All posts by the Shasta Living Streets team

Transit = healthier lifestyles, vibrant communities & economic development

Photo:  Redding.com
We are pleased to announce Shasta Living Streets is a voting member of the Social Services Transportation Advisory Council  in order to better serve you, our members, and our community.

Margie McAleer has attended meetings in the past year on behalf of Shasta Living Streets, she is a member of the Council. Margie says, “I look forward to working with SSTAC to bring functional and realistic transportation to all members of Shasta County.

We frequently hear interest from our members for supporting RABA and improvements to transit. Our members want to use transit to get to and from the college or from home to work.  We also have a number of members unable to drive, who are dependent on walking, bicycling and transit.

Good transit brings many benefits and helps us meet city and regional goals:
  • Enables trips that include more walking and biking and promotes the active daily lifestyles that young people and older residents are seeking today.
  • Reduces transportation costs for families and individuals, raising quality of life and encouraging economic well-being.
  • Helps secure new redevelopment funding targeted to transit related development. In California funds for redevelopment have pivoted, not vanished. This year alone $320 million is available through the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program that will go toward development in downtown core areas that encourage walking, biking and transit usage.

State award for bringing parklets to major downtown streets

California Streetsies: Local Advocacy with the Biggest Statewide Significance

Congratulations everyone!  We – YOU – won a Streetsie!  Silly name, nice award.  How great to be celebrated for the contributions by our volunteers and supporters, members and donors.  It’s nice to see Redding and Shasta County recognized for these positive community results.

The parklet project is an example of the type of demonstration strategy Shasta Living Streets produces to showcase community support for improvements and innovations. Together we are making a real difference for better bikeways, walkable cities, trails and vibrant public places. Thank you for your support.

READ THE AWARD

This award is a tribute to the dozens of volunteers and the collaboration of many groups and businesses who made the project possible, including:  Enjoy the Store, Cascade Properties, Ryan Russell Studio, Dignity Health, Mix 101, Aztec Construction, Sierra Pacific, Scout & J.Miller Coffee, Carnegie’s, Tantardini’s, J&A Foods, Amarte, Dulceblomma, Foundry Square, In-Dwelling, Sierra Nevada, California Street Shop, Healthy Shasta, The Shasta Historical Society, Moseley Family Cellars, Carousel, Shameless O’Leery’s, View 202, Lucy Hair Enhancement, Red Arrow, Rader Excavating, Civic Auditorium, TEDx Redding, Catalyst Young Professionals, Op-Test, and the thousands of people and participants who came by and enjoyed the parklet. This project was a collaborative effort with both the City of Redding and Caltrans District 2.

Great positive press for innovation, collaboration and vibrant public places in Downtown Redding

Great positive press for innovation, collaboration and another first by YOU! – Shasta Living Streets volunteers and partners, City of Redding and Caltrans District 2

Read the article on StreetsblogCA.org, here

Redding’s Successful Parklet May Help Bring Statewide Guidance

by Melanie Curry   Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Thank you everyone for all your hard work and contributions!
This parklet – your parklet –  was made possible by dozens of volunteers and a collaboration of many agencies, groups and businesses, including:

Caltrans District 2, City of Redding, Enjoy the Store, Cascade Properties, Ryan Russell Studio, Dignity Health, Mix 101, Aztec Construction, Sierra Pacific Scout & J.Miller Coffee, Carnegie’s, Tantardini’s, J&A Foods, Amarte, Dulceblomma, Foundry Square, In-Dwelling, Sierra Nevada, California Street Shop, Healthy Shasta, The Shasta Historical Society, Moseley Family Cellars, Carousel, Shameless O’Leery’s, View 202, Lucy Hair Enhancement, Red Arrow, Rader Excavating, Civic Auditorium, Catalyst Young Professionals, Op-Test.  And all the thousands of people and participants who came by and enjoyed the space.

This was a very successful project.  City of Redding is now designing standards and policies for local businesses to have living streets amenities of more permanent parklets and bike corrals- and now Caltrans HQ is working on policies that will help other cities in California!

Community Renewal – People Powered – Downtown Play – Public Goodwill – Business Focus – Beautification

Ad markethalldpsv2

We won an Award! Innovative safety measures for cyclists

Introducing the Flying Wedge!

Caltrans District 2 and Shasta Living Streets win state award for newly designed rumble strip markings in Shasta County that make for a safer commute by bicycle.  

Caltrans Excellence in Transportation Award Winners 2017

We are very pleased to have partnered with Caltrans for the innovative new hazard-alert markings, to help cyclists ride safely along highway shoulders – the Flying Wedge!  Allen Kost, Anne Thomas worked together with Caltrans over a couple of years to make this happen.  Keith Williams (Caltrans Bicycle Advisory Board Member, SRTA) also assisted.

People ride this route every day and the new markings are an elegant way to keep everyone safe.  These new markings are the first of their kind in the state.

Many people ride roads like this between their homes, businesses, and daily errands because there is often no other option.    Shasta Living Streets and our volunteers have been collaborating with Caltrans for nearly three years to make travel safer for people on bicycles, by alerting cyclists to rumble markings in the roadway.

BEFORE

Impossible to see the road hazards

 

 

IMG_0635AFTER

These markings alert people on bicycles to rumble strips and grates in the road

 

 

 

More markings along HWY 44

IMG_0635 grate victor 3 IMG_0644 IMG_0646 IMG_0647 AFTER 1

Allen Kost has been riding in Redding and Shasta County for many years.  He provided valuable input on this project for a number of years, and has this to say:

After riding bicycle for many years on State Highway 44 and hitting rumble strips from time to time as they seem to hide in plain sight, the new warning markings that have been added by Caltrans are a most welcome sight.  In the past I have been jolted, had tire damage that ensued in delayed flat tires, some by blow out, and know a friend who crashed on a rumble strip that resulted in an ambulance trip to the ER.

These rumbles do hide in plain sight. Now with the new white markings a cyclist can concentrate more on the other parts of the road feeling assured that the rumbles won’t pop up so unexpectedly. In addition to marking the rumbles Caltrans District 2 is also marking the drainage grates and other utility covers that could also pose a hazard to the unexpected rider.

I find the new markings to be a great addition to making my commute along Hwy 44 a safer and more enjoyable trip. Hopefully these markings will become the norm throughout District 2 and the State of California.  A  big thank you Caltrans District 2 for a job well done.

caltrans_welike

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California Street Market Hall – The Pop-up is back!

A culinary and local business pop-up offering local gourmet foods and gifts

1729 California Street at Cascade Square in Downtown Redding

November 21 – December 13

Schedule – Final Weekend, December 11-13

Friday, Saturday 8:30am – 10pm, serving food, beer & wine.  A number of new gift vendors this Saturday

Farewell Party Saturday night with DJTwitch and his crew.  Come join us!

MARCHFOURTH! Tickets on sale here all weekend.

The wildly popular Market Hall is back for another, longer period for the holidays.   It’s a place to meet friends, have coffee and pastries, lunch with colleagues and friends.

Enjoy delicious coffee, Italian pastries, sandwiches, salads, and more!  With a variety of artisan vendors that will change throughout the month.

Check here for more details as the weeks progress.

carnegies_logo_outlined Dulceblomma Floral Design Logo (with Flower Strip) JEdwardMiller_Logo_HighResscouttantardinis

Community Renewal  – Ÿ People Powered Ÿ –  Downtown Play Ÿ –  Public Goodwill Ÿ-  Business Focus Ÿ- Beautification

 

A musical extravaganza and winter dance party!

MarchFourth! Marching Band

Special guests the Buckhorn Mt. Stompers

Presented by Shasta Living Streets, Jefferson Public Radio, and Sierra Nevada

DATE      Sunday, December 20, 2015  

Doors 5:00pm
 – Show 6:00pm

TICKETS   purchase online at  cascadetheatre.org  or call the box office 530-243-8877 

This is an all ages show.
   Adults $25. Children 5-16 years $10.  Under 5 years free.

LOCATION  Redding Veteran’s Memorial Hall, 1605 Yuba Street, Downtown Redding.  With a big beautiful dance floor!

March Fourth Marching Band is something special, a kaleidoscope of musical and visual energy that inspires the audience in an atmosphere of celebration and joy.

This show is a big band experience not to be missed! What began as a Fat Tuesday party in Portland on March 4th 2003 appeals to audiences of all ages and musical tastes and has become one of the nation’s best live touring acts.

Special guests, The Buckhorn Mountain Stompers are a beloved local band and will add to the fun for everyone. It’s a special treat to have both bands together in this show. Band member Taylor Aglipay is a talented local musician from Trinity County who was a core member of MarchFourth, wrote some of the songs and toured with the band for ten years.

You and your friends and family will enjoy dancing and socializing on the wide wood floors, where dance parties were common in the 1950’s and 60’s.  at the Redding Veteran’s Memorial Hall

We invite you to join us!

The 5-piece percussion corps and 6-part brass section plus funky electric bass will take you on a journey from the swamps of Louisiana to the gypsy camps of eastern Europe to the African jungle by way of Brazil, echoing the deepest grooves of American funk, rock, and jazz then boiling it all together in cinematic fashion with high-stepping stilt-acrobatics and dazzling dancers.

Enjoy the show and help build better bikeways, trails, walkable cities and vibrant public places.

It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way

Yesterday, a person on bicycle was killed in Redding.

At Shasta Living Streets, we believe that most collisions are preventable by reducing dangerous behaviors and building streets that work for everyone.

In America, over 30,000 people die every year on our streets and highways; somehow, we have become inured to these daily tragedies and accept them as inevitable. Programs like Vision Zero say, “Wait a minute, these deaths are preventable. We don’t have to accept this—better infrastructure and better policies can stop the slaughter.” What’s more, Vision Zero programs have been shown to work.

Better infrastructure like protected bike lanes are the cornerstone of any Vision Zero program. Make no mistake, protected bike lanes work:

And better infrastructure doesn’t benefit just people on bikes:

  • When protected bike lanes are installed in New York City, injury crashes for all road users (drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists) typically drop by 40 percent and by more than 50 percent in some locations. [source: Memorandum on Bike Lanes, City of New York, Office of the Mayor, 21 March 2011]

Better bicycle infrastructure also has many proven economic benefits, but we will discuss that another time. The fact is that we can do better. We should do better.

Let’s not shy away from excellence. Let’s not turn our back on the deaths. Let’s work together to built streets that work better for people who walk, bike, and drive.

We presented our successes and collaborate to make California #1 for Cycling

The 2015 California Bicycle Summit took place late October in San Diego.

The California Bicycle Summit

Shasta Living Streets is one of 16 partner affiliates of the California Bicycle Coalition. These affiliated groups are working with the California Bicycle Coalition to triple bicycling statewide and make California #1 for cycling!

These groups have come together to assist the California Bicycle Coalition in delivering a Bicycle Summit to build healthier, safer, and more prosperous communities.  The Summit includes three days of interactive panels, inspiring presentations, bike tours, sessions to share best practices and build skills, and networking.   Details are at California Bicycle Summit 2015

A North State Delegation Prepares to head to San Diego

Shasta Living Streets and Chico Velo have formed a local delegation of individuals who will attend the summit and build synergy by learning and networking together.

Shasta Living Streets shares Our Successes

Anne Wallach Thomas was invited to present on two topics

Success in Working with your local Caltrans District

We have now worked successfully with Caltrans District 2 on a number of projects, including

  • Improvements to Downtown Redding on California Street.  This project won the California Bicycle Coalition’s award for the “Best District Decision of 2014.”  This project was featured in the Caltrans Performance Report announcing Caltrans’ new direction and goals.
  • Bicycles May Use Full Lane signage, first posting of this type of sign in Shasta County
  • Rumble-strip warning highway markings that are the first of their kind, and best practice in California
  • The first ever parklet on a Caltrans roadway

The Policy Rationale behind Open Streets

Shasta Living Streets has produced an open street program in Redding for the past five years and we are part of the international open street organizers network.   Last year’s event in Downtown Redding was called Streets Alive!  

We have been asked to discuss how we use our program to help drive outcomes in public health, active transportation, environmental impact, social connectedness and cultural engagement.  How to move from temporary events to generating community support and bringing infrastructure change.

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A National Champion, a local Superstar and riders of all ages and abilities

The Shasta Jamboree was a great success this year!   So many enthusiastic, smiling riders – of all ages and abilities!  Every year gets better.

Thank you to all the volunteers from the Shasta Wheelmen, Shasta Living Streets, Shasta Historical Society, Red Lion Hotel Redding, and the Fall River Burney Bicycle Association.

todd

Remi McManus, former US National Road Race Champion, rode in the Super Century.  Guess what? – he loved riding here!

long road

more from remi

Local superstar Steven Mills rode the Super Century on a single-speed mountain bike and smiled the whole way!

StevenMills mt bike   steven one speed

And so many other riders of all ages and abilities enjoyed riding in the Millville Plains and Lassen Foothills.

early morning

It’s great to work with The Shasta Wheelmen to put on the five rides for the Jamboree each fall for local riders and visitors to Redding and Shasta County.

We look forward to next year – when we can do this all again!

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