[bikes] bike racks planned for Main Street

[Mark Stosberg]

Hello everyone.

I wanted to let you know that plans are underway to get bike racks on
Main Street. The summary is that we are moving as quickly as we can to
get the racks early in this riding season. I'll post a more concrete
date when we have one.

For all the details, read on.

Where -- the project will definitely include some racks in front of the
Clear Creek Coop in the 700 block, likely parking for 6 to 8 bikes. I
will also be proposing locations in the 800 block-- near Tom's Deli and
the Sailor Street Building, as well as in the 900 block, servicing
Readmore, the yarn shop, Kessler's, the Clay Pot Cafe and the dentist's
office.

The racks will most likely all be installed in locations where there is
currently ivy, so that they will not impede car parking or pedestrian
traffic.

Who -- It turns out that an incredible number of people need to be
involved for what seems like a simple project. The good news is that I
think all the necessary people are in the loop now and are on board .
This includes myself, Scott Zimmerman, the City Planner, the Mayor, Beth
Fields representing the Urban Enterprize Zone, Renee Oldman representing
Center City, Bill Thistlethwaite representing the Parks Department, as
well as the Police department. The surveyor's office is also involved to
supply plans for downtown, and the Board of Works will need to
eventually approve the project (which is not expected to be a barrier).

What -- The rack that will be used will be a simple black "bike loop".
These are available for $68.00 each and made in Indiana. You can see
them here: http://www.wabashvalley.com/item.wws?sku=BL100N&size=1
Bill Thistlethwaite has extensive experience installing these from his
time at Notre Dame. In fact, the photo in the link above is one of his
installations from Notre Dame. I endorse the design because it's very
similar to the "staple" design that seen all over Portland, OR and
recommended by bike planners there. Here's a short of something similar
in Portland: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59878729@N00/3217892775/

How -- I initiated this latest process but it is now a collaborative
effort between the parties involved. Bill Thistlethwaite is helping to
finalize the plans based on his experience at Notre Dame. Beth Fields
has helped to coordinate meetings and has pledged to fund materials
through Urban Enterprise Association funds. The City could possibly use
their Street Department for the labor. If this becomes a hold up, we
have a back up plan to use private funds for the the installation.

When -- There is not a firm installation date. Currently we are stalled
developing a final plan to propose. I will try to move this forward
myself by researching exact dimensions of the pad size we need in each
case, and then measuring spaces downtown to make a very specific
proposal.

Mark

--
http://mark.stosberg.com/bike

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[Paul Taylor]

I'm glad to hear you are installing racks. South Bend did that 2 years
ago, in the whole downtown area. They are well used are are an asset
to the downtown. I was not involved at the time, but let me tell you a
mistake that was made - at least a mistake in some people's eyes.

The racks are attractive high quality post-type free standing racks,
where two bikes can be secured to each post. Of course bikers without
kickstands need to lean their bikes against the post, but the post is
not tall enough to reach the bike seat: that's a problem because they
must lean their top tube against the post, resulting in paint
scratches.

So I would encourage you to get post racks tall enough to reach the
bike seat. They are not easy to find.

> --http://mark.stosberg.com/bike

[Mark Stosberg]

On Sat, 17 Apr 2010 20:51:57 -0700 (PDT)
Paul Taylor <PTayl...@comcast.net> wrote:

> I'm glad to hear you are installing racks. South Bend did that 2 years
> ago, in the whole downtown area. They are well used are are an asset
> to the downtown. I was not involved at the time, but let me tell you a
> mistake that was made - at least a mistake in some people's eyes.
>
> The racks are attractive high quality post-type free standing racks,
> where two bikes can be secured to each post. Of course bikers without
> kickstands need to lean their bikes against the post, but the post is
> not tall enough to reach the bike seat: that's a problem because they
> must lean their top tube against the post, resulting in paint
> scratches.
>
> So I would encourage you to get post racks tall enough to reach the
> bike seat. They are not easy to find.

Paul,

Thank you for the feedback.

We discussed this concern in our planning
process. The racks we have are supposed to be scratch resistant. The
description says:

"Each loop is entirely Plastisol coated for a maintenance free loop and
to add protection against scratches to the bikes."

As Bill T has reported his experience from Notre Dame, this has worked
very well.

Mark