“Some see a path. We see partnership, environmental care, safety, connection and community in action.” |
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In a community where walkable and bikeable schools are commonplace, the City Schools of Decatur’s construction of Talley Street Upper Elementary in 2019 presented a bit of challenge.
In short, it was neither.
Historically, the southeastern Decatur area bordered by E. College Avenue and S. Columbia Drive was characterized by a variety of light industrial uses — warehouses, car lots, manufacturing facilities, utility operations, etc. — until 2002’s completion of the Avondale Station Area LCI plan laid out a vision for the future neighborhood we now see emerging.
But in 2019 the span between the new school and the Winnona Park neighborhood left much to be desired. Road lanes were wide while the sidewalk, cluttered with overgrowth, was exactly the opposite. A safe route to school it was not.
In response, the school system constructed a 10’ wide, multi-use pathway along the perimeter of their property, west from the school to S. Columbia Drive, then around the bend to their maintenance driveway on the southwest corner of the site. Along the way they planted roughly 50 trees to one day tower over the children as they make their way to class. An important civic improvement to be sure, but also a good start. Because in Decatur, beneficial projects aren’t the end of something. They’re just a step towards bigger and better things. |
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An idea resurrected from 1920s: Infrastructure can also be beautiful. |
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Concurrent with the construction of Talley Street was Decatur’s purchase of the former United Methodist Children’s Home, now known as Legacy Park, an increasingly popular destination for the surrounding community. But like the school’s predicament, pedestrian and bicycle access to Legacy Park was equally poor. Extending the school’s efforts south along S. Columbia Drive to the park’s north entrance became a priority.
“Did you ever try to walk down the east side of S. Columbia during that time?” says project civil engineer Jennings Bell. “It was impossible.”
Plans for the extension, using existing right of way, commenced. And with them came the kind of considerations that set Decatur apart from many other places. Like, how can the effort foster more walking and biking or contribute to the city’s environmental ambitions? How can we make it more beautiful, and how do we tame traffic to enhance safety in proximity to the park?
“What we’ve heard through the planning of this process," continues Bell, "is that people want safer crossings to Legacy, especially from the Winnona Park side. The number of times it came up was overwhelming, honestly.”
“A part of that is going to be how do we get folks safely across S. Columbia? Sight distances are a thing and speeds are a thing. People coming from Memorial Drive usually come up the hill at a pretty good pace. So we look at that and say ‘Is a raised crosswalk with flashing beacon the safest way to address that?’" “We’re not slowing vehicles down just to slow them down,” he adds. “There’s a reason for doing it. Those lanes were previously like 15’ wide and that’s as wide as I-285. You just don’t need all that asphalt to get where you’re going.” |
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The multi-use path, a bioswale with decorative plantings, and a roadway slimmed to 10' lanes. |
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Another consideration was stormwater.
“We follow our own ordinances," says Bell, "and the ordinance says when you install impervious surface you mitigate the runoff so that’s what we did by adding bioswales.”
Bioswales are shallow, landscaped ditches with sloping sides and layers of soil that are designed to capture and treat stormwater runoff.
They work by slowing down stormwater runoff and directing it to an area where it can soak in. They use plants and grass to stabilize the soil, reduce erosion, absorb runoff, and filter out sediments, pollutants, and toxins from surrounding streets and sidewalks.
“The built result is functional but it also creates an amenity, with colorful landscaping enhancing the experience of walking down the path.” And if that’s not enough, there’s a financial incentive as well. Saving green by going green. “When you’re talking about limited right of way,” adds Bell, “bioswales provide the biggest bang for the buck.” |
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Stormwater from both the roadway and path is channeled into the bioswales through a series of curb notches. |
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Just as the Talley Street segment wasn’t the end, neither is the extended path to Legacy Park. In the works now is Phase 3, the further extension of the path across Legacy Park’s frontage and continuing to Katie Kerr Drive where it will connect with the East Decatur Greenway.
Late October, interested residents gathered to review and comment on possibilities for how the segment might be designed, and then again in April to review the proposals. “We did hear that a lot of people wanted that segment to be set as far from the road as possible," added Bell, "balancing out tree impacts, proximity to the Housing Authority property, and trying to create something as safe." Additional input is currently being collected as it relates to park access and the circulation of pedestrians and vehicles. And there's still time to share your thoughts. Like the Legacy Decatur approach, the path is and will be more than just infrastructure. It’s a symbol. A symbol of the city’s commitment to be green, to work well with others, to incentivize walking and biking, and to be fiscally responsible.
“Some see a path,” says Legacy’s executive director Madeleine Henner. “We see partnership, environmental commitment, safety, connection and community in action.”
The path’s final segment is expected to be completed around the middle of next year. |
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The path's Phase 3 will extend across the front of the Legacy Park property. |
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PHOTO CREDITS: Legacy Decatur |
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