perpendicular parking design of Lombard Street (Option 1) integrated into the Phase 0 concept. Here, projected bump outs are labeled in a deep blue paint, while the parking areas are labeled with a lighter shade of blue. Bollards will be used to represent the curb of each bump out. These bollards will be strategically placed to prevent vehicles from entering the area of the proposed bump out, protecting the parking areas that lie beyond and creating the “winding” roadway that is proposed in the Phase 1 design.
Fig. 10.5.6-D shows the layout of the Lombard Street right of way in Phase 0, with measurements consistent with those depicted in the Phase 1 build out (Figure 10.5.4-C). The Phase 0 proposal that includes reverse angled parking (Option 2) will feature similar usage of paint and bollards, with measurements mirroring what is shown in its Phase 1 build out (Figure 10.5.4-E).
STREETSCAPE PHASE 0
Paderewski Drive
Figure 10.5.6-F shows the vision of the street section without repaving. Dimensions remain the same as in Phase 1, minus changes to the south side of the street, where the current median and sidewalk widths are maintained. Instead of redoing the street entirely with new pavement and landscaping, new curb bump-outs and the buffer are shown with blue paint. Bump-outs can be more clearly seen in Figure 10.5.6-E, outlined by bollards. The bike lane design does not change.
CONCLUSION
Early implementation will begin with Phase 0 designs, which have lower cost and bureaucratic barriers to implementation. Permitting and upfront costs are far lower for community gardens than new construction, particularly given similar projects on empty lots across the city. As noted in section 10.5.1, there is even already a community garden in Broadway-Fillmore and beds on the roof of the Broadway Market. Temporary seating on South Market Street can be done in collaboration with vendors and leadership at the Broadway Market.
PHASE 0 COST ESTIMATES
Unlike Phase 0 for block design, cost estimates for Phase 0 streetscapes can be estimated with relative accuracy thanks to the work of the National Association of City Transportation Officials. All estimates for cost and bollard spacing are taken from their manual. Given the exponentially lower cost of tactical interventions versus street restructuring, money can be more easily allocated from a municipal or nonprofit budget, or perhaps allocated from the recently awarded $10 million revitalization grant. Potential partners for implementation would likely be community organizations such as Broadway-Fillmore Alive or GOBike Buffalo, the latter organization having done several similar projects on the East Side and across Buffalo. They’ve even done a similar project on Fillmore Avenue north of the study area, using volunteer labor and funding from the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Legacy Funds, making GOBike an invaluable resource for implementing such tactical measures
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Broadway-Fillmore is a transforming neighborhood, illustrated by recently released plans for the Central Terminal and Broadway Market, as well as incoming state revitalization funding. Outside of organizational initiatives, the neighborhood is changing on the ground. It is now the fastest-growing neighborhood in Buffalo as of the most recent census, driven largely by new Americans. Transformations such as those facing the neighborhood mean that an area stands to “plan or be planned,” particularly given low land values and prevalence of vacant lots throughout the neighborhood. The block and street designs in this final report section lead from the vision established throughout chapter ten for a new Broadway-Fillmore which has not rejected the old, quiet, residential community that current residents know and love. Rather, it uses street calming and gentle density tactics to make a quiet residential neighborhood the best it can be.