This past weekend the City of Tigard held the official ribbon cutting for newly renovated Burnham Street. The event celebrated the opening of an improved street that’s been in the works for years and is indicative of a new direction that many cities have been taking with their core districts.
It's odd to see a truck in a car-free event, but this one was only there to provide a platform for a PA system.
Much of the time spent on the project involved adding infrastructure to a previously baren road. Burnham is now easier to traverse, more pleasant to be around, and safer to use for people on foot, on bikes, and in cars than it was previously. I’ve reported previously on the sharrows that were laid in the roadway to make the street friendlier to bicycles. There are also wider sidewalks, clearly marked crosswalks, and curb extensions that all help everyone on foot travel safely. Prudently placed street trees and new, smooth asphalt make the street a pleasure to travel on, no matter your mode of propulsion.
Fitting with the themes of safety and community that come with complete streets, the city opened Burnham completely to pedestrian and bicycle traffic for the event and closed it to motor vehicles (excluding a couple of city trucks). For me it was sort of like going to two Sunday Parkways in one day!
Also new to the area is a refurbished dog park next to Burnham on Ash Street.
Even if I step off my bikes-and-walking-make-for-great-transportation soapbox for a minute, this car-free event was still really wonderful. Ignoring all the improvements to the infrastructure, setting a bit of public space aside for people to congregate has its benefits. In the brief amount of time I spent at the ribbong cutting, I was able to meet and interact with people from my neighborhood who I’ve never met before, despite having lived in the same area for years.
Traveling on Burnham street will be much more pleasant from now on, no matter how you get around.
The improvements to this street and the recent additions to the Fanno Creek trail are just a couple examples of how more and more “suburban” communities, especially around Portland, are realizing that complete, bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly streets are a Prudent Decision.
Next for downtown Tigard is a revamp of Main Street. That road connects directly to newly-improved Burnham Street and provides a connection for the Fanno Creek Trail, but both ends of Main stop at the notoriously unsafe and unfriendly Highway 99. There’s a complicated mix of traffic that travels on Main, but if Burnham Street is any indication, there are some more great things in store for downtown Tigard.
Call me optimistic, but you can't deny that free cupcakes and snow cones are a good omen.
