Freedman Tung & Sasaki Urban Design - Public Realm, Featured

Main Street Design

Fri, 5 May 2006 17:29:12 -0700

Components:
Streetscape

INTRO text:

Lined with attractive historic buildings, Main Street has long been the focal point of downtown Pleasanton. However, the street’s excessive width and an irregular tree canopy detracted from the quality of the streetscape. FTS’ redesigned a half-mile segment of Main Street to include a new continuous street tree canopy, corner bulb-outs to shorten pedestrian crossing distances, new sidewalk paving, and selective use of custom furnishings. The resulting streetscape has injected new life into the downtown shopping district.

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BEFORE text:

Main Street lacked a consistent tree canopy in a hot downtown that is frequently hot and sunny.
The street felt wide and auto-oriented, especially for pedestrians trying to cross.
Existing street furniture was sparse and visually uncoordinated.
Sidewalks were made of ordinary concrete and detracted from the distinctiveness of downtown.

Downtown Mountain View Multimodal Transit Center

Thu, 16 Mar 2006 14:29:30 -0800

Components:
Urban Open Space

INTRO text:

FTS located and designed Mountain View’s transit station to accommodate light rail, bus transfer, paratransit and walk access. The transit center design is integrated with FTS’ plan for the Evelyn Avenue neighborhood.

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BEFORE text:

Existing CalTrain-only commuter rail stop with minimal shelter, open platform, inadequate lighting, and unpaved parking lot.

Redwood City Courthouse Square

Tue, 7 Mar 2006 17:27:38 -0800

Components:
Urban Open Space, Landmark

INTRO text:

The central public place and primary catalyst project in the larger downtown revitalization plan. Positioned between the restored 1910 San Mateo County Courthouse and historic Fox Theatre, featuring two semi-enclosed cafe pavilions flanking a decoratively paved plaza space that frames views between the two historic structures.

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BEFORE text:

A vacant Courthouse Annex building to the historic San Mateo Courthouse covered the prominent site.
There was no central gathering space in the historic downtown.
The most architecturally significant building in the downtown was obscured from view.

Downtown Phoenix Streetscape Improvements

Tue, 7 Mar 2006 17:12:50 -0800

Components:
Streetscape, Landmark

INTRO text:

All the streets in Downtown Phoenix looked the same. Pedestrian activity was a rarity. FTS redesigned the primary tourist and employment corridors. The designs reorganized traffic flow, parking and sidewalk areas, and provided Downtown with its first comfortable and memorable thoroughfares for walking, sitting or driving through. As a result of the improvements, new investment has been drawn to these corridors and Downtown vitality and identity substantially enhanced.

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BEFORE text:

Project streets lacked shade trees and other amenities to protect pedestrians from the hot Phoenix sun.
Inadequate lighting made sidewalks seem unsafe.
Second Street was wide and auto-dominated.
Monroe and Adams streets were one-way traffic corridors with little shade.

Castro Street Reconfiguration and Design

Tue, 7 Mar 2006 16:56:50 -0800

Components:
Streetscape, Downtown Revitalization, TOD

INTRO text:

As the centerpiece of a revitalized town center, FTS’ redesign of Castro Street has been a catalyst for redevelopment in downtown Mountain View. The main street was reconfigured from a 4-lane arterial to a 3-lane pedestrian-oriented street with special “flexible zones.” These zones, which can be used either as patio space for an outdoor café or as curbside parking, give a distinct identity to the district.

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BEFORE text:

2/3-mile long, 4 lane street with parallel parking within 80’ and 90’ right-of-ways
Low rents and numerous business vacancies
Area was desolate after dark

First Street Improvements and Plaza Design

Tue, 7 Mar 2006 16:38:41 -0800

Components:
Streetscape, Urban Open Space

INTRO text:

The First Street streetscape project was the keystone capital improvement project recommended as part of FTS' Livermore Downtown Specific Plan. The design incorporates elements of Livermore’s winery, working ranch, and garden character into an integrated downtown streetscape composition in order to transform a state highway into a special pedestrian street with outdoor eating, increased amenities, and a town green at its historic crossroads.

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BEFORE text:

1/3-mile long, 4 lane street with parallel parking within a 93’ state highway right-ofway
A truck route with heavy through traffic

Centerville Civic Plaza

Mon, 6 Mar 2006 12:34:17 -0800

Components:
TOD, Urban Open Space

INTRO text:

The Centerville district of Fremont lacked a central civic gathering space. FTS’ design for Bill Ball Plaza features a reproduction of a historic Southern Pacific train shelter as the centerpiece of a wisteria-clad arbor fronting along the tracks. Multi-use paved areas and seating around raised grass planters provide informal seating and relaxation areas.

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BEFORE text:

The site was a vacant lot used for temporary parking, bounded by train tracks, Fremont Boulevard, the side of a historic bank building, and a train station overflow parking lot.

Palm Canyon Drive Streetscape

Mon, 6 Mar 2006 11:58:12 -0800

Components:
Streetscape

INTRO text:

To stimulate investment in the heart of the city, the redesign of Palm Canyon Drive completely transformed the visual character of the central segment of the City’s most visible thoroughfare. The design features a multi-way boulevard segment to catalyze the development of a new City Center (based on the city center plan previously prepared by FTS). The reorganized lane & intersection configuration also relieved a traffic bottleneck and met regional and Caltrans standards for enhanced operations, and provided a plan for incremental regional commitment to transit operations.

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BEFORE text:

The original 2-lane highway had been previously widened to 5 lanes; Riverside County had planned a further widening including property demolitions.
The existing street was a pedestrian-unfriendly “strip” with narrow sidewalks and no curbside parking.
The street reflected poorly on the City as seen by visitors traveling between Palm Springs and other Coachella Valley resorts.