Salem

Agreed: something needs to be done with the ghastly urban ruin — the defunct Boise Cascade property — lying along Salem's downtown riverfront. 

But something is a long way from anything.

As noted in a previous post about Mountain West Investment's proposed Pringle Square development, the spin being put on this uncreative mix of rental apartments and a nursing home (otherwise known as a post-acute rehabilitation facility) is that anything is better than the nothing of the rubble existing now.

Well, that's the traditional negative Salem attitude.

Portland, Corvallis, Eugene, and other cool Oregon cities get the appealing stuff. Supposedly we don't have the demographics, the creative class, the per capita income, the vibe, the whatever for a truly first-class development. 

In this case, a mixed use development that, if done right, would showcase Salem's riverfront, drawing both new and current residents to live, work, and play in a downtown area that has terrrific potential. 

Sadly, much of that potential is being missed with the current uncreative plans being pushed by Larry Tokarski of Mountain West Investment, Marquis (the nursing home company), and the usual Chamber of Commerce gang spouting the "something is better than nothing" line.

For a glimpse of what could be, check out today's Salem Breakfast on Bikes post, "Here's one idea for Pringle Square access — What's your idea?" It looks for alternatives to making the Carousel parking lot into a thoroughfare to the apartment complex. And to the overall current design.

Anyway, here's one idea for a solution.  It accepts the basic deployment of the building units.

(A different site plan is almost certainly necessary for an optimal access solution.  As one commenter pointed out on the paper's article yesterday, the development lacks a waterfront restaurant.  It really seems like a better, more vibrant mixed-use scheme can be envisioned, and with that would come a different circulation pattern.  It's likely in the community's interest to go slow and get it right; the developer, on the other hand, probably wants to build now.  Somewhere in the middle hopefully there's a sweet spot of compromise.)

The idea here uses an already-planned driveway that goes underneaththe trestle.  It then requires a footbridge across the creek for access to the apartments.  It would be preferable to have a public footbridge and for the apartment complex to be less of a gated enclave, but if necessary, the parking lot and footbridge could be private. 

The footbridge concept is – perhaps naively – premised on the notion that spanning pringle creek is much shorter and would be easier and cheaper than spanning the slough.  The connection to the Carousel lot would be retained, but only for non-motorized travel (and emergency response).  This would give people on bike and on foot a direct shot to State Street and downtown.

Creative.

For sure there are other creative ways to improve Pringle Square. Including ditching the notion of a nursing home being a centerpiece of Salem's one and only downtown riverfront area.

As I noted here, City of Salem planning staff concluded that a nursing home isn't an allowed use in the South Waterfront Mixed Use zone. But the Salem Planning Commission, which is stacked with "anything is better than nothing" folks, ignored the staff recommendation.

Only in Salem… would City officials consider that a freaking nursing home deserves to be a highlight of the area adjacent to Salem's Convention Center, Carousel, and Riverfront Park. Look, I'm about to turn 65. I'm all for great health care facilities — for the elderly, for the young, for everyone. 

But not on Salem's riverfront; not when a nursing home isn't even allowed there by the zoning code; and not when Marquis and Mountain West Investment are pushing a clearly illegal scheme to call nursing home beds "downtown multi-family housing" in order to get a tax break.

What bothers me about the way Pringle Square is being planned is the developers' unreasonable sense of entitlement. They appear to view the re-purposing of the Boise Cascade property as a one-way street: the public gives, and the private sector gets.

As noted in the Breakfast on Bikes post, a fence is planned that will wall off the Pringle Square apartments from the outside world. Residents will be able to pass through to use the publicly-funded amenties at Riverfront Park. The taxpayers who paid for those amenities apparently will be barred from Pringle Square.

Also, Mountain West Investment and Marquis want to avoid paying property taxes. The money lost by the City of Salem will be paid by other people. Or services will be cut by the City. More taking, not giving.

The developers of Pringle Square fail to sufficiently realize that they are a part of a community with mutual obligations, not private entrepreneurs who have the right to profit at the expense of those who laid the foundation for the success of a riverfront re-development.

Both the developers and the City of Salem need to slow down. Engage people. Listen to the concerns of those who want to preserve what Riverfront Park currently offers. Get creative. Expand your vision beyond the ordinary. Aim higher than mediocrity.

Yesterday the Statesman Journal ran a story about Pringle Square, "Boise Cascade project's fate rests on access." The comments on the piece were interesting. I'm including them as a continuation to this post so they don't get lost when the story moves into the newspaper's archives.

Here's one of the comments that I agree with:

Becky Custard

A few days ago Salem businessman Dick Withnell tried to make the re-development of Salem's Boise Cascade site sound a lot better than it really is. 

Good try, Dick. But I found your "Boise Cascade site a great opportunity" guest opinion in the Statesman Journal decidedly unpersuasive.

As noted in my recent Salem Weekly Strange Up Salem column, Larry Tokarski and Mountain West Investment have given up on the appealing original concept for the riverfront property.

I thought of this when I read an opinion piece by Larry Tokarski in Salem’s non-alternative newspaper. Tokarski heads up the company that is developing the old Boise Cascade property on the riverfront.

Tokarski spoke about how excited he was in 2006 when the Urban Land Institute presented a vision that included “an appealing mix of restaurants, shops, grocery, hotel, residential and office uses.”

Among other reasons that prevented this vision from becoming reality, Tokarski cites “multiple limitations regarding our market.” I translated that as: not enough cool people able and willing to patronize cool businesses.

…Developers like Tokarski need to do their part also. Take a chance on Salem. Not recklessly. Confidently. Remember “If you build it, he will come.” She, too.

I hope Tokarski will rethink being content with a medical rehab facility and apartments on Salem’s riverfront. That isn’t cool.

Withnell has the attitude that keeps Salem mired in a morass of mediocrity. Something, anything, whatever happening in Salem is better than nothing. Instead of aspiring to a full-glass city that draws people and businesses in, he says:

What a great opportunity, both for the city of Salem and its residents, to see the glass being half-full with the “new vision for the old Boise Cascade site,” initiated by Mountain West Investment Corp.

Well, here's an even better opportunity: a full freaking glass!

The new vision Withnell speaks of is, as noted in my column (1) rental apartments fenced off from Riverfront Park, and (2) a medical rehab facility. Whoopee.

I guess San Antonio's River Walk area (photo above) can stop worrying about Salem being a competitor. Our glass isn't even half-full compared to other cities that have made their riverfront a real hotbed of economic and recreational activity. More like a few drops full.

One of Salem's biggest problems is a lack of vision. Also, of confident courage. Businessmen like Withnell and Tokarski are afraid of taking a chance on hitting a home run. They are satisfied with small ball singles.

Which don't add up to a genuine score. No matter how many glass half-full's Salem has, none of them yield a satisfying world-class, nation-class, or even state-class project/development.

Withnell focuses on the economic benefits the apartments and rehab center supposedly will bring. I suspect these are exaggerated. Yet even if they come to pass, Salem is still left with much less than could have been. 

Remember: a full glass can hold twice as much money as a half-glass.

Here's another part of Withnell's opinion piece that struck me as dubious.

I have lived in Salem for almost 50 years, and the livability of our Mid-Willamette Valley has been initiated by private entrepreneurial types who believe this is the best place to live.

They are showing this by passage of bond issues, including both Chemeketa and School District 24J, coupled with the sweat equity of hundreds of volunteers/mentors — all carrying water to make this the best place in which to live, raise a family and retire.

Huh? I've lived in Salem for 36 years. I've never thought, nor have I ever talked with anyone who thought, that this area's livability springs from "private entrepreneurial types."

To paraphrase a line we heard much of in the last presidential election: "Mr. Withnell, private entrepreneurial types did not build Salem's livability. You guys did not build this."

Everybody did. Including government workers. Including people of all sorts. Not just private entrepreneurs. 

Further, saying that the Salem area is "the best place in which to live, raise a family and retire" is ridiculous. Some people would agree. Many wouldn't. The fact that many other parts of Oregon and the country are experiencing a much greater influx of visitors, homebuyers, and business relocations shows that Salem isn't exactly the peak of Livability Mountain.

Withnell then says:

Opportunities of this magnitude, as presented by Larry Tokarski through his company, do not come often. It’s an old adage, but “one in the hand is better than two in the bush.” 

Huh? An opportunity to build a couple of apartment buildings and a medical rehab facility don't come often? That opportunity comes all the time. What won't come often, and in fact won't ever come again, is the opportunity to develop Salem's one and only downtown riverfront area in a full-glass way.

That opportunity shouldn't be forsaken.

But I'm afraid that it will be, because too many business and political leaders in Salem are content with having that proverbial single bird, while other cities have leaders who aren't content until they've got birds in each hand.

(Because the Statesman Journal quickly files stories away into paid archives, I'll include Withnell's opinion piece as a continuation to this post.)