Slow Traffic a Plus for Walkable Developments
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Olsen: “People spaces, eyes on the street, slow-moving traffic and a few strategically located parking spaces are essential in a walkable development.”
HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA—The Boardwalk, a newly completed mixed-use development here for Sares Regis, purposely offers a parking structure that slows traffic, drawing eyes to the street, TCA Architects principalEric Olsen tells GlobeSt.com. The 12-acre site replaces a defunct furniture warehouse and parking lot with 487 market rate and affordable apartments, a public park, and 14,500 square feet of commercial space. We caught up with Olsen for an exclusive interview about the project and the demand for developments of this type in Orange County.
GlobeSt.com: What do you see as unique about the Boardwalk?
Olsen: The Boardwalk provides higher density (40 dwelling units per acre) than walk-ups of the past. The architecture is unique in the way that the building design and site plan work to shield parked cars from the pedestrian-oriented neighborhood street. The only parked cars on that street are those parked in a parallel fashion to activate the street and slow traffic. The majority of cars are parked under the buildings in the first-floor parking areas or between the buildings in motor courts. Most lower-density walk-up projects have much more parking in view, so the Boardwalk has a much nicer feeling…
