Recommended Improvements for Huntsville (Athens, Scottsboro: movie theater, construction, safe)

[rnc76]

Exactly as Coogan stated, there has to be an incentive to be downtown. That incentive is jobs. Huntsville has a nice, small, clean downtown with a number of nice bars and restaurants. However, until a lot more jobs are located in downtown, I don't really think it will grow much beyond where it is now. The problem is that the city talks a lot, goes on "research" trips but then gives all the tax incentives to build out on the research park. They've even used TIF financing to develop some of it, the purpose of TIF is to develop and improve blighted urban areas. At least that was its orginal intention, now it is just a way to subsidize big developers with our tax dollars. TIF financing was used to subsidize the building of the Redstone Gateway. How is an empty field next to the Aresenal blighted? I believe it was even used for Bridge St. How is that a viable use of TIF? Look at the DirecTV and Verizon call centers. Those would have been perfect downtown office jobs. High density, young employees. Both are out on the research parks. Why? IMO, using TIF type financing to renovate and modernize downtown office (of course a developer has to also be on board) would be a very valid use of our tax dollars.

[Coogan]

Originally Posted by habs2487

Coogan, well said about the downtown development. Also about the "Madison Parkway" Design is in place for a controlled access "Greenbrier Parkway" that will run North to South from U.S 72 west of County Line Road and line up with the original Greenbrier Road somewhere around Old Highway 20 and continue South to I-565. I know this is more for Huntsvilles future development in Limestone County but now people of west Madison and Harvest will now have another choice for a North-South route hopefully alleviating some of the congestion on current North-South routes.

I think that's too far west to be a big benefit to either Madison or Huntsville (and when I say Huntsville, I mean east-of-Madison Huntsville. I know that HSV effectively surrounds Madison already).

Madison SORELY BADLY REALLY needs a limited-access Parkway-style thoroughfare running through or near the heart of it. Converting Wall-Triana or Hughes is the obvious solution, but both routes would require buying a tremendous amount of rights-of-way and demolishing a lot of schools, churches, and residences. I think Hughes would be the cheaper and better option, but preferably you'd want it to terminate at I-565; only Wall-Triana offers that option.

It doesn't have to be a non-stop road; something like Bailey Cove in SE HSV would be fine for the time being. Two or three stops max running 45-50 mph between Hwys 20 and 72 with the option to extend it further north would be what Madison needs. As it is now, driving N/S through Madison is a painful experience regardless of which route you take.

[Coogan]

Originally Posted by rnc76

Exactly as Coogan stated, there has to be an incentive to be downtown. That incentive is jobs. Huntsville has a nice, small, clean downtown with a number of nice bars and restaurants. However, until a lot more jobs are located in downtown, I don't really think it will grow much beyond where it is now. The problem is that the city talks a lot, goes on "research" trips but then gives all the tax incentives to build out on the research park. They've even used TIF financing to develop some of it, the purpose of TIF is to develop and improve blighted urban areas. At least that was its orginal intention, now it is just a way to subsidize big developers with our tax dollars. TIF financing was used to subsidize the building of the Redstone Gateway. How is an empty field next to the Aresenal blighted? I believe it was even used for Bridge St. How is that a viable use of TIF? Look at the DirecTV and Verizon call centers. Those would have been perfect downtown office jobs. High density, young employees. Both are out on the research parks. Why? IMO, using TIF type financing to renovate and modernize downtown office (of course a developer has to also be on board) would be a very valid use of our tax dollars.

If there's one thing I don't understand about Huntsville elected leaders, it's saying "we want downtown development" and then celebrating the annexation of 10,000 acres into the city.

ATTENTION HUNTSVILLE LEADERS: PEOPLE AND BUSINESSES WILL NOT GROW DOWNTOWN AS LONG AS THERE IS CHEAP LAND ALL OVER THE PLACE. EVERY TIME YOU ADD MORE LAND TO THE CITY, YOU PROVIDE MORE CHEAP LAND. THEREFORE YOU SABOTAGE YOUR OWN DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS.

I'd imagine that my incentive to move downtown would be similar to others - ease of access to groceries, available secure parking, and quick access out to a major road. I don't need a job downtown to live downtown.

[rnc76]

You don't need a job downtown to live downtown. However, jobs downtown increase the number of people downtown. It will increase the number of people that are familiar with downtown, people will go out to lunch, they will go out for a beer after work, meet the family at a downtown restaurant after work... I work downtown, I do all those things regularly. Also, there will be some people who like the convenience of walking to work, so living downtown will become more popular.

[Coogan]

Originally Posted by lindy112

Coogan, you should post your list...would be interesting to see.

Well the list is gone into the digital void, but here's the basics.

1. Madison Parkway
2. Southern Bypass (although I had SERIOUS issues about the now-cancelled Patriot Parkway)
3. Burying/relocating of the insane number of utility lines criss-crossing this place, including that ugly-as-sin substation across from the downtown library that basically pollutes any view of downtown from the most-travelled stretch of road in the county.

Those are the major ones, although #3 is more beautification than infrastructure (but needed nonetheless). Also needed but less so would be

4. Widening of Old Madison Pike from Research Park to at least Wall-Triana. Same issues as Madison Parkway - lots of rights-of-way to buy. Not needed as badly, but would probably be even more traffic-impacting.
5. Re-engineering of the Research Park Blvd/I-565/OMP overpasses. It was busy before Bridge Street opened. Now you can't merge anywhere in that area without doing some kind car-dancing at 55 mph.

I have some other ideas about East and North HSV, but I really don't spend a lot of time in those areas so I can't speak to what issues they have. I would suggest a 5-lane or 4-lane-divided connector road between 431 and 72 on the east side of Monte Sano (or a widening and straightening of Dug Hill, which seems to be in the ideal place more or less). I know that there's always been a plan to make the Parkway controlled-access all the way from A&M to the river, but I question the need for more overpasses, except maybe at Winchester (which seems to have an unbelievable number of serious wrecks at that intersection).

[raj kapoor]

Originally Posted by dijkstra

1. They were supposed to build an Interstate from Memphis through Huntsville to Atlanta but between the politicians bickering and the tree huggers complaining about some spotted owls or something crazy like that, it hasn't and probably never will happen now or at least not in the next 25 years. Instead the funding went to I22 connecting Memphis to Birmingham which already connects to Atlanta. I22 is almost completed.

2. If you only knew how much money the city has thrown away on city officials taking "Research trips" to other cities to develop ideas for downtown and then never doing anything but a lot of talking. lol

3. I agree about the bike paths. The city could use more. Huntsville is a commuter city, it was never designed for walking or bicycling, it was purely designed around the use of automobiles. I really wish there were places for people to ride their bicycles as I don't enjoy coming around a curve or over a hill to find 5 bicyclists in the road doing about a third of the speed I am and having to dodge them. lol

Funding for I-22 came from a dedicated source having no connection to the US72 studies. Yes, I did read where that road has been officially dropped.
Our OP has never driven east from Huntsville or he/she would realize that with the terrain there is no 'voila'. It will be challenge, but someday they will have to consider using the highway to Chattanooga as the basis for a route to I-75 S. It won't be very direct, but the need is not a primary one, but secondary. It is a great irony for Huntsville to sit on the line where the land changes so drasticly. Most of the time I drive to Fayetteville and go over to Chattanooga that way. It is quicker for me. And I would never dream of driving from Huntsville to Georgia without leaving Huntsville first.

raj

[raj kapoor]

Originally Posted by SwampFox35

dude I lived in Greenville and I may be moving back.

Huntsville has a nice downtown but will people go to restaurants if it's located there? it doesn't seem to have the traditional main street kind of area.

It does seem to lack a focus. I think it should be in the older area but I can't determine a street that seems it could handle much of a croud. I bet it ends up in that Constellation mess, if ever, but that would lack for charm. For example; the extension of the canal behind the Embassey is really disappointing. I was expecting too much maybe.

Just , raj

[Dirt Grinder]

Originally Posted by raj kapoor

...I would never dream of driving from Huntsville to Georgia without leaving Huntsville first...

That's pretty-much the way travel works - you'd have a hard time gettin' there if you never left Huntsville.

[raj kapoor]

Originally Posted by Dirt Grinder

That's pretty-much the way travel works - you'd have a hard time gettin' there if you never left Huntsville.

lolzz,,,,,,,,,,,,,often!
raj

[y8tiger]

Originally Posted by raj kapoor

Our OP has never driven east from Huntsville or he/she would realize that with the terrain there is no 'voila'.

I have driven east to Atlanta on a quite regular basis.

The current fastest route is:
Huntsville>Scottsboro>Henagar>Valley Head>Mentone>Menlo>Summerville>Adairsville>Atlanta .

Surely someone is smart enough to figure out how this could be improved upon someday.