Tulsa Comprehensive Plan - PLANiTULSA

Appendix
TrAnsporTATIon II: UrBAN COrrIDOrS
Catalyst Corridor #4:
park-once District on
Harvard Avenue at 11th street
sTep 1
Identify Corridor vision
and Determine Study Area
Adjacent to the University of Tulsa, the segment of
Harvard Avenue from 7th Street to 14th Street has
potential for re-investment in the form of higher
density mixed-use development. Over four thousand
students, staff and faculty represent a significant
market for retail and service related growth. A key
element of the vision is to promote density and
encourage walkable developments through the
effcient use of parking resources. The vision is to
be able to park-once and walk amongst various
businesses in the corridor.
sTep 2
Determine Area Context and Needs
PLANiTULSA envisions this area as a main street.
Historically, Harvard Avenue functioned as a main
street. In the recent past it has assumed more
typical strip commercial development patterns
that emphasize automobile over pedestrian access,
lot parking over on-street parking and front doors
directed towards parking lots instead of sidewalks.
This study recognized that parking conflicts are
among the most common problems facing designers,
operators, planners and investors seeking to
revitalize the corridor. Such problems can be often
defined either in terms of supply (too few spaces are
available, somebody must build more) or in terms of
management (available facilities are used ineffciently
and should be better managed). Management
solutions will best serve this area’s parking issues
because they support more strategic planning
objectives:
• Reduced development costs
and increased affordability
• More compact, multi-modal community
planning (smart growth)
• Encourage use of alternative modes and reduce
motor vehicle use (thereby reducing traffc
congestion, accidents and pollution)
• Improved user options and quality of service,
particularly for non-drivers
• Improved design flexibility, creating more
functional and attractive communities
• Ability to accommodate new uses and respond
to new demands
• Reduced impervious surface and related
environmental and aesthetic benefits
The key to the successful revitalization of Harvard
Avenue is convenient parking, either on-street or in
a shared public parking lot. In order to ensure the
walkability of Harvard Avenue, careful consideration
must be given to the design elements, sizes, and
numbers of parking lots.
sTep 3
Alternatives Development
For main streets to promote walking, bicycling, and
transit, parking issues must be resolved at the onset
of the redevelopment process. The most fundamental
element of a main street is walkability. Walkability
includes more than sidewalks for pedestrian access.
People will choose to walk if distances between
attractions are less than a one-quarter mile,
destinations are practical (grocery or pharmacy) and
the walk is pleasant and interesting. This last element
is achieved by creating a human scale as depicted in
Figure 10. The prevailing building heights of two
to three stories in relation to the street cross section
create a good human scale in relation to the street
cross section of Harvard Avenue. The gaps in the
JULy 2010
AP
APPeNDIx – TULsA CompreHensIve pLAn 41