It was indeed a privilege to participate in the workshop hosted by the Office of the Governor and the Chamber of Commerce on the future of Charlotte Amalie’s Waterfront. It was a rare opportunity for local planning professionals, architects, preservationists, community leaders and the business community to share concerns and ideas.
All participants lauded the Department of Public Works for taking a major progressive step to listen. The purpose was to "neither destroy nor promote Plan 8" but rather, to cooperate to develop a "shared vision" for the future of our Waterfront. Believe me, no one at this workshop wants to leave the Waterfront the way it is now. The resounding question is what is the best way to develop the harbor?
The 4-lane highway expansion concept was developed years ago with the assumption that we "the thousands of commuters who use Veteran’s Drive,": need four traffic lanes around the Legislature to get to points east and west of town; have little appreciation for public amenities such as elegant streets scapes, generous landscaping, historic type street lights, and beautiful civic spaces; and that sprinting across a 4-lane highway is no big deal.
Plan 8 was selected from several alternatives developed when it was believed that a highway project was required in order to fund enhancement. The ISTEA legislation passed by Congress in 1991 and TEA-21 passed in 1997 encourages alternatives to highway construction such as visitor centers, transportation centers, pedestrian elements, street scape improvements and restoration of historic monuments such as Fort Christian to be built as stand alone projects. Transportation is not
just about moving cars. Families and visitors walking along the harbor edge, shuttles, tenders, taxis, native flora and fauna, shade trees, benches, and mass transit are all part of the larger transportation picture. Like the new Christiansted boardwalk, a highway does not have to be constructed around the Legislature in order to bring long overdue improvements to our Waterfront. Our limited funds should be used for improvements that can begin immediately.
One commonly cited cause of congestion is a failure to provide more road space. However, recent national research shows that a road building-based approach to fighting congestion is expensive and ineffective. More innovative congestion fighting techniques can be employed. For every 10% increase in a road’s capacity there is a 5.3% increase in traffic on that road due to "induced travel." Circulation patterns, sprawl and other factors must be addressed. ISTEA and TEA-21 provide communities flexibility to use transportation funds to increase mobility (not just road capacity) while enhancing livability. Many people are distressed by what is happening to the beauty of our island. Buildings are located without regard for their impact on traffic. We should create buildings and spaces that are appropriate to our environment and historic character. The esthetic value and pedestrian character of Charlotte Amalie are important to attract visitors and enhance our quality of life. Transportation elements can be designed to reflect these values.
Workshop participants advanced several constructive ideas and common sense changes. Many can be implemented within the current PWD / FHWA budget. For example, vehicles on the W.I.C.O. property flow smoothly because traffic flow patterns, parking areas and taxi areas are arranged and managed efficiently. Workshop participants concentrated on bringing similar order and efficiency to our existing roadways. If this is not done, any highway whether 2, 4 or 8 lanes will be clogged at major intersections and arteries.
The aesthetic value and character of the current 4 – lane section of Veteran’s Drive is not pedestrian friendly and is inappropriate for a historic district and major tourist destination. In the 50's and 60's shoreline areas were not considered attractive and were used as expedient places to build highways because they were flat. Since the 80's, major cities like Baltimore, Norfolk, Miami, San Diego, San Francisco and nearby Old San Juan, to name a few, have realized the enormous cultural and economic value of a waterfront to serve as a great public space and a public amenity. We must not continue to apply outdated approaches to our 21st century problems. Doing so will retard our advancement and greatly erode our competitiveness in our global marketplace.
Editor's note: Chaneel Callwood – Daniels, AIA is a preservationist and a registered architect based in St. Thomas.