https://n2v.paloaltoonline.com/square/print/2015/05/06/california-ave-sidewalks-question
Town Square
California Ave Sidewalks Question
Original post made by Samuel Jessup, Ventura, on May 6, 2015
Comments
Posted by Slow Down
a resident of Community Center
on May 6, 2015 at 10:29 pm
Slow Down is a registered user.
a resident of Community Center
on May 6, 2015 at 10:29 pm
Slow Down is a registered user.
I agree it is really weird, like they ran out of glass 2/3rds of the way down California..
Posted by The AHA Moment
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 6, 2015 at 11:16 pm
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 6, 2015 at 11:16 pm
At a Sunday brunch last weekend, we heard some customers jokingly ask a restaurateur how long he had to save up broken beer bottles to create the mess in the sidewalk.
Seriously, it looks like someone just dumped their glass recycling bin onto some wet cement. It's a very cheesy and incomplete look.
Posted by Ahem
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on May 6, 2015 at 11:30 pm
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on May 6, 2015 at 11:30 pm
I don't know why the sidewalks are such a hodgepodge, but I have noticed that despite the sidewalks being much wider, they are actually more difficult to negotiate.
The new wider sidewalks are obstructed by a hodgepodge (that word again) of sandwich-board signage, bike-racks, cut-outs, tank-traps, and a whole assortment of other obstacles.
I guess this is all an application of shopping mall design theory. Shopping malls are purposely designed to be difficult to negotiate. The theory is... the harder it is to find your way around, the longer you will stay there, and the longer you stay there, the more you will BUY.
Your local government and real-estate industry, working together, to manufacture a more perfect consumer.
Posted by Ouch!
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on May 8, 2015 at 12:19 am
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on May 8, 2015 at 12:19 am
99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer................
Posted by Stuck with It
a resident of Community Center
on May 10, 2015 at 10:51 am
a resident of Community Center
on May 10, 2015 at 10:51 am
Now that the project has been declared finished, we are stuck with the broken beer bottlesin the sidewalk. The city will. E facing some lawsuits--I know of two children and one adult who have fallen on these jagged sidewalks, and all three needed sutures. All three have submitted medical bills to the city for reimbursement, have been denied, and are looking for lawyers.
Posted by City's idea of beauty
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 10, 2015 at 1:57 pm
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 10, 2015 at 1:57 pm
Don't know whose taste recent city "improvements" reflects.
Same taste as the expensive new carpets in City Hall?
or the fountain on California Avenue?
or the sculpture at Mitchell Park Library?
Something is very wrong in the management of the city. Spending huge sums, very poor results.
Posted by Ahem
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on May 10, 2015 at 9:34 pm
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on May 10, 2015 at 9:34 pm
Razzle-dazzle camouflage was developed during World War I. While most camouflage is typically designed to make something blend into its surroundings, Razzle-dazzle camouflage is "flashy" and designed to disrupt cognition.
The "gems" in the sidewalks, the sparkly cross walks, the Nouveau-Kitch street art, and the broken circulation pattern are all razzle-dazzle camouflage designed to conceal the real scandal behind the redevelopment of California Avenue.
A handful of people, who own most of the commercial real-estate on California Avenue, were able to conscript millions of dollars of taxpayer money to convert one full lane of PUBLIC roadway to largely PRIVATE use as additional restaurant seating.
Dazzle camouflage: Web Link
Posted by nah
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 10, 2015 at 9:47 pm
a resident of Evergreen Park
on May 10, 2015 at 9:47 pm
I don't have a problem with 2 vs 4 lanes and generally like the upgrade, particularly the extra space for outdoor seating. Some of the sidewalk with the embedded glass is lovely, some (with the concrete covering) somewhat attractive and the rest just regular concrete. It would, of course, be better if the sidewalk was more consistent but, hey, it's just something we walk upon anyway. I'm mostly glad that the lengthy construction period is finally over.
