Submitted by David Wold, Greenwich, in response to letter from Peter Crumbine, Irene Dietrich and Malinda Fiorita published May 1, 2022 (LETTER: In Support Of The Arch Street Intersection Enhancements)
There are only a few things I disagree with you about when it comes to balancing Greenwich’s sense of cosmopolitan sophistication and small town charm, but I do disagree with your conclusion about the Town of Greenwich taking grant money to develop the area of the Arch Street intersection with Greenwich Avenue, and I would like to explain why:
All the argument for are good ones, but I feel we need to look at the impacts of what is being done to accomplish this:
- We are adding parking on the “the rush hour route” of Arch Street, that seemingly would benefit people wanting to stop at Restoration Hardware. Others would try to either get from the station to other side of Greenwich Avenue or find space closer to ‘their store’ and end up circulating onto Greenwich Ave, likely turning again on Grigg Street and making one more attempt to find parking, as 4 spaces will be lost by Starbucks and 10 further down Greenwich Ave in front of the Apple Store and Meli-Melo.
- Adding 10 spaces on Arch Street means northbound traffic would have to wait for cars entering or exiting those spaces. That would not help the flow. I fear also southbound traffic would try to angle themselves into the parking spaces and with large SUVs, and it would take several back-and-forth moves before getting to the 60° direction of the park space.
- The 10 parking spaces, again is the same number being removed between Fawcett and Grigg (across from entrance to Richards by the Apple store to the corner by Meli-Melo) which would be dedicated to ‘drop off/pick up” of passengers who cannot wait to find parking.
Adding a new ‘pocket park’ by the front entrance to Richards instead of parking spaces, does not sit well either.
Then we need to look at :
d) the ‘bump out’ to create the 10 parking spaces for Restoration Hardware on Arch Street requires moving that whole block of Arch Street 25-35 ft towards the Board of Education building. This is possible, given that the property lines were previously moved back in 1960.
As for the anticipated increase in traffic on Arch Street and the need for 3 maybe 4 lanes there, it was never the intention of town planer Rudolf Jass in his evaluation to move property lines just to make room to MOVE Arch Street. It was in case the 4,900 cars per days in 1960 increased. It hasn’t. Rather, it has decreased in one report I read. But just moving it will trigger the following:
1. The new sidewalk would be 15-25 feet from G.A.R. tree and plaque that was re-dedicated (as you know well) only 5 years ago and has not reached its full size yet.
2. The sloping pathway from Arch St./Board of Ed parking to the entrance of Board of Ed would have about 15/20 feet less pathway, requiring either steps or a steeper new walkway.
3. Col. R.C. Bolling monument would be 25-35 feet closer to the road / sidewalk (maybe a good thing) but plans for the new layout in front and again his ‘guards’ of 100 year old trees would be disturbed.
4. Moving Arch Street and the Sidewalk would mean cutting into the front lawn, which again means we need to alter the entire front lawn elevation or build a retaining wall as the drop would be as much as 4 feet.
5. The triangular park in front of the Post Office building and the triangular obelisk (not 4 sided) was given by the Havemeyers and adjusted to represent the 3 powers of Federal, Town Hall and Education. With the new added ‘pocket gardens,’ the shape and element will be changed forever.
So yes, as much as I support safer walk ways – that is an entirely different discussion about culture and respect for each other – I really do not see this plan improving anything.
Just think of a typical Greenwich resident today coming up Arch Street in a hurry to get to Apple Store. The car passes the funeral home, a car is pulling out of a parking space by Restoration Hardware and wants to go down Arch Street. He would either try to turn around or join the many other cars trying to enter Greenwich and cross over Grigg Street to again approach Arch St to see if there is available parking. Grigg Street would be jammed.
The turnaround version coming out of a parking space on Arch St would block both southbound traffic and northbound traffic.
Next, consider the car coming southbound who is either going to the funeral home or Restoration Hardware, for example, and wants to do a U-turn into that empty space when it becomes free. So that person waits for a space to become free and the driver tries to flip his car 120 degrees to get into the parking space.
Back to the ‘rush hour’ commuter heading home via Arch St. He has now passed the parking spaces but only for 50 ft as traffic is blocked by cars trying to use the new shortcut to Greenwich Avenue but has to wait for new pedestrian crossing between the WWI monument and new ‘Pocket Park’ across from Starbucks and the Bolling Monument. When ONE car has managed to pass that cross walk the car faces southbound Greenwich Ave traffic that just has finished waiting for pedestrians to cross 2 pedestrian crosswalks at the main intersection.
Finally they sort it out and arrive at the block with the Apple Store and Meli-Melo and find the 10 parking spaces have been removed and they can only drop off a passenger. What does an average Greenwich driver do? They leave the engine running, put on their warning blinkers, jump out and walk into the store and ‘demand’ urgent attention as they are parked illegally outside.
They are not going to drive down to Grigg Street, up Arch Street, and go around the block one more time to see if any new parking space have opened up. More likely, they will go home and order online food or other things found in the stores on Greenwich Ave.
That “if we” (the Town of Greenwich) does not take the grant money it would be going to poorer Towns in Connecticut is not a good argument. I have always understood the notion that State and not Town taxes collected even out for good use, where it is needed, not where Ned Lamont and his team of donors feel it would benefit them in the public eye.
We cannot hide the fact that it is an election year for many in Hartford, and the biggest benefactor of this $2.8 million (and likely much more) is the owners of the Restoration Hardware building who doubles their “at front door” parking.