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- - -- - -- could be made to the mall. He said this study represented one part of the effort to improve downtown Eugene. This part of the overall effort is to make e necessary physical improvements; and the other part, represented by the Centra 1 i zed Reta il Management program, tri es to improve downtown reta i 1 activity through coordination among merchants. Mr. Miles showed a film and some slides while discussing various aspects of downtown Eugene. He said the picnicing that occurs in the Olive fountain area is very positive; however, the benches are inflexible, maki ng the area function not as well as it could. He mentioned that flexibility is very important in outdoor seating. He said movable chairs and tables, because of their versatility, function best in public spaces such as a downtown mall. Mr. Miles said the playground on West Broadway is a very positive thing to have on the mall; but the facility was too large, did not work effectively for the children trying to use it, and obstructed the view of the shops on the street. He said the recent West Broadway redesign remedied these problems and made the activity of the playing children more visible to people sitting or walking on the mall. He recommended that sculptures with which children could interact be placed around the edge of the playground. He added that a playground facility can be designed to function well within the overall shopping street environment. Mr. Mil es said the blocks of Broadway between Willamette and Charnelton funct i on very we 11 : a lot of window shopping occurs; the outdoor retail displays (for example, at Eugene Athletic) work well as merchandising tools; and the outdoor seating (for example, at Rosewater's Cafe) activates the street. He said the Public Spaces Study recommends that mall improvements be e made on these two blocks first. He said his experience shows that improving the stronger portions of an area first leverages more investment in the area. Using time lapse film, Mr. Miles illustrated that most people on the mall walk along the edge of the streets because this is where the stores and activity are. He said that reopening Willamette Street to limited vehicular traffic, which is recommended by the Public Spaces Study, would not significantly change the way pedestrians walk along the street. Mr. Miles said the concept of having a central fountain is very important for a community, because it serves as a center for a downtown area. However, he said Eugene's central fountain on Willamette and Broadway is poorly designed. Rather than enhance the use of the public space, the fountain obstructs the area both visually and physically; moreover, the design of the fountain is inflexible. He said the central plaza should be the most intensely used part of downtown, but it is not. He said design changes need to be made to the fountain and the plaza area in order to intensify the use of the space. He also mentioned that the stairs and platform on the edge of the plaza are seldom used, and they obstruct other uses of the area. Mr. Miles discussed the block of Willamette between Broadway and 8th Avenue. He said the IIhole in the mallu forces pedestrians to detour from the path they would like to walk. He said the grassy areas on this part of Willamette are very popular, especially for families. He said this type of usage needs to be e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 8, 1987 Page 8