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 sta? to take the steps necessary to conduct an experimental closure of the 400-600 blocks of State Street during the summer of 2024, including noti?cation 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 recommendation...
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