Prior to Tuesday’s city council meeting, Downtown Pittsfield Inc. Managing Director Rebecca Brien was an advocate for moving to diagonal parking on Pittsfield’s main thoroughfare, North Street. As she told the council during the open mic portion of the night, a new report from the city’s Department of Public Services & Utilities had changed her mind.
“When we brought the request to the city council to reconfigure the parking patterns in downtown, we expected a quick yes or no response," said Brien. "What we did not anticipate was the thorough evaluation and analysis of angled parking and its alternatives that is being presented this evening. DPI would like to withdraw its request in order to support the proposed design. Based on the key takeaways from the report, we agree that this option most strongly promotes a welcoming downtown by providing slower traffic, wider sidewalks, and safe path for bicycles.”
Nick Russo of the volunteer-driven Pittsfield Community Design Center, a vocal advocate for pedestrian and bike friendly infrastructure in the city, said he also supports the streetscape redesign proposal favored by Pittsfield.
“I do support the preferred alternative that includes the parallel parking, protected bike lanes, and wider sidewalks," said Russo. "I think it's a good balance of options for all different modes of transportation, which is essential for a healthy main street, which is what our North Street is. So, I look forward to seeing what discussion arises from the proposed alternative and happy to offer any help that I can through the Pittsfield Committee Design Center in the coming weeks and months as we move forward on those discussions.”
Commissioner Ricardo Morales told the council that after his office reviewed possible angled parking configurations, the city’s call was to maintain the current parallel parking system while creating a protected bike lane with more green space.
“In this iteration we looked at, it provides ample space with parking and moving travel lane occupying about 19 feet, and the rest being dedicated for pedestrians and cyclists- What we would call active mobility," he explained. "It’s the same and very special, creating additional space for outdoor recreational use for outdoor cafes and outdoor usage in front of retails and restaurants.”
The city offered both an A and B version of its preferred choice.
“The only difference or distinction with this one is it's a little simpler to implement, it does not raise the bike lane, it still makes use of the same curb line- That stays in place, the drainage stays in place," said Morales. "The only addition is the islands in the middle which may or may not have plantings. It's not been determined yet. This is an analysis on the alternatives, [they] are conceptual. So, this has the potential of being less impactful in that way.”
The plan was well received by councilmembers.
“I'm in full support of the North Street redesign. I have been on the council since your pilot had started with the bike lanes, and I agree with you going down to one lane in both directions. I also think bike infrastructure is important, but I can also see why the current configuration is confusing to some people, and I appreciate you coming forward with a plan to improve what we currently have," said Ward 5 city councilor Patrick Kavey. “I think that on our main street, it makes sense for us to have wide sidewalks, I do think it makes sense for us to have a protected separated bike lane. I like the landscaping buffer you have in between the bike lane and where people would be parallel parking. I do hope you consider trees, because we want more greenery in downtown.”
Morales’s presentation was accepted and placed on file. The commissioner told the council that the downtown redesign remains in its early stages, and that community meetings on any proposed changes are forthcoming.
You can find the report on visions for downtown Pittsfield here, starting on page 43.
