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Acevedo, Gloria
CIP Budget Comment
Monday, April 29, 2024 11:05:25 AM
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Dear Mayor Gordo and City Council:
On behalf of the Playhouse Village Foundation Board of Directors, I am writing to respectfully request that the City Council allocate up to $200,000 in funding for the conversion of Mentor Avenue from Walnut to Colorado to a two-way street. Listed in the existing CIP as item 42 under Transportation, this project would:
Address longstanding safety issues, with frequent wrong-way traffic, collisions, and pedestrian conflicts created by the confusion in the direction of the street and design for high-speed through traffic
Increase visibility and access to regional venues including Boston Court Pasadena and The Ice House, supporting Pasadena's cultural vibrancy
Enhance the viability and connectivity of adjacent office buildings, restaurants and independent businesses, promoting greater economic health Provide the needed change to transform Mentor into a vibrant entertainment district
to benefit the entire city
At its meeting last week, the PVA Board of Directors endorsed a strategy to focus this year's CIP funding advocacy solely on Mentor Avenue. To increase economic vitality, the PVA has invested over $400,000 since 2019 to develop
a comprehensive streetscapes vision
and implement a public realm activation strategy. While Colorado Blvd, Lake Ave and Union St have seen enhancements since then, areas along and east of Lake continue to struggle with high office vacancy, a tired public realm, and increasing public safety challenges - and are in need of public investment to transform the experience.
Funding for Mentor Avenue would be a small investment towards significant opportunities for
revitalization and economic development. As a possible incentive, the Playhouse Village Foundation Board of Directors, of which I am a member, are poised to consider seed funding from its recent successful fundraiser
as an incentive to leverage potential public funding.
We look forward to your consideration of this important request and your support of transforming Mentor Avenue into a thriving entertainment district within Playhouse Village.
Brian Wallace
President/CEO
Playhouse Village
709 E Colorado Blvd, Ste 160
Pasadena, CA 91101
626.744.0340
playhousevillage.org
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Acevedo, Gloria
CIP Budget Comment
Monday, April 29, 2024 11:40:21 AM
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Dear Mayor Gordo and City Council:
I just heard about today’s meeting!
I am out of town today or I would attend today's meeting.
Since I cannot get there in person, I am writing to you as a Board member on both the Playhouse Village Association and Playhouse Village Foundation Boards and as a property owner to respectfully request that the City Council allocate up to $200,000 in funding for the conversion of Mentor Avenue from Walnut to Colorado to a two-way street, item 42 under Transportation.
This project and two other priority projects of the Playhouse Village Association have been in
the CIP list as approved projects but without any funding attached to them.
We are now
advocating for this one project in particular
of the three priority projects of Playhouse Village
Assn to move forward with City funds earmarked
to enable this important project to move
forward with the necessary studies prior to implementation.
This street has great potential
for the City as an entertainment district and can drive big economic development in that corridor.
It also has issues with homelessness in the neighborhood, and activating Mentor would improve this situation.
The one-way street creates traffic congestion with cars circling to figure out how to get there and has significant numbers of drivers going the wrong way.
It
is a safety issue as well as an important area that can be an economic engine for the community.
I am aware of the letter submitted on behalf of the Board of Directors of Playhouse Village Association by Brian Wallace and I heartily endorse his comments.
We look forward to
your consideration of this important request and your support of transforming Mentor Avenue into a thriving entertainment district within Playhouse Village.
Thank you,
Marjorie
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Marjorie Lindbeck