Community and business outreach consisted of five popup events (March and April, 2022), targeted business outreach (First two weeks of April 2022), and two focus groups (week of April 18, 2022), one for bike/pedestrian/transit users, and the other for business owners. The following sections summarize the outreach conducted at each of these events.
1. Popup Events
Key Issue: Safety
a. The five popup events showed an overwhelming support for the project as residents stated that E14th Street was unsafe and needed improvements to make it pedestrian and bike friendly
b. Residents advised to pay attention to the width of the bike lane to ensure it is not so wide that allows vehicles or too narrow that does not allow overpassingc. Support for place making and areas to attract more families to the street-parents are concerned about letting their middle school aged children bike on E14th St as they perceive it to be unsafe on its existing condition
2. Business Outreach
Key Issues: Deliveries, safety, spill over parking, more opportunities to cross the street a. The majority of business respondents along the corridor did not believe that removing parking from one-side of the street would have an unresolvable effect on their ability to operate. While this was the plurality opinion, specific blocks and businesses are disproportionately impacted by the removal of parking, including businesses on the east side of the street between 150th Avenue and Bayfair Drive, along with some businesses located between 146th and 142nd Ave where businesses rely on the shortterm street parking. b. Between 144th and 143rd Ave., there are areas with high demand of uses on both sides of the street due to the presence of a shopping plaza, Super Mercado Mi Tierra, and Vallarta Mexican Restaurant.
c. Parking is highly utilized during the afternoon in the blocks between 148th and 146th Ave. BAL Theater does not have parking on property, which leads to parking spillover in residential neighborhoods.
d. Many business respondents stated they use on street parking for their deliveries and that they do not have control over when items are dropped off at their business. As a result, delivery parking needs should be analyzed as part of the project design. Field observations showed that delivery trucks sometimes park in the center two-way turn lane when parking lanes are occupied (or even when not in use). e. The project team received consistent feedback from both business owners and community members that speeding and reckless driving are the primary safety issues for the corridor. In addition to speeding, respondents shared that people usually park in undesignated spaces, overstay their parking limits, or make illegal U-turns.
3. Focus Groups
Key Issues: Landscaping and physical improvements, pedestrian friendly areas, separated cycling infrastructure
a. Community members expressed a desire for transportation improvements to be paired with aesthetic enhancements that liven the corridor and support local businesses.
Examples that received positive feedback from both, business owners and community members included tree plantings, public artwork, new benches, and signage to assist with wayfinding. Both community members and business owners asked for more trees but requested that the project team select plants that could be effectively maintained by the City of San Leandro.
b. The project team received broad feedback that existing pedestrian amenities along E. 14th Street fail to make individuals feel safe while walking the corridor. Most respondents asked for better pedestrian lighting followed by larger sidewalks and more pedestrian space. Another challenge often raised during discussions was the inability for pedestrians to cross E. 14th St. due to long wait times at intersections, fast vehicular speeds, and lack of safe crosswalks throughout the corridor. This feedback demonstrated the need for enhanced crosswalks and signals that prioritize pedestrians instead of vehicles.
c. Both cyclists and drivers advocated for bike infrastructure that effectively separates vehicles from bikes. Instead of using raised islands to separate bike lane from traffic lane, respondents asked for more permeable barriers, such as armadillos, planters that provided a physical element to divide cars for bikes, and discouraged the use of plastic bollards as they are hit by cars and do not offer much protection to bikes. d. Respondents also agreed that pedestrian improvements are also important for transit users as most transit users become pedestrians before and after the bus ride.