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Hollywood Sidestreet to become a Pedestrian Plaza this Weekend
It's worked in other cities, so why not Los Angeles? 200 feet of a street off Hollywood Boulevard this weekend will be turned into a temporary pedestrian plaza and community space. It's one of the many events taking place Friday in conjunction of Park[ing] Day, which will transform a number of metered parking spaces across the city into mini parks.
The idea is inspired by other big cities taking major streets and permanently turning them into pedestrian plaza. In San Francisco there's Market Street, and in New York City, there's Madison Avenue and Times Square's Broadway Avenue. "That can happen in Los Angeles as well," said Jessica Cowley of the Hollywood Community Studio, which is organizing the space. "Of course we would love to see the city to come up with a city wide program."
And that could actually happen. Cowley explained that there's been talk at city hall to create a standardized process to come up with ways for community organizations to do this with underutilized streets. If spaces are identified, it's an inexpensive way to create public space in a city strapped for cash and park space.
Starting Friday and through Sunday, Hudson Avenue will be shut down at Hollywood Boulevard for a "Pavement-to-Plaza" demonstration project. Starting at 10 a.m. on Friday and through Sunday, there will be talks, performances, board games and massages, among other activities (check their schedule here).
The street will be back to its usual business of serving vehicles by Monday. But you never know what will happen in the future -- the permanent plazas in San Francisco and New York started as temporary projects.
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