Sidewalk parking in Millburn
Parking on the sidewalk is common in many European countries.
I don't know how it will work after a big snowstorm.
The redesign was mostly good but the sidewalk parking is awful. It has set up quite a firestorm which is why no work has been done on the other side of Main. Idea of flexibility was good but it does not work at all in practice. Would have been better going with movable parklets.
Remember when they installed the speed humps right by the ambulance facility, then immediately un-installed them? What are they thinking over there?
Has this sidewalk parking increased the number of spots? Weren't there street level spots before this "improvement?"
No increase. Yes there was parking at the curb. There were three travel lanes. The intent was to narrow traffic lanes to two for pedestrian safety (good idea) and to provide a flexible space that could be used either for parking or for other things like outdoor seating or events (that did not work out so well).
Pedestrian were pretty regularly getting hit by cars turning onto Main Street from Millburn Ave. and Essex St. so making them "no turn" intersections was a good idea. The rest is the imposition of the kind of pedestrian friendly planning that is useful in big cities but unnecessary in Millburn.
I'll give them credit for the nice holiday lighting job they did in Taylor Park this year.
Okay I agree that the sidewalk parking is not the best idea. However, and I may be in the minority here, I love what Millburn has done otherwise. I used to live in the downtown area and was nearly killed by a car in addition to the many other close encounters while living there. People used it as a cut through and would drive like they were on a highway. It didn't have a "downtown" feel to it. I think it looks way more attractive and I like the lights they put up on Main Street.
One of the reasons I made the comment I did on the Cassidy thread about the area becoming over-restaurant-ed is all the good ones that have opened in Millburn in the last year or so. Jamie mentioned Curry Tub by the Short Hills train station. But also Tillies on upper Millburn Ave. and Common Lot, Pita on Essex, Saigon Cafe. (there are three others that are new re-imagined replacements for restaurants that were there, two of them by the same owner). Plus there is a new restaurant by the East Orange golf course owned by the people who own Above.
I question whether sidewalk "flexibility" was ever needed. For a handful of days each year there is extra room for a parade or a car show or arts festival. The rest of the time, it is difficult to back into a raised sidewalk parking spot, and cars are often seen hanging out over the white line. The utility poles weren't moved when the sidewalks were widened, so now they poke out of the middle of the sidewalk. People have complained about car damage from hitting the bollards. Large trucks can't navigate the turn at Essex and Main, and are instead using nearby neighborhood streets. The overall effect is off-putting according to business owners, and has caused big traffic backups all day. And it wasn't cheap. (But yes, that mural is cool!)
Seriously - who thought this was a good design? I wonder how the snow plows will work with it.
I parked on it once - it didn't feel legal.