Allison Kepley, Salisbury, NC
Nothing shocks me about Salisbury’s planning and studies anymore. First it was the stupefying idea to do “traffic calming” on East Innes, already the most congested and slow moving traffic anywhere. And our city wants to make it worse! Now city hall is promoting an equally brilliant idea called a ”design charrette”. They will chase all the police cars off their parking lot and drop the Farmer’s Market there. Right in the middle of a place absolutely nobody goes they want to put the Farmer’s Market and promote public gatherings. Why are they trying to hide the farmers market in such an inaccessible place?
The city is falling apart and downtown is screaming for more parking and they want to put the cop cars out on the street. Does anyone listen at city hall?
The Wikipedia entry for “design charrette” says it all about Salisbury’s charrette: “In planning, the charrette has become a technique for consulting with all stakeholders. This type of charrette (sometimes called an enquiry by design) typically involves intense and possibly multi-day meetings, involving municipal officials, developers, and residents. A successful charrette promotes joint ownership of solutions and attempts to defuse typical confrontational attitudes between residents and developers. Charrettes tend to involve small groups, however the residents participating may not represent all the residents nor have the moral authority to represent them. Residents who do participate get early input into the planning process. For developers and municipal officials charrettes achieve community involvement, may satisfy consultation criteria, with the objective of avoiding costly legal battles.”
