Talking points: What to do with the Fulton Mall? For reals this time … we think
The last week has seen a surge in conversation about the Fulton Mall, specifically the long-standing debate about whether to open it to traffic or keep it a pedestrian mall.
Last Wednesday the PBID Partners of Downtown — the property owners association — endorsed a plan to open the mall. On Friday, Mayor Swearengin will announce what she thinks should be done with the mall.
In the meantime, many words have been written, many opinions have been shared and it’s obvious many people are passionate about this debate. Whether that’s the Save the Fulton Mall folks or their opposition.
- George Hostetter writes about the PBID’s decision and says it likely means opening the mall.
- Bill McEwen says leave the mall alone for now.
- Jim Boren says the opening the mall to traffic isn’t the answer to fixing downtown.
- Fresno Famous examines the issue and says opening the mall to traffic is the easy way out politically.
- Mural District boosters are fine either way, but don’t want it getting in the way of their progress.
- Bee letter writer says “We need that mall.”
Suppose the point here is, there are A LOT of opinions out there. So what’s yours? Leave the mall closed? Open it to traffic? Level the whole thing and start over? Make everything south of Shields a different city? Something else? Let’s hear it.
PREVIOUSLY:
- The Fulton Mall: How do we fix it?
- The Fulton Mall Charrette Process, starring robotic Hello Kitty
Responses to "Talking points: What to do with the Fulton Mall? For reals this time … we think"
DAVE AND BUSTERS.
H & M. All the teenagers will be scrambling over.
I don’t care what they do as long as they add a big chain store or restaurant that isn’t in Fresno yet.
have to wonder how many people who have such strong opinions about the mall actually go there, or actually will go there after whatever happens to it happens.
I think an interesting point of discussion is: will opening the Fulton Mall advance the economic impact of retail in Downtown Fresno?
If the rest of downtown was bustling and the Fulton Mall was deserted, it would be easy to say that the lack of vehicle traffic is the Fulton Mall’s problem. But come downtown on a weekend. The Fulton Mall has more activity and commerce than any other area downtown. When it’s being maintained, you will see kids running around, people sitting at the fountains, etc. Vehicle traffic isn’t the problem. Rather than going for another silver bullet approach (hello, downtown stadium), we need to build downtown up one building at time. Not as sexy, but the results will be better, and it will be cheaper.
Well put.
open it back up so we can drive by and see abandoned buildings up close
What does it take to analyze the origin of Downtown’s land use design? This area was NOT designed to accommodate automobiles and Downtown’s land-use design has not changed. Can the people who make these types of decisions not even bother to look at an old picture of Fresno? What do the old pictures show? All of Fresno was built upon a streetcar transit system. Most of the people in those pictures arrived there via the streetcar system. Downtown Fresno’s land use design remains Transit Oriented.
In the 1930’s when Fresno’s transit system was removed it rendered Fresno’s original land-use design to be dysfunctional.
Because Downtown’s land-use design is Transit Oriented THERE WILL BE NO REVITALIZATION OF DOWNTOWN FRESNO UNTIL ITS TRANSIT SYSTEM IS REESTABLISHED.
Measure C has a $36million New Technology Transit Fund that can allow Fresno to lead the entire nation with innovative New Transportation
developments which could provide an entire industry for Fresno based jobs.
JP Sweeney posting as Transit 41
Opening the Fulton Mall will wipeout existing businesses, businesses already struggling in the current economy.