Hello Everyone,
There is NO Doubt that several Issues have and are being civilly discussed
here since the initial topic of the Tandem Bicyclist
( A Tall Young Father and a Very Young Child riding on the Rear Seat )
pedaled across the Courtesy Marked Crosswalk on Main Street at Vallee's
Square on a busy afternoon.
My primary objective was to inform, alert our WSMAC members, Discover
Downtown members and City officials about this.
John replied that " Bicylists should walk their Bicycle ACROSS Marked
Crosswalks, as that is easier then Pedaling Across for Safety and being
able to react quicker ..."
Carson described his experiences with Rope Barriers, with Low Flags along
Sidewalks for advertising that a Venue is Open, ? LOW Guy anchors,
Furniture on the Riverwalk. All of these are Real Safety Issues , with the
Busy Summer Season just a few days away.
Thank You,
Dennis Marrotte
On Jun 18, 2019 10:48 AM, "Discover Downtown Westbrook" <
info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hi Carson (and all),
Wanted to address a few items, as I'm able (and I'm also chatting with a
few folks at City Hall about this):
Outdoor dining furniture, it is permitted but must be contained to allow
passage. There is a minimum right-of-way required and the current outdoor
dining meets that requirement. That said, we are looking into the
possibility of having cane-friendly barriers, rather than a simple rope, so
it is more obvious that the dining area is there. Restaurants do pay for
whatever space they use.
Flags: I know of one in particular I've thought was an issue, and
mentioned that in my email to City Hall staff. I'm not sure if there are
others, that is the only one I can think of.
Sandwich boards: our city planner has mentioned this issue in the past, so
I checked in to see where we are on that.
Signs and guidewires: if there's any way to know where these spots are,
even approximate, that would be helpful. Our planning department is very
strict about height requirements for signs.
As much as we can know the issues, we work as quickly as we can to solve
them.
Best,
Abigail
On 6/17/2019 7:46 AM, Clarrage, Katherine C. wrote:
Just a reminder it’s proactive to bring up these points to businesses/the
city in a proactive/informative way and help to be part of the solution not
just complain about the problems. There are plenty of cities (Portland
included) that do the outdoor restaurant areas)…for people who are
blind/visually impaired, it’s not impossible, but rather if better/solid
“barriers” can be created (can be done aesthetically and functionally),
then it’s a win for all. Just saying…little “sugar”, awareness, and help
from all parties goes a lot further. Kathy
Kathy Clarrage, COMS
State of Maine, Division for the Blind & Visually Impaired
151 Jetport Blvd
Portland, ME 04102
207-423-5448
Katherine.c.clarrage@xxxxxxxxx
*From:* wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<wsmac-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>] *On Behalf Of *John Brooking
*Sent:* Monday, June 17, 2019 7:23 AM
*To:* wsmac@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
*Subject:* [wsmac] Re: Dining on sidewalks.
*EXTERNAL: This email originated from outside of the State of Maine Mail
System. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the
sender and know the content is safe.*
All excellent points, Carson.
Our website (http://WestbrookSafeMobility.org
<https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2FWestbrookSafeMobility.org&data=02%7C01%7Ckatherine.c.clarrage%40maine.gov%7C970b8a4ed0aa4e3a2b5808d6f31620b8%7C413fa8ab207d4b629bcdea1a8f2f864e%7C0%7C1%7C636963673698572419&sdata=ZgK1ms4F%2BT3oNjAn66zB4tYaamv5vYJGFzmAK9%2FZCks%3D&reserved=0>)
contains a link to the city ordinance on the Resources page, and I see that
the ordinance addresses outdoor dining in section 20-50. Part C mentions
that at least 4 feet of sidewalk space adjacent to the curb (or other fixed
objects) must be left open for pedestrian traffic, and 5 feet near corners.
I haven’t researched this point extensively, but I think it’s true, in the
defense of the restaurants, that sidewalk space in general is public space
provided for general public use, including but not limited to pedestrian
travel. Obviously a narrow sidewalk is only for travel, but often wide
sidewalks and plazas are constructed in order to provide for more uses than
just walking. Philosophically, is outdoor restaurant dining a private use
by the restaurant, or a public use by its customers? As a customer, I do
enjoy outdoor dining, and try to take advantage of it whenever it’s
offered, since our season for it is so short.
So I would hope that it can be done with sufficient attention to the needs
of blind pedestrians, and I guess you can always contact the code
enforcement department when you encounter a problem, or your city councilor
if you feel the existing ordinance is lacking. Do you think it’s more of an
ordinance problem or an enforcement problem?
On Mon, Jun 17, 2019 at 6:08 AM Carson Wood <cwood@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
If sidewalks are infrastructure then why is it lawful for restaurants
to clog them up with ropes, tables, and chairs?
An elderly blind neighbor can no longer use the boardwalk because it is
clogged up with a bunch of outdoor dining furniture.
As far as that goes, neither can I.
Are these restaurants paying anything to take away my freedom?
I’ve tied knots in open flags that have been hung which hit my face.
I’ve thrown or kicked aside sandwich boards that have been blocking
sidewalks.
I’ve had my face cut by signs that suddenly appeared on posts much
shorter than in the past. I’ve hit guidewires that slant into sidewalks.
My Wife tells me of all the wild west traffic that runs lights.
This is not pedestrian infrastructure friendly to me.
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