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Holcombe Square Design Project - Public Meeting
Holcombe Square Vision Session
June 22, 2005
During the Vision Session on Wednesday, June 22, the participants shared their thoughts, ideas and vision for the future of Holcombe Square. The participants, stakeholders in the TMC community, identified current challenges and obstacles to achieving their vision and discussed possible solutions for consideration in this ongoing process.
The ideas generated during the Vision Session were graphically captured during the meeting on large banners (seen above). From these banners, certain planning principles were extracted and documented below. These Principles will serve as guides to the planning team as it moves forward with developing concepts for the Holcombe Square Streetscape Plan.
The process is dynamic and additional principles may be added following the input received at the upcoming Public Meeting scheduled for August 11, 2005.
Guiding Principles
- Create a more pedestrian-friendly environment
- Acknowledge and enhance the co-existence of cars and pedestrians
- A place of passage and a place for gathering
- Create a sense of well-being for visitors with clear, effective wayfinding/signage
- Easy navigation for people who are pre-disposed
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Reduce confusion and anxiety for visitors
- Consider the need for maintenance
- Develop flexible solutions – a kit of parts – for phased implementation
- Develop phased solutions that won’t disrupt the operations/functionality of area
- Promote a mix of uses (including the potential for retail)
- Consider ‘green’ solutions to offset urban hardness
- Consider a Texas-Feel with International Appeal
- Consider Holcombe Square’s changing role from TMC Gateway (today) to the Heart of TMC (future)
- Create a ‘cool’ place…a plaza…for people to gather – shading; planting; water
- Consider the needs of adjacent neighborhoods and TMC ‘community’
Holcombe Square Design Project Public Meeting Notes
Edwin Hornberger Conference Center - August 11th, 2005
Susan Young- Introduction and Welcome
- Holcombe square idea explanation and description
- Want to see plaza as a landmark that is not hostile to pedestrians
- There is public money available for public realm
- Large opportunities exist with private sector
Tom Cooney- The Role of the City of Houston Planning and Development Department
- To facilitate visioning process, project scope, schedule, and funding
Dan Brents- Gensler Design Team
- Study Area Description
- Will complete a study on what happens at intersections and what can happen beyond just the flow of movement to improve conditions
- This is really the first public meeting after some background research, to brainstorm and present some of the preliminary ideas
- Rice University and Texas Medical Center are dynamic centers of development
- No connectors exist tying important areas together- places in between are dangerous
- Lack of sense of place and lack of pedestrian friendliness
- Pedestrian circulation is discontinuous, where pedestrians can’t move from one spot to the next
- Entering and exiting from parking garages clogs street car traffic/ interrupts level of service
- Intersections in the area if graded by traffic flow standards, mobility and safety would be given an “F”
- Traffic will continue to increase so capacity needs to increase
- 10 key owners exist in the area and half are in health care
- Surface parking is prevalent at about 10 acres
- Retails is lacking and few restaurants exist
- Density is increasing
- Street configurations in this area determine building opportunities with maximum frontage on the street
- Green space is needed in heavily utilized areas to create people spaces
- Project will be done in phases
Holcombe Square Headline Activity
Participants wrote out a headline that might be seen in a newspaper about Holcombe Square in 2010.
- Texas Medical Center is Now Car Free
- Opening of Holcombe Square Elevated Light Rail
- Texas Medical Center Beauty
- Green Gateway has Arrived: Gardens and Fountains Welcome Walkers
- Enjoy Holcombe and Main as a Pedestrian
- Public and Private Partnerships
- Houston Pedestrian and Tree Friendly
- Alleviate Traffic and Create Green Space
- Pedestrians, Bikes and Cars: No Crashes!
- Small Project, Large Impact
- Easier Access to Light Rail
- Improve Traffic Flow
- Outdoor Air Conditioning
- Medical Center Friendly
- Project Worth the Wait
- People Relax in the Hustle and Bustle of Medical Center
Common Themes
- Accessibility/different forms of transportation not interjecting
- Green spaces
- Pedestrian friendly
- Setting trends
- Feeling of Safety/ Relaxation
Discussion Groups
- Bikes/Pedestrians
- Motorists
- Community Issues and Benefits
- Image and Identity of Holcombe Square
Bikes/Pedestrians
- Water fountains for humans and for dogs
- Safe biking racks
- Shade on sidewalks, corners (trees)
- Way finding (lighted, universal tactile symbols, maps…)
- Sidewalk maintenance
- Benches
- Connect to metro transit center
- Multiple levels of outdoor space (Moscone Ctr. in San Francisco)
- Trolley Expansion
- Trash cans
- Signals that respond to bikes and pedestrians
- Signals for visually impaired
- Sidewalks that are wide enough
- Curb cuts (ADA requirements)
- Bike lanes on Holcombe
Motorists
- We need to separate the motorists from everything else
- Create/build elevated pedestrian areas that would serve as local points and be free of automobiles
- People are not just going to the medical center they are also going through it.
- Connectivity- elevated walkways make sense because of the density. Buildings could connect to the walkways or the second floor.
- Concern about the Burger King disappearing and being replaced by a much wider Travis Street
- More visible street signs/ better signs for the buildings as well
Community Issues and Benefits
- Do outreach to the nearby neighborhoods
- Have all info on the web
- Ongoing dialogue
- Consensus/ buy-in form the community
- Make the area vibrant on weekends as well
Questions:
Q: How much do we have for a budget? Is this a blue sky session?
A: Both. A blue sky vision that we can implement in stages as the money becomes available.
A. We will be getting more than federal money, there will be money coming in from stakeholders in the area.
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