Cultural Trail: Walnut Street thoughts

Yesterday, I finally had a chance to walk the newest section of the Cultural Trail along Walnut Street. Unfortunately, I was without my camera, but visuals will be better if I wait until the unveiling of the Glick Peace Walk.

The Walnut Street portion of the trail has a different feel than the completed Alabama Street portion. The street itself is narrow and lightly trafficked by vehicles. It’s closed to autos now, but there still won’t be many when it opens back up. This helps to give the pedestrian a feeling of safety and ownership of the space. This also makes it a fine choice for the Peace Walk, which is intended to be a thoughtful exhibit.

The structures along the street are sparse, but relatively close to the right-of-way. One 3-story historic building has been unused for years. The street is also fronted by the brick Zesco building. Dig-B has some nice pictures of this portion of the trail. Apart from these 2 structures that are directly on the street, as well as the Scottish Rite Cathedral that is separated by its lawn, there are mostly non-contributing one-story buildings, and surface parking lots. There’s plenty of room for growth.

One of my favorite benefits that we receive from urban trails is their knack for shining a light on neglected or forgotten areas. The newest portion of the Cultural Trail does this nicely, while also giving us a space for reflection and inspiration.

Comments 6

  • I have been wondering what is under those white tarps and the other day I was riding by and someone had taken off on of them…pretty sharp looking.

  • I've been running the new section regularly and love seeing the construction of the trail make real progress. Are they going to do anything around the American Legion Mall? Once you cross Penn to the mall there isn't any signage to guide you and the aesthetic of the trail is discontinued.

  • Good question jrob. The cultural trail map mentions that the trail will straddle the mall, but no construction has taken place there yet. I'm sure they will get to that at some point, but I'm not sure when.

  • Cultural Trail isn't allowed to mess with The Mall, as it's under state protection.

    However, a directional sign and/or map would be nice. Perhaps The Cultural Trail will pay for new map markers on The Mall?

  • Aha! That I didn't know at at all. Thanks CDC.

  • I sort of remember a painted line indicating future construction along the west side of Meridian, which would run all the way to 10th or 11th street…which seems a bit ambitious. But why not take the trail along Meridian on the west side of the street. Meridian needs a new streetscape to help the future development of 'Midtown'

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