By Jay Traine and
Jamie Francomano
Recently, the success of the Braden Theatre and other improvements downtown have spurred on a noticeable increase in the pedestrian traffic on Main Street in Presque Isle. Have you noticed? Are you taking part in the momentum that is building downtown? We’d love to see you here!
The Presque Isle Downtown Revitalization Committee would like to remind drivers of the importance of yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks. Safety considerations and potential moving violations obviously give drivers good reasons to obey state law and yield to pedestrians. I spoke with Police Chief Naldo Gagnon and learned that at least one driver has been ticketed recently at the Braden Theatre – a resident of Washburn cited Aug. 8, to the tune of $165 – for failure to yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk. Aside from the impact on an individual wallet, we would also like you to consider the broader economic impacts of an increasingly pedestrian friendly downtown.
Family attractions at the movie theater and the thriving restaurants and businesses downtown are generating this increased level of pedestrian circulation. However, the opposite is also true. To a certain extent, a feedback loop is set in motion that allows some businesses to benefit from traffic generated by other businesses: a curious moviegoer with 15 minutes to spare who decides to go for a stroll; or even someone who simply noticed there’s a lot going on downtown and decided to get out of the car and check it out for themselves.
In this way, increased foot traffic downtown gives individual businesses a boost on the bottom line. It follows that the success of these businesses can lead to increased investment and increased real estate valuations downtown, which brings in more revenue for the Tax Assessor and creates positive ripples in the economy of the whole city. As new businesses open or the existing operations grow, so do jobs and other sectors of our local economy. For this reason, all around the state of Maine, investments in a more pedestrian friendly downtown scene are widely seen as providing a sound return on investment.
This chain of reinvestment to some extent is sparked by all the little things we can do as drivers to make pedestrians feel safe crossing our downtown streets, for example not only stopping for pedestrians in crosswalks as state law requires, but also not waiting until the last second to stop. Additionally, pedestrians need to be realistic. Simply turning on the flashing beacon overhead at the crosswalk in front of the Northeastland Hotel, for example, does not do away with the need to look both ways and to double check that both lanes of traffic are aware that you are crossing, not just the outside lane you stepped into first off the curb.
Public Works is coordinating with the Maine Department of Transportation to see how they can best accommodate the increased use of the crosswalk at the Braden Theatre, in a manner consistent with MDOT’s current plans to upgrade the timing system for the signalized intersections on Main Street next year. In discussion with Public Works Director Gerry James, I learned that MDOT will be using new traffic lights that are aided by “video detection.” He wanted residents to know that the camera-like devices will not be used to issue citations, only as an automatic sensor to aid in the timing of the lights. A wall-mounted presentation of MDOT’s planned improvements to several of Main Street’s signalized intersections is available in the Planning and Development Department at City Hall.
The City’s Department of Public Works, the City Council and other city departments and boards are all playing a part in getting pedestrian circulation downtown back up to the levels our parents and grandparents remember, and hopefully beyond. The city is actively pursuing ways to continue to enhance safety, to enforce the law and – again this important point – at the same time support the economy of the city as a whole through creating a more pedestrian friendly downtown.
Public Works handles getting the crosswalks and roadway centerlines painted every year and, as we have noted in these pages before, they went beyond the call of duty by providing downtown business owners with hauling of snow from sidewalk piles during last winter’s record snowfall. For Public Works, taking steps toward a more pedestrian friendly downtown is just as important as the extension of any other type of critical infrastructure to accommodate development and growth.
Let no one forget that there is significant maintenance involved in pedestrian infrastructure, as well. As a further example of the service the city regularly provides for our pedestrian friendly downtown, Public Works patched and repaired some of the handicap crosswalk aprons this summer, to improve accessibility of our sidewalks and crosswalks.
On the enforcement front, many of us noticed earlier this summer the Police Department has provided some new means of enforcement and awareness of the 25 MPH speed limit for vehicular traffic downtown. The Police Chief himself has been involved with this, adding himself to the special “speed trap” detail that was provided recently and widely reported on in the local media.
The City Council and the Planning Board have also gotten into the act. When presented with alternative routes for a possible North-South bypass around Presque Isle, the Councilors considered the needs of downtown (in addition to the potential impact on farm uses and natural resources away from the city’s core). It is hoped that the overall effect of such a bypass on downtown would be a positive one, especially where the initial phase will help reduce the heavy truck traffic on Main Street.
Most recently, the City Council also provided its firm commitment to match funds for a grant application prepared by Planning and Development staff for downtown improvements. The application was unsuccessful, however the proposed scope of work, which is outlined in the May 2008 Downtown Master Plan commissioned by the City Council, has provided a valuable resource of “on the shelf” projects for the city to continue working toward a more pedestrian friendly downtown in the future.
We here at the PIDRC are grateful for the city’s support for downtown improvements and again we ask you, the Star-Herald reader, what are your ideas for how we can continue to grow our downtown in the right direction?
We welcome your thoughts and opinions. It’s your city. We need your input in order to make it better. You can e-mail us at pidrc@yahoo.com or write us at: The Presque Isle Downtown Revitalization Committee, 411 Main St., Presque Isle, Maine 04769.
For more information about the PIDRC, e-mail us at pidrc@yahoo.com or call Sandy Gauvin (764-0876), Cathy Beaulieu at Wilder’s Jewelry Store (764-0309), or Patty LeBlanc (769-7731), or you can contact us at the address listed above.
We meet at the Presque Isle Area Chamber of Commerce on the Houlton Road at 7:30 a.m. on the last Thursday of each month. Please join in our efforts to help our wonderful city.
citizen advisory board to the council
(Trainer is the treaturer of the Presque Isle Downtown Revitalization Committee. Francomono is the City Planner).