Photo by author
Streets are an essential element in our public realm. They constitute roughly 30% of our built land. They are not only for us to connect from point A to point B. But the trees, planters, light poles, benches, trash bins, and sidewalks also feed into our daily community lives.
"They are the places for walking, sitting, and socializing with neighbors to strengthen communities and make neighborhoods safer for all."
"So, what makes our streets walkable?" if you ever have this question.
Lesson from The Disney World
Look at the images below and answer this simple question: which side of the street would you like to walk along?
The street on the left is the Main Street from Disney World. The one on the right is somewhere close to my old neighborhood. I bet you favor walking on the street on the left more. That is partly because, by nature, people who go to Disney World intend to get a happy experience. But most importantly, Disney's streets are designed to be like a scene in a movie. The intricate architectural ornaments, multiple-layer of storefronts, gilded window lettering, and colorful awnings draw visitors' eyes and make them into a nostalgic state. (2)
In Disney World, the first floors were built at normal size as a scale of nine-tenth, the second floors were built slightly shorter at a scale of five-eighths, and when there was a third floor, it was built at a scale of one-half. Thus the pedestrians appeared to be bigger when walking along the street. That also tricks our brain into associating on an unrealistic scale, and made us feel like a toy.
The power of 20x20
Disney knows the tricks of focusing on the first two stories of their Main Street and building their street on an intimate scale: the combination width of their traffic lane and sidewalks are less than 50 feet wide.
So, what would our streets be if we took Disney World's lesson and made our own "happy streets"? The first space that needs our attention is the first vertical twenty feet from the street grade, equivalent to Disney's first two stories. Then, we could focus on the flat twenty feet starting from the face of the building facade—that is equivalent to covering most of Disney's sidewalk plus a portion of the traffic lane.
1. The vertical twenty feet shows the life activities with direct access to the street. It is the collage of the life scenario inside the building. This 20 feet could be:
For a typical grocery store: fifteen feet of clear ceiling height and additional five feet of mechanical and structure space.
For an office: the higher-end office often has an atrium space that serves as the lobby.
For an art studio: sometimes a place has a program for resident artists to stay in the building. Twenty feet could serve as an entire studio or studio with a resident artist's dwelling.
For a combination of the display window and also a resident's balcony
2. On the other hand, the flat twenty feet is also a calculated number triggered by our human scale. If we look at the standard living room size, it's at least 11 to 14 feet wide. To create a feeling of an "outdoor living room," we need to factor this dimension into a sidewalk width. That is equivalent to a 4 feet tree pit plus 12 to 14 feet of "outdoor room" plus 4 to 5 feet of circulation path.
Within this particular twenty feet of width, there will be enough space to display outdoor seating, café, seasonal events, or temporary street vendors and kiosks.
Below is another example of how to utilize our 20x20 space module.
illustrate potential 20x20 possibilities
Added Health Benefits
"Why is it important to make our street walkable?" " Is that another 'chocolate factory' technique to boost our business?" I am glad you asked.
Not quite.
According to this report, in 2020, the U.S. adult obesity rate stands at 42.4 percent, which has increased by 26 percent since 2008.
Providing a safe, appealing, and comfortable street environment will encourage people to walk daily. It is a less costly and effortless way to improve our well-being and public health. Moreover, designing places that seem familiar, navigable, and trigger good memories is more likely to activate feel-good serotonin and oxytocin, promoting interpersonal trust(3).
Additional Sustainable Credits
While we make our streets more walkable and are more likely to walk between places, we also reduce the vehicle traveled distance and further eliminate unwanted greenhouse emissions. Below are the sketches that summarize actionable advice from the LEED-ND reference guide to show how to make a walkable street.
Notes and References:
See planning details at “Commercial Residential and Employment Zone Guideline“.
“The State Of Obesity 2020: Better Policies for a Healthier America“, via Trust for America’s Health.
There are many related researches papers. I would like to recommend two influencers. One is Esther M. Sternberg. She is an Immunologist and focus on Psychology impact of our environment. You can listen to one of her interview at OnBeing. The other is Paul J Zak. He is a neuroeconomist. His research discovered the key role that oxytocin plays in mediating human relationship and powerful priming effects of the landscape surrounding us.
Last Update: 5/26/2022