For Day Two of our New Rochelle Walk Every Street Challenge we decided to explore some streets close to home. The photo on the left is of Titus Mill Pond, a tidal pond at the end of an inlet of the Long Island Sound. Our apartment overlooks the pond giving us the views below (taken in the spring and in the late fall respectively). When the leaves fell off the trees last year we were startled by the amount of garbage along the edge of the pond prompting us to consider starting a 'Friends of Titus Mill Pond' to do an annual clean up. Upon inquiry we found out that the pond is privately owned! And that a few years ago there was a proposal to fill it in and build houses on the fill! Having been raised in New Zealand with a great love of the Queen's Chain, imperfect though it is, the idea of someone privately owning the end of an inlet opening onto, ultimately, an ocean had me gobsmacked. Despite this we have not given up the idea of an annual cleanup. The pond is home to many birds including herons and ospreys and they deserve better than a lot of plastic bags and broken toys.
So what does all this have to do with walkability? Quite a lot actually because accessibility is such a large part of walkability. Accessibility can be limited by highways, lack of sidewalks, lack of wheelchair access, and, in parts of New Rochelle, lack of access to waterways such as the fence off Titus Mill Pond. Having said that I hasten to add that New Rochelle is blessed with more access to its coastline than many...most?...other settlements along the Westchester shore of Long Island Sound. We have some fabulous parks which I'll cover in later posts but time to get back to our second New Rochelle Challenge walk since that's the title of this entry. For this walk the theme overall was really accessibility - to waterways, to bus routes and to the five senses.
So what does all this have to do with walkability? Quite a lot actually because accessibility is such a large part of walkability. Accessibility can be limited by highways, lack of sidewalks, lack of wheelchair access, and, in parts of New Rochelle, lack of access to waterways such as the fence off Titus Mill Pond. Having said that I hasten to add that New Rochelle is blessed with more access to its coastline than many...most?...other settlements along the Westchester shore of Long Island Sound. We have some fabulous parks which I'll cover in later posts but time to get back to our second New Rochelle Challenge walk since that's the title of this entry. For this walk the theme overall was really accessibility - to waterways, to bus routes and to the five senses.
Walk Two included a number of short streets ending at the inlet. We pressed our noses on fences and enjoyed the view while looking at such a perfect potential path running along the inlet towards Glen Island Park. This is not likely to happen due to private ownership, marinas, and various built obstacles but for cities still thinking about how to manage land near waterways I urge them to consider pedestrian and cycle access. It is such a great incentive for locals and visitors alike to get out and walk! Which brings me to the five senses. A young designer, Jinsop Lee gave a TED Talk recently called Design for the Five Senses in which he urged designers to consider all five senses when designing. Someone in a planning forum then asked whether architects and planners should also be considering all five senses and the responses were YES! Much has been written about scented gardens for the visually impaired but how often do we consider scent when designing urban space? Not just flowers but the scents of cafes, restaurants, dumpsters, fish shops, wine bars.....
My home town had a city block that for years included a bakery, a fish market, a pub and a florist. The commingling of scents made that block absolutely distinctive. I can't say for sure if it was a completely happy convergence but it became a whiff of home, a scent of place, comforting as well as distinctive. When we create spaces, design streets to encourage walkability, do we really spend enough time thinking about the way it will smell? What about a variety of textures to please our sense of touch? Again this has been considered for the visually impaired with the use of tactile visual curb cuts. But what about increased use of different surfaces, cladding on buildings, innovative street furniture for all of us? Children particularly are highly tactile. How can our street designs encourage a love of walking, a sense of adventure and exploration for our young pedestrians? Along with a sense of safety to encourage nervous parents to let their children out of their strollers and onto their feet! Sight, and sound are more commonly considered but could still do with improvement. People will walk for longer and travel on foot further if their surroundings are interesting. Things to see, explore and where the sounds are pleasing. That leaves taste. Closely linked to smell and ranging from tasting diesel fumes to sea spray to a great cup of coffee. Let's make the five senses accessible through great design!
New Rochelle's overall walk score is 69 which translates to "Somewhat Walkable" however our neighborhood is the second highest ranking for all of New Rochelle awith a "very Walkable 77! No wonder we like it!
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