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Conducted by ISAT 424 and ISAT 471 Classes Presented by Mary Handley Christie-Joy Brodrick

- Preliminary Results - Assessment of Downtown Harrisonburg Accessibility, a JMU Student Community Service Project. Conducted by ISAT 424 and ISAT 471 Classes Presented by Mary Handley Christie-Joy Brodrick Integrated Science and Technology James Madison University. Scope.

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Conducted by ISAT 424 and ISAT 471 Classes Presented by Mary Handley Christie-Joy Brodrick

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  1. - Preliminary Results -Assessment of Downtown Harrisonburg Accessibility, a JMU Student Community Service Project Conducted by ISAT 424 and ISAT 471 Classes Presented by Mary Handley Christie-Joy Brodrick Integrated Science and Technology James Madison University December 6, 2004

  2. Scope We set out to understand downtown’s current conditions. The students took a comprehensive, integrated look at issues and opportunities, including people, businesses, environment, and access that would help make decisions and future plans. We compiled information about the uses and users of downtown, captured business owners’ and the public’s concerns and hopes for this area, and highlighted the key issues facing downtown. Special attention was paid to accessibility related issues, including parking and pedestrian accommodations. All work was conducted free of charge by a team of 25 JMU students as part of a class project.

  3. Objectives 1. Address accessibility issues and perceptions • Parking availability and utilization • Handicap accessibility • Pedestrian safety and accessibility • Traffic patterns and problems 2. Develop a spatial and temporal map of downtown utilization • People • Vehicles • Public transportation

  4. Objectives Con’t. 3. Understand the dynamics of the downtown area: • mix of uses and users • private transportation patterns and issues • public transportation patterns and issues • motivations for downtown trips • disincentives to downtown utilization 4. Identify areas of special focus: • Environmental strengths and concerns • Public transit service and accessibility • Historic buildings and sites • Unique resources or attractions that draw visitors/users • Population trends for Harrisonburg and Rockingham County

  5. Approach • Establish objectives and a schedule • Break into teams • Determine methods and identify data sources • Gather Data: • Collect parking data using counts • Survey business owners • Survey the general public that goes downtown • Mine data from existing sources including city databases and GIS, US census data, etc. • Compile and summarize data • Create a photographic record supporting the findings • Conduct background research on demographics, transportation, community planning, survey development, and analysis of demographic data in order to complete your portion of the project. • Use the results and existing VA Main Street communities as models to make recommendations for future directions • Present results on website by mid-January

  6. Teams • business/building inventory • downtown users, employees, and residents • special issues • transit • parking

  7. Business Study: Method • There are approximately 200 businesses in the downtown area • 166 surveys were handed out to businesses directly by the students • 88 businesses responded to the survey • These 88 businesses employ 750 people: 2/3 full-time, 1/3 part-time employees

  8. What Business Responded? • 25 retail shops (2 auto-related) • 8 restaurants • 4 educational organizations/offices • 3 churches • 11 public offices • 25 service providers (health/legal/financial) • 4 personal care (hair/skin) • 8 retail service (framing/dry cleaner/repair)

  9. Business Respondent Stats • 51% have been downtown more than 20 years • Only 6% have been downtown less than 1 year • Almost 3/4 rent their business space, and nearly 1/10 of those are considering buying

  10. Business Satisfaction w/ Location • More than three quarters are satisfied or very satisfied with their location • 90% of service providers are satisfied • 75% of retailers are satisfied • Only 5 stated that they planned to move

  11. Business Satisfaction w/ Volume • Overall 2/3 are satisfied with their business volume • Satisfaction varies greatly with type of business • 100% of public agencies are satisfied with volume • 78% of professional service providers • 60% of retailers • 38% of restaurants • 30% of other service providers

  12. Business Employee Parking • Among the 88 businesses responding: • 46% park in private lots (leased or other) • 32% park in a city lot • 20% park on the street (half at meters) • 35% park in city garages (about one-third in leased spaces) • 30% of the businesses have a mixed parking arrangement, depending on the employee

  13. Business Survey Comments • 38 suggestions related to parking (more, free, raise cost, deliveries, location) • 35 suggestions related to retail business and foot traffic (more, better, nicer) • 22 suggestions related to appearance and landscaping (fix up, plant flowers, Greenway) • 16 suggestions related to marketing (map, advertising, signage, tax breaks) • 10 suggestions related to safety (graffiti, lighting, accessibility, sidewalks)

  14. Downtown Users Survey: Purpose • Who goes downtown? • Where do they park? • Are there pedestrian safety problems? • What attracts downtown users? • How often do users visit downtown? • What are the opinions of the city’s development?

  15. Method to Reach Downtown Users • Survey given Oct 30 – Nov 30 • 82 surveys were completed • Surveying done in person at Court Square, Daily Grind, Main St. Bar and Grill, library, A&E, Roses, and several churches • Response rate varied from 75% (at Court Square) to 5% (at churches) • Some demographics very underrepresented • Very few churches responded

  16. Who Downtown Responded? • About 1/2 are 18-25 • 1/3 are 35-55 • 4/5 own a car • 1/2 own a home • 1/4 have an income less than $15,000 • 1/3 are not Harrisonburg residents • 1/2 of our respondents visit downtown once a week or less • 1/3 visit nearly every day

  17. Getting To/Around Downtown • 2/3 drove • 1/5 walked • 3/5 parked in their first choice parking spot • Nearly 1/2 parked 1 block or less from their destination

  18. Downtown User Opinions: General • Almost 2/3 agree that downtown is a tourist draw • About 1/2 are happy with the business mix and the appearance of downtown • Nearly 1/2 try to shop downtown • 1/3 try to use downtown service providers • 2/3 disagree with the statement: “Improving downtown will not benefit the rest of Harrisonburg”

  19. Downtown User Opinions: Parking • Equal numbers agree and disagree (1/3 each) with the statement: “there is plenty of convenient parking downtown” • 1/10 agreed that parking costs are too low; half disagree • About 2/5 agree that the times on meters meet their needs; less than 1/5 disagree

  20. Downtown User Opinions: Safety and Accessibility • About 1/2 feel safe downtown • 2/3 think sidewalks and pedestrian crossings are adequate; 3/4 feel safe as a pedestrian • Just over a 1/3 agree that downtown is accessible to people of all abilities (Comments included concern about drainage and snow removal) • Perceived accessibility of shops was highest for foot traffic (3/4) and lowest for cars (less than 1/2)

  21. Downtown Users Opinions:Most Enjoyable Aspects of Downtown(in order from most comments to least) • Restaurants and coffee shops • Atmosphere • It is walkable • The history/architecture/scenery • Specific activities (museum, gallery, theater, farmer’s market) • Community feeling • Closeness, uniqueness, the arts

  22. Downtown Users Opinions:What is Missing or a Problem?(in order from most comments to least) • Social life (theaters, bars, social events) • More shops or better shops • Parks, restoration, landscaping • Need less traffic, more pedestrian friendly, better public transit, better traffic patterns • Equal number of comments: vacant buildings, need parks, more or better restaurants, parking • Several comments specifically highlighted safety concerns

  23. Special Concerns • There are about 20 notable historic buildings or major visitor attractions downtown. • There are a significant number of downtown businesses who use hazardous materials, most of which are very close to Blacks Run. • There are a large number of unattractive lots and abandoned buildings in the downtown area, and a lot of graffiti that is not being removed.

  24. Blacks Run and Flooding • Black’s Run has a very high level of pollution, particularly of fecal material, and poses a potential health hazard to humans. • Downtown Harrisonburg is almost entirely paved or covered with buildings, making storm runoff very rapid. This impacts visitors (drainage), the Black’s Run watershed (sediment and pollutants enter the stream), and overall downtown conditions. • Efforts to clean up Black’s Run and restore the streambanks to healthy conditions are being undermined by multiple jurisdictions and insufficient communication.

  25. Transit Study: Method • Identified the 3 Routes which serviced downtown. (Trolley discontinued.) • Surveyed riders on Routes 1, 3, and 5 • Surveyed Mon-Sat • 8 am – 10 am • 11 am – 1 pm • 4 pm – 6 pm • 7 pm – 9 pm • (30 hours of data collection) • Distinct trends in those refusing surveys

  26. Who on the Bus Responded? • 45 Respondents • 39 non-students • >1/2 had income of less than $15,000/yr • >3/8 minority • 2/3 did not have cars • >1/3 have used handicapped services

  27. Transit Study: Results • 1/3 take bus specifically to downtown • 1/2 take it to shop, often for groceries • Overall high level of satisfaction with service and location • 1/2 ride many days of the week • 1/2 wanted earlier and later hours HOURS for ROUTES 1, 3 & 5 ~7 am – 7 pm M-F ~9 am – 5 pm Sat no service Sun

  28. Transit Rider: Comments • 95% of passengers said they need Sunday buses for either church, shopping, or errands • >50% concerned about safety (crosswalks, side of road exit, falling on handicapped ramps) • Buses should run later than 5 pm on Saturday • $0.50 fee for transfers is too much (1/3 transfer) • Transfer somewhere other than JMU • Library needs a stop • Like the low-floor buses! • Coordination with plant hours

  29. Parking Counts Date Day of Week Time of Day 12-Sep Sunday 8:00 AM 12-Sep Sunday 11:00 AM 12-Sep Sunday 12:00 PM 12-Sep Sunday 4:00 PM 26-Sep Sunday 8:00 PM 14-Sep Tuesday 8:00 AM 6-Oct Wednesday 1:00 PM 14-Sep Tuesday 3:00 PM 14-Sep Tuesday 6:00 PM 28-Sep Tuesday 8:00 PM 17-Sep Friday 8:00 AM 17-Sep Friday 2:00 PM 17-Sep Friday 6:00 PM 18-Sep Saturday 8:00 AM 18-Sep Saturday 2:00 PM 18-Sep Saturday 6:00 PM Summarized as: Weekday day Weekday evening Friday evening Saturday evening Sunday morning

  30. Parking Supply: City Lots

  31. Parking Supply: On-Street

  32. Parking Supply: Handicapped • There are 40 total handicapped spaces in all lots and on-street locations that were surveyed • Other than at Court Square, these spaces were not more than 50% full at any one location or time.

  33. Parking Count Results Maps are color coded for parking demand within each time frame: RED = 88 -100% full PURPLE = 75 – 87% full YELLOW = 60 – 74% full GREEN= less than 60% full

  34. Parking Count Results: Weekdays

  35. Parking Count Results: Weekday Evening

  36. Parking Count Results: Friday Evening

  37. Parking Count Results: Saturday Evening

  38. Parking Count Results:Sunday Morning

  39. Parking Count Results

  40. Parking Suggestions • Jess’ Lot is never full, and is located in high demand area • Kline’s and other privately owned lots could help relieve Sunday morning demand • Leased spaces on upper level of decks could also help relieve Sunday morning congestion

  41. Summary • Downtown Harrisonburg is a significant part of the community’s identity. • Most people feel that improving downtown will benefit all of Harrisonburg, and help draw more visitors to the area. • Downtown users and business owners expressed concerns about parking, lack of retail businesses, unattractiveness, and safety. • It would be very useful to interview or survey people who are NOT downtown to find out why they do not use downtown more often.

  42. Recommendations • The main attraction of downtown is the excellent restaurants. Perhaps shops should evaluate their hours since most are closed during the evening hours when people are eating dinner downtown. • Downtown users do not report having trouble with parking, however nearly half of the business owners commented about parking in some way. More clear signage for parking locations (Especially the Water St. Deck) and times when meters are not monitored would be helpful.

  43. Recommendations • The appearance of downtown is a concern for both users and business owners. The streetscape project may help to alleviate these concerns. • Many people mentioned a lack of signs directing people to downtown and to parking. This is something that the Main St. program could help remedy. • Addressing issues of sidewalk accessibility and location, and night-time lighting and loitering would improve safety and parking.

  44. Recommendations • 15 minute parking is very popular. Increasing the number of 15 minute meters could attract those who select to run in. • Sunday and evening bus service should be re-examined. • Follow-on study of who isn’t downtown and why.

  45. Challenges • Some people thought we were law enforcement • The simultaneous high school survey created confusion • The parking type and availability reported by the city was slightly off and changed • Students were not available to take data at all times that were desirable • We do not have a picture of who is not downtown and these people may well have different views than those surveyed, e.g., unsafe, not handicapped accessible, very difficult to park

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