Fiscal Note
No City appropriation required upon adoption. Implementation of potential recommendations made in this report would require future budget appropriations.
Title
Adopting the “2024 State Street Pedestrian Mall Experiment Report”
Body
WHEREAS, on September 5, 2023, the Common Council passed RES-23-00554 Directing staff to take the steps necessary to conduct an experimental closure of the 400-600 blocks of State Street during the summer of 2024, including notification of directly impacted stakeholders; and
WHEREAS, throughout 2023 staff coordinated with multiple City agencies and presented a concept to the public at a meeting on December 4, 2023; and
WHEREAS, over 600 residents and stakeholders helped paint the street with art and stencils in advance of the official start of the experiment on May 8, 2024; and
WHEREAS, the experiment was conducted from May 8 until October 31, 2024; and
WHEREAS, RES-23-00554 called for the Planning Division to report back to the Common Council on the results of the experiment; and
WHEREAS, the report provides project highlights, analyzes available data on the experiment, and offers key lessons and future recommendations that were developed through survey feedback and coordination with key stakeholders and City agencies; and
WHEREAS, the report is a resource to guide specific areas of planning for future Pedestrian Mall experimentation, the upcoming Downtown Area Plan, the City’s capital and operating budgets, and preparation of agency work plans; and
WHEREAS, a successful Pedestrian Mall requires further experimentation and would rely on creative vision and coordination among businesses and property owners on the street, residents, City agencies and community partner organizations to be successful; and
WHEREAS, at the January 16, 2025, meeting of the Downtown Coordinating Committee, the Committee voted to recommend the Common Council adopt the 2024 Pedestrian Mall Experiment Draft Report and consider its recommendations; and pursue up to a 3-year extension of the Pedestrian Mall Experiment; and increase the programming funds given to Madison’s Central Business Improvement District in subsequent years.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Common Council adopts the “2024 State Street Pedestrian Mall Experiment Report”; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Common Council directs staff to continue a very limited iteration of the experiment in 2025, with the understanding that there was not a dedicated 2025 budget or staff capacity, while continuing to work with City agencies, community partners and others on the findings and recommendations of the report for future years, with potential 2025 activities to include:
• Working with community partners on continued programming, and potential repainting of parts of the 400-600 blocks using existing design and remaining materials
• Continuing music programming related to the #MadisonisMusic initiative
• Exploring ways to increase enforcement and education of existing vehicular and delivery hours limitations as outlined in MGO 12.915,
• Reinstalling previously removed benches on the terrace in areas lacking seating
• Keep existing flamingo sculptures and #FlocktoState branding; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Common Council directs staff to consider changes to the existing MGO 12.915 State Street vehicular and delivery restriction and enforcement as part of the Curb Management plan and strategies for downtown, headed by the City’s Department of Transportation; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Common Council directs staff to consider physical changes to State Street as it develops future plans and specifications to replace sidewalks and other needed public infrastructure repairs; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the Common Council directs staff to consider how lessons from the experiment and recommendations in the report can be used to continue refining future iterations of the experiment, including budget implications, and consider using an updated experiment as a tool for public engagement during the upcoming Downtown Area Plan process.