Walkable  West  Palm  Beach  is  an  advocacy  blog  dedicated  to  making  a  better  West  Palm  Beach  by  better  utilizing  our  municipal  assets  and  creating  a  more  walkable  city.  

A  member  of  the  Streetsblog  network.  Strong  Towns  enthusiast  and  frequent  contributor.  

WALKABLE  WEST  PALM  BEACH  QUESTIONNAIRE  –  10  QUESTIONS  

 

1. What  is  your  approach  to  economic  development?  Do  you  favor  ‘economic  hunting’  or  ‘economic  gardening’,  and  which  approach  or  combination  of  approaches  would  you  pursue  if  elected  to  office?  Would  you  consider  certifying  West  Palm  Beach  as  a  Level  II  economic  gardening  program  to  support  existing  businesses  and  entrepreneurs?      

2. A  City  committee  recently  listed  17  action  items  that  are  ‘ready  to  go’  in  the  Jeff  Speck  study.  Would  you  commit  to  implementing  at  least  one  of  these  ideas  in  your  first  60  days  in  office,  or  do  you  believe  more  traffic  studies  are  warranted  before  anything  is  implemented?      

3. Is  transportation  planning  best  in  the  engineering  department,  or  under  Planning?  Which  department  leads  in  the  vision  for  street  design?      

4. In  his  downtown  Walkability  study,  walkability  expert  Jeff  Speck  states  that  while  palms  can  be  beautiful,  in  an  urban  environment  they  do  not  provide  the  many  benefits  of  street  shade  trees  and  therefore  we  should  focus  on  street  trees  that  provide  shade  in  downtown.  Do  you  agree  with  this  assessment?  How  would  you  respond  to  the  diseased  palms  on  Clematis  that  were  planted  two  years  ago?      

5. Street  trees  often  suffer  from  maintenance  neglect,  despite  the  fact  they  are  one  of  the  highest  returning  investments  a  city  can  make  in  its  urban  infrastructure.  It  is  common  for  city  departments  to  ‘pass  the  buck’  in  order  to  avoid  responsibility.  How  would  you  correct  the  issues  with  maintenance  neglect  and  ensure  this  valuable  civic  infrastructure  is  protected  and  nurtured?  Who  would  be  responsible?    

6. How  would  you  remove  impediments  and  make  it  easier  to  build  small  projects,  rather  than  the  full  city  block  development  that  is  prevalent?  

 

7. West  Palm  Beach  has  a  strong  track  record  of  innovation  in  livable  streets  and  walkability  enhancements.  A  Transportation  Concurrency  Exception  Area  east  of  I-­‐95  makes  it  easier  to  do  livable  street  design  without  Level  of  Service  obstacles.  Would  you  consider  assigning  a  Livable  Streets  Transportation  Engineer,  such  as  West  Palm  Beach  had  in  the  past,  to  manage  these  areas  in  order  to  insure  we  continue  to  make  our  city  more  livable  and  walkable?  

 

Walkable  West  Palm  Beach  is  an  advocacy  blog  dedicated  to  making  a  better  West  Palm  Beach  by  better  utilizing  our  municipal  assets  and  creating  a  more  walkable  city.  

A  member  of  the  Streetsblog  network.  Strong  Towns  enthusiast  and  frequent  contributor.  

8. Would  you  favor  implementing  a  parking  wayfinding  signage  program  for  downtown  immediately?  Or  would  you  wait  to  create  a  master  plan  for  the  entire  city  before  acting?  

 

9. Where  do  you  stand  on  the  Broadway  corridor  and  South  Dixie  Corridor  efforts?  Do  you  believe  the  priority  for  this  right  of  way  should  be  the  convenience  of  drivers  passing  through  it,  or  enhancing  the  potential  of  properties  and  neighborhoods  located  adjacent  to  it?  

 

10. In  a  2012  “Face  of  the  City”  proposal,  10  new  tree  planters  were  planned  on  Clematis  Street  in  order  to  accommodate  new  shade  trees  on  the  street.  Doing  so  would  have  meant  the  loss  of  7  on-­‐street  parking  spots.  How  would  you  balance  the  important  placemaking  and  economic  benefits  of  street  trees  against  the  parking  needs  of  downtown?