Public Meeting About the Cobblestones

This coming Tuesday, TDOT and the Corps of Engineers will host an important public information meeting regarding Memphis' plans for Cobblestones improvement. Details:

Tues., Aug. 11 -- 5:30 - 7:30 pm
The Balinese Ballroom
330 N. Main Street, Downtown

The Riverfront Development Corporation states

The purpose of the Historic Cobblestone Landing Restoration and Walkway Project is to stabilize and restore the Memphis Cobblestone Landing and provide limited usability, connectivity and accessibility improvements.

The Friends for Our Riverfront* and the blog Memphis Cobblestones both have many questions, real problems and tons of cool side information about the Cobblestones plan.

My questions:

1. will the improvements intentionally or effectively decommission the cobblestones as a boat landing?
2. will they harm the Cobblestone's status as a National Historic Landmark?

the RDC answers my first question, listing

• Continuation of and improvements to the docking of boats

as an objective.

No muddiness there, except that it's listed as objective 5 in a prioritized list. So my filtrated question for the RDC is,

"Forget prioritized objectives -- I want to land my boat on the Cobblestones. Will I be able to do this after the improvements?"

* despite its reputation as an opponent of the RDC, the FfOR and its skirmishes with the RDC have sharpened the spotlight on Memphis riverfront. In this case, the FfOR have really publicized a public meeting that will give the RDC a chance to pitch their cobblestone ideas.

Great Skatepark of the World

The Web Urbanist has a nice photographic compilation of great skateparks around the world.

All cool but I think a skatepark designed and built for the tip of Mud Island, jutting into and surrounded on 3 sides by the great Mississippi River, would hold its own, and probably more with any of them.

Skatelife Memphis has proposed just such an incredible public use for a piece of land that has been unused since it formed over 100 years ago.

The red line below shows the approximate location of the skatepark.


Nothing but grass, and rough at that.

Yet the Riverfront Development Corp has put Skatelife off since April 2008 so the RDC can do a master plan on Mud Island.

Another master plan.

Another plan.

Another master plan that will cost approximately $800 thousand dollars*, when the highest end skate park is only $3 million. Another plan that won't even start gathering input from the public until late March because it's already taken a year to plan the plan.

In the meantime, greatness flows past Memphis.

So maybe that's just water under the bridge. Skatelife Memphis asks that you attend the public input sessions and let the RDC know your support for the skatepark on Mud Island. Let the RDC see the dynamism and vitality that they put off for at least two years, but can still have.

There will be 4 sessions.

* figure ciphered from the $400,000 matching grant they received from Corps of Engineers to do the study.

Public and Private in an Art Town

I'm nothing if not a delayed reaction, but a week ago Friday a Commercial Appeal editorial, while advocating a worthy alternative for the Promenade, stated that the

idea represents a good compromise between the goals of the Riverfront Development Corporation, which wants to bring more vitality to that part of the waterfront, and the Friends for Our Riverfront, a citizens group that wants to preserve as much open space as possible.

This not only trivializes the difference between these 2 groups, factions, philosophies, it misstates the difference. From what I've seen both factions want vitality and open space.

The difference is how much of the Promenade will be privately developed and controlled, and how much will remain, or restored to, public use.

At core it's neither a technical nor aesthetic difference. It's a struggle between the public and the private, over the public realm. It's a central civic issue.

Not that we can't* or shouldn't compromise, but we can and should understand what we're compromising.

By the way, kudos to the Memphis Art Park for their proposal and for this audacious statement from their website:

We're an art town first and foremost.

Alright!

* maybe. There is also the legal issue, which is the public position written into an easement. It may not allow for compromise, but IANAL.

Flood Level at the Foot of Beale

I noticed the flood gauge at the foot of Beale Street for the first time this summer.


I've been wondering whether the River ever touched it.

And the answer is: only once, in February 1937, when the Mississippi crested at 48.7 ft.


The next closest crest was 45.80 ft on 04/23/1927.

In selecting where the City stopped and the River began, Memphis chose wisely.

Remember When Ugly Was a Parking Lot?

While it dreams of a world-class Beale Street Landing, the Riverfront Development Corporation plans a surface parking lot for the entrance.

The original design is arguably great! horrible! okay. Build it and we will see. But this revised plan to pave part of Tom Lee Park shows no faith in the design, and no vision for the riverfront's future that hasn't been discredited in Memphis' recent past.

RDC President Benny Lendermon's statement of his problem -- that it's too far to walk from the nearest parking lot, especially for excursion tourists -- may be reasonable. But his solution is the same old gray slab. One more anti-urbanist, drive-up experience, another atom in a disconnected downtown. It will disconnect BSL from Tom Lee Park, the Bluff Walk and their hordes of walkers. It will frame the architect's vision with SUVs hidden behind remedial crape myrtles.


If you're to sponsor talks by urban visionaries who place walking at the center of city livability, you can't respond with walk-killing asphalt. Its time to build the new world. Right now.

For instance, why not allow on street parking on Riverside? Riverside is presently a launch pad and tail hook for I-55. Memphis has no need for that much speed in that spot. If it can survive a month completely blocked, Riverside can survive year-round with 30 mph traffic. Allow on street, parallel parking from Beale Street to Coppock Park. It will provide convenience at no cost, other than the salary of the guy who has to unscrew the No Parking signs and screw in the 2 Hour Parking signs. It will slow the traffic on Riverside, creating more (or impeding less) pedestrian flow between Downtown and the Riverfront, which can only be good for Beale Street Landing.

If you want to read/hear about the parking lot and more about our riverfront, go to the Memphis Cobblestones. Its author, Mike Cromer, has been attending, recording, transcribing (!!!), then posting the City Council's budget hearings with the Riverfront Development Corporation.

Where Do We Deserve an Urban Waterfront?

Wagner Place.


The Bluff and flooding have always separated downtown Memphis from the River. However, this location could very much satisfy Jeff Speck's suggestion for these reasons:

• Closest that urban downtown comes to the river.
  
  


• Smallest Bluff drop to the Riverfront.
  
  
  
• City of Memphis owns the property.
  


• No easements as with the Promenade, so it can be developed commercially.
  


• Adjacent with the Promenade so public developments like the University of Memphis Law School and extension of the Bluff Walk are perfectly complementary.
  


• Will create back-and-forth walking continuity between downtown and Tom Lee Park/Beale Street Landing/Cobblestones.
  


• It's presently a surface parking lot so (almost) any urban development is a step forward.
  


• If Memphis is serious about 2 other Speck suggestions -- fixing the 3rd St. Promenot and the Main/South Main knuckle -- we would have a continuous downtown from Autozone Park to Peabody Place to Beale Street to Main Street South Main to the Riverfront.
  


• Because the Cobblestones are a man-made extension onto the River and this site is in front of the Cobblestones, this would be very much an urban waterfront.
  


• Because it would be between the River and Autozone Headquarters/Waterford Plaza, any development would have to be the 3 or 4 story buildings that Speck used as in his presentation (example). Which for me is an advantage.
  

What are the downsides?

Events in May, Abridged and Action-Packed

This is a small sampling of fun/interesting stuff that's going on. For more comprehensive lists, I would consult Memphis in May's site, the extensive Sierra Club calendar and the Memphis Flyer event calendar.

April 30, May 1, May 3, May 8, May 10, May 17-18, May 25

• April 30 (Wednesday):
  Our Vibe. Our City. On Film. Screening
  6:30- 8:00, Malco's Studio On The Square, 2105 Court Street
  


• May 1 (Thursday):
  "The City Livable: Modest Suggestions for Making Memphis Great"
  Reception at 4:30 p.m., presentation at 5:00 p.m.
  Buckman Hall, Christian Brothers University
  Please use CBU's Central Avenue entrance and parking lot.
  


• May 1 (Thursday):
  Sierra Club First Thursday Gathering
  5:30 pm - 7:00 pm, Otherlands, 641 S. Cooper
  
  Sierra Club members, activists and friends can meet in a casual setting to talk about issues and interests. For more information contact Juliet Jones, Vice Chair, at (901) 374-0582 or juliet101@comcast.net
  


• May 1 (Thursday):
  Cooper-Young Nite Out
  5pm - 9pm
  Cooper-Young Historic District
  


• May 3 (Saturday):
  Mississippi River Canoe and Kayak Race
  10 a.m.
  


• May 3 (Saturday):
  Neighborfest at Idlewild Elementary.
  11 a.m. to 3p.m.
  
  Eat a snocone and a hamburger, and learn about the great things happening at this fine Memphis elementary school!
  


• May 3 (Saturday):
  Jug Band Jam Session in Tribute to Will Shade.Will Shade, the Memphis Jug Band leader, was buried in an
  unmarked grave in 1966. His gravestone will finally be installed this week. Ceremonies honoring him will be this jam session and the gravestone installation at the Shelby County Cemetery


• May 3 (Saturday): Mission Accomplished? Fest
  2 p.m., National Civil Rights Museum
  


• May 3 (Saturday):
  Memphis Warehouse Revival v3.0!
  
  Thrown by the Rozelle Art Guild, this party at 822 Rozelle is scheduled for May 03 at 10PM. DJs Saturna, Mind At Large, University Acid Squad, Jim Henson, Bobby Lee, Mr. White, and the triumphant return of Memphis's own Shawn OD! $10 door, +$5 to drink. Ages 18+.
  


• May 8 (Thursday):
  Artist Rick Lowe speaks on Project Row Houses
  6:30 p.m., Memphis College of Art
  Sponsored by the UrbanArt Commission.
  
  If you're an artist, architect, developer or activist, don't miss this.
  


• May 10 (Saturday):
  Old Forest Hike
  10:00am to 11:30am, Overton Park, led by the Citizens to Protect Overton Park.
  
  Meet at the bridge on Old Forest Lane, next to the Rainbow Lake parking lot, for a guided walk through the Old Forest at Overton Park. Email Naomi or call 901.278.2396 if you need more info.
  


• May 17-18 (Saturday-Sunday):
  A Weekend with the Reddings
  
  On Saturday and Sunday, May 17 & 18, 2008 the Soulsville Foundation will once again make history when Otis Redding's family will be our special guests and events participants on two very exciting evenings. The family includes Otis Redding's widow, Mrs. Zelma Redding, along with his three children, Otis III and Dexter Redding and Karla Redding-Andrews.
  
  All will be special guests on Saturday, May 17th at the Stax Music Academy SNAP! After School Spring Concert at the University of Memphis' Michael D. Rose Theater. Otis III and Dexter will perform with the students. All ensembles will be featured during the concert - Stax Music Academy Rhythm Section, StreetCorner Harmonies, Premier Percussionists, and the Soulsville Swing Band, as well as The Soulsville Charter School's Soulsville Symphony Orchestra. Also starring as a speical guest is the academy's Artist in Residence, internationally acclaimed saxophonist Kirk Whalum.
  
  The concert is at 7 p.m. and admission is just $5!
  
  On Sunday, May 18th, the entire Redding family will be our guests for our "Conversations With The Reddings" panel discussion/Q&A, along with others who knew Otis Redding well, including Ben Cauley, the only Bar-Kay band member on board the plane to survive the tragic crash on December 10, 1967 near Madison, Wisconsin, which took the life of Redding at the age of 26. This event will take place in the Stax Museum's intimate Studio A. The discussion will not only focus on Otis Redding the phenomenal entertainer, but also Otis Redding the loving father and husband.
  
  "Conversations With the Reddings" will take place from 5 - 7 p.m. $10 general admission and free to Stax Museum members.
  
  This will be Zelma Redding's and Karla Redding-Andrews' first visit to the Stax Museum of American Soul Music.
  


• May 25 (Saturday):
  Chickasaw Group Sierra Club Canoe Trip Through Mississippi River Bottomlands
  8:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park
  
  Meet at the Visitor's Center. Reservations required. Free! Canoes provided. Bring your lunch and water. For reservations, contact Judith Hammond, (901) 276-2819.
  

Memphis Events in April

Here are some Memphis events you might enjoy this month:

Thursday, April 3: Sierra Club First Thursday Meetup at Otherlands. The Sierra Club also keeps a calendar and RSS feed of environmental events and alerts.

Thursday, April 3: Cooper-Young First Thursday Night Out. This is not just taking place at the corner of Cooper and Young. Many of the participating businesses are on Central. I hope this will become a huge monthly event.

Since they happen on the same night in the same neighborhood, you can go to the Sierra Club meetup first, then walk over to the Cooper-Young events (a block and a half away). Foot-powered connections are always the best.

Friday, April 4th - Sunday, April 6th: Dream Reborn Conference by Green For All organization. The conference is actually sold out, but there may still be a chance to volunteer.

Saturday, April 5: Old Forest Hike, led by the very active activists of Citizens to Protect Overton Park.

Friday, April 11th: a screening of Third Ward TX, a film about community building and art building in Houston. Details.

Saturday, April 12th: April Rock n' Romp.

Saturday April 19th: Old Forest Hike, led by the activists of Citizens to Protect Overton Park.

Saturday, April 19th: Wolf River Harbor Earth Day Cleanup, on the Memphis Riverfront, led by the Sierra Club.

Friday, April 25th: The Second Memphis Zombie Walk which starts on Beale Street and limps toward South Main's Last Friday Trolley Night.

Toward The River's Edge

In Memphis it seems we either suppress the edge


or ignore it.


We pour concrete or stone on top of it,


we clear cut and mow it,


we abandon it.


Maybe we suppress it for the same reasons we run from the forest. And we ignore it because we're stuck with a vision of someone else's waterfront -- San Diego, or New York or Destin, or Pickwick.

Memphis needs a vision of the architecture and landscape for the River's edge. The vision should recognize both the edge's natural beauty,

and us.


The River should be the landscape architect.

The man-made structures, the paths, or boat docks, or houses, should be built to survive the River's power, and complement the natural --the River's water, mud, trees, etc. And they should point us to the River. They should tell us to use it. And reward us with their beauty when we look back from the River.


They should not be built to overpower its natural edge.

Along the Banks of Mud Island Harbor

I saw these blocks lying on the eastern side of the Mud Island Harbor during a kayak tour Saturday.



They seem to be formed from compressed autos or industrial metal, and they look like they've been there a long time. Maybe they were dumped there, or were put there as an alternative form of bank stabilizer.

Their setting, mangling and aging have given them a cool organic texture.



Hopefully more soon on the excursion.

In the meantime, cogitate on this: is there an architectural aesthetic of the Mississippi River? Something that doesn't ignore or try to civilize its mud, its vegetation, its stages, its power -- it embraces them? To work, the aesthetic has to touch the River, not stop yards away, where it's safe.

Beale Street Landing might provide this, but are there any that already exist?