Quote:
Originally Posted by the urban politician
Also, closing streets reduces the connectivity of the city and often creates worse traffic in the areas around it.
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I go back and forth on street closures. It's really frustrating in certain Chicago neighborhoods where most streets are one-way, where one street closure can force drivers to make long, laborious detours or get lost. The city seems to grant carte blanche for street closures near schools, which I think is a terrible policy.
On the other hand, where I live in Pilsen most streets are two-way, and I love the street closures in my area, especially the plazas at 18th Pl/Paulina and 18th Pl/Leavitt where they are tied in with church buildings (feels very old world). Detours are relatively simple if you're driving and as a pedestrian, you can easily walk through without feeling like you're intruding on private property.
As far as the University of Chicago is concerned, that campus is still very well integrated with the city grid. It's easy to drive through and there is a clear hierarchy of design that helps you navigate. I can pass through that campus, again, without feeling like I'm intruding. The vast majority of urban college campuses are designed like impregnable fortresses, though. UIC comes to mind, where they put in so many damn closures it totally ruins the street grid.