This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 17, 2012 - St. Louis can be a U.S. top 10 livable city. Vital to this livability is recognizing what residents need, and how our city can meet those needs. Because we are a social species, being able to connect with each other is imperative. We need to be able to get to each other by easy access from neighborhood to neighborhood, from home to business districts, and from wherever we are to public spaces where there’s art, culture, music, food and fresh air.
Demographic trends reveal that increasingly we don’t want to drive to get there. Young people, especially, want to be able to walk, bike and /or take public transportation. This highly important segment of our population has come to expect easy connections. They travel, and use Skype, Facebook, Twitter and other platforms to daily maintain global connections.
In this highly accessible world, they can and do assess cities around the globe when they look for employment or a place to put down roots. St. Louis can only hope to attract and retain them by allowing them a variety of transportation options. To become one of the most livable cities in the nation we have to transform our streets into vibrant places.
No matter how many unique amenities and assets St. Louis has, it will be impossible to appreciate them if we are disconnected or have to fight the built environment to get there. Connections can be facilitated or discouraged by the built environment and the answer lies in planning and designing streets in ways that make getting there a part of the pleasure of the experience.
Because we have gotten too used to four, six, and eight lane roads, it may sound crazy to think they could be designed to allow and encourage us to socialize while we transport ourselves, but we are wired to be social and to communicate. Why else would we risk using our cell phone to talk to friends and family, even take care of business, while we drive?
When streets are designed to be traveled at a human speed, and enjoyable for their aesthetic and accessibility, they enhance and build community. Streets are, after all, often the largest public spaces in our communities. When people of all ages and abilities can safely use active transportation on our streets – that is, transport themselves on foot or by bike, or access reliable public transportation to get to work, each others’ homes, shops, the library, the dentist and city hall – streets are serving their proper purpose; they are serving as the foundation for community and easy connection.
St. Louis joins a long list of American cities with a rich past, unlimited potential and possibility, but an unexpressed future. Our destiny no longer lies in river traffic or in manufacturing shoes, ammunition or Chryslers. We must commit to investing in streets that are designed to support a dense and desirable city. Our economic and personal health depends on it.
The way we are going to move St. Louis up the desirability scale is to rally strong, interdisciplinary corps of visionary influencers from the nonprofit, philanthropic, private, and public sectors and focus to 21st century best planning and design practices.
Trailnet has created a new council of local leaders who share the vision of St. Louis as a U.S. top 10 livable city. This council includes leaders in the fields of real estate development, construction, health care, higher learning, talent recruitment, law, and economic development.
Along with their expertise and commitment to St. Louis they bring abundant points of influence and extensive networks that span our country and the globe. They understand the significant benefits of livability and healthy, active and vibrant communities – and the need for articulating attainable goals, measures, benchmarks, and deadlines.
Trailnet’s history began 25 years ago as a local catalyst for trail development. We’ve learned from our successes and are applying our best practices in our continuing role as a regional leader in catalyzing livability. We have begun the critical first step of convening leaders who are willing to set bold visions and it continues with Trailnet’s "Livable St. Louis Conference, Bold Community Visions" on Oct. 26. The conference will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Eric P. Newman Education Center, 320 E. Euclid. For more information visit Trailnet.org.
Ann Rivers Mack is chief executive officer of Trailnet.