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MICHAEL MILLER | Continued me that if I don’t provide at least as much parking as there is now, it’s a non- starter. I was somewhat shocked at first, but he’s right! It became a design problem to make a parking lot into a park. Te way that I envision it being done is with landscaping elements, per- meable paving elements, which mean that grass is allowed to grow up through the paving so the color actually is green, and paving materials are attractive and ties in with the community using Old Chicago or other bricks typical to Key West. We also would opt for a maximum number of native plantings so irrigation requirements would be minimized. I re- alized immediately, though, that it has to become more than just a parking lot. What steered me in the right direction was the concept that John Padgett, you and others came up with for a multi- module transportation center. Tat
sounds like something that’s big, but it’s basically just a place where people can drop off and pick up people or catch a cab. Shuttles from the airport would also go there. It would become a landmark place, and people would know it was there and could count on it. Te ques- tion then became how do you give em- phasis to the center in an attractive way? As it turns out, the very best place to put those functions and those drop-offs is at the corner of Angela and Simonton streets. After that decision, we made a park at the corner. We have a triangular park with a focal point, and it will truly become a landmark not just for residents but also for tourists. I personally would like to see a fountain there, but it could also be public art or something that can be lit at night. Tere are two diagonals, also known as cow paths in the design business, that I believe are key. Once people realize these diagonals are connec- tors, people are going to love them. Te diagonal through the parking lot goes di- rectly over to the corner and intersects
with Key Lime Square and the lane that goes behind Antonio’s directly to Duval Street. Te other one is open from 8-5 in the afternoon, and that’s the tunnel that goes by Keys Credit Union and exits on Southard Street. Lighting is another ele- ment that is so important and we would go to solar power lighting that would be in scale with a park and not a giant park- ing lot scale.
RTTere are certain elements that you had to grapple with and quite a few community needs to be addressed. MMTey gave me sort of a shopping list of needs and concerns, and they all made perfectly good sense. Included in the list was making sure the drop off points for buses, taxis and so forth have covered shelters and large enough for more than two people to have sitting space. Tey should also be safe, well lit and contain directories for people who do not know their way around town. Here in Key West, more and more people are riding bicycles, so as a result it would be useful
to have more than one place for people to lock bicycles up. Te bathroom issue is a very complicated one because it in- volves height, maintenance and security requirements. We addressed that by providing police booths, and whether there is a policeman in it or not, there is a surveillance camera and people know it. Tat’s very important. Some other in- teresting things in the plan is a charging station for electric cars and a pretty good size parking area for scooters.
RT I noticed you’ve got the cars parked in almost this triangular fashion to the connectible corridor that dissects the parcel. Tese foot paths the cars pull up to are landscaped, so there is an abundance of greenery in this space. MM I think there is more than what you would see at Sears Town or Overseas Market. Tis actually will look like a park from the street. One of the reasons it will is because we have to raise the grid. Tat site drops dramatically down towards Angela and Simonton streets,
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