Fullerton City Council will vote on whether to keep or remove the popular Walk on Wilshire pedestrianized area at its meeting on October 15, 2024. Save Walk on Wilshire has collected nearly 1500 signatures to save the beloved space. As featured recently in both LAist and OC Register’s 2024 Best of OC awards, The public recognizes the Walk on Wilshire as a welcoming part of our downtown for dining, strolling, window shopping, and meeting with friends, free from the nuisance of car traffic. (click here to sign the petition)
Nationwide, pedestrianized areas like Walk on Wilshire attract more foot traffic and retail revenue than streets open to cars. From Santa Barbara’s State Street Promenade to San Diego’s Gaslamp District Pedestrian Promenade, pedestrianized spaces benefit businesses and communities. Countless studies bear this out.
Here are a few examples:
• A comprehensive report, Foot Traffic Ahead, by Tracy Hadden Loh, Ph.D, of the George Washington University School of Business, examined over 750 walkable areas across the US. More walkable areas command significantly higher retail revenue and commercial rents (up to 75% higher for commercial rents) than drivable suburban areas.
• A 2022 study of cities in Spain, “Street pedestrianization in urban districts: Economic impacts in Spanish cities,” showed higher retail revenue in walkable areas compared with non-pedestrian-friendly areas.
• The seminal 2009 paper by Elizabeth Bent and Krute Singa, “Modal Choices and Spending Patterns of Travelers to Downtown San Francisco, California: Impacts of Congestion Pricing on Retail Trade,” dispelled the misconception that vehicular access is essential to retail revenue. Customers arriving by foot, bike, or transit spend more monthly than those arriving by car.
It is no surprise, then, that a majority of business owners support Walk on Wilshire. Of the 30 business owners on and near WoW, 19 support it, and only six do not. Three are neutral, and two would support it if they could be included via an extension of WoW. Several businesses say that they would invest in parklets if WoW were made permanent and their financial investment was secure. The City’s waffling on WoW then threatens to sabotage the popular promenade. The retail benefits of expanding and making Walk on Wilshire permanent are clear.
Some Council Members floated the idea of a seasonal closure, but this would negate the benefits of a pedestrianized space, force the City to reverse the infrastructure it has already invested in, and saddle the City with recurring costs amidst a looming $8 million annual budget deficit, as well as significantly curtailing outdoor dining spaces. It would also eliminate the year-round pedestrianization, which is the most popular aspect of WoW.
Dismantling this revenue-generating space would be irresponsible, given the current budget deficit. Instead, Fullerton should reap the financial benefits of investing in this space. Without a proper study, removing this space would blindly impact businesses, reduce tax revenue, and forfeit the City’s parklet lease revenue in favor of a whopping six parking spaces and 200 feet of car access.
The City Council will vote on whether to keep or dismantle Walk on Wilshire in October. Please consider attending the City Council meeting on Tuesday, October 15, at 5:30 pm and voicing your opinion. A strong show of support is critical to convince the Council to recognize that our community and local businesses want to keep this beautiful space permanently car-free.
Share this:
Discover more from Fullerton Observer
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Categories: Community Voices, Downtown, Local Government, Local News
Outdoor spaces are beneficial, but WoW is out of place and looks rinky dink. This isn’t some grand pedestrian mall that encourages foot traffic in our downtown; nobody is “strolling and window shopping”. It’s some picnic tables set up for a few people who can afford to eat there. Besides, we have all of Harbor for that, and we have out wonderful Fullerton Market. WoW feels shoehorned into the space for the sake of eating outside. Three of the businesses that benefit from this arrangement already have outdoor seating. I regularly walk through this area on my way home from work and rarely see more than a few people dining there. All of this wailing and gnashing of teeth is silly.
Tony, I agree that it looks rinky dink. I’ve seen outdoor dining areas in Pasadena, Santa Barbara, San Diego, etc., and they all look like the result of careful planning, not the unilateral decision by a now dismissed city manager.
It is actually a wonderful space. I’m not sure if you’ve really been there, as there are no picnic tables present. It actually feels very natural and is a great location that flows well into the plaza across the street where the downtown market is held.
It is a very beloved space and I truly can’t understand the rationale behind removing something the public loves so much.
“Beloved space.” The variety show turned to comedy portion of the program.
1500? Wow. How many signatures has Bushala and the angry blog gathered? Answer: why bother? The only opinion that matters is his, because it’s backed by political cash.
Hopefully I’m wrong.
john, Political cash? Bushala gave Dunlap $2,000. He raised $100,000. He recused himself because his dad owns property directly impacted by the Wilshire closure. I suspect he would vote to open the road otherwise, but Dunlap can answer that himself.
Jung got $5,000 from Bushala. Jung’s raised nearly $300,000, which they’ve well documented on this site.
Bushala’s not a megadonor. He may think he is. Who knows? But all of the council voted for the trail he thought went nowhere so there’s that.
Police union donated $5,500 to Dunlap. Twice Bushala. But no one accuses Dunlap for being in the pocket of unions.
Jung took $11,000 from police and fire. Does the site want to accuse Jung of being a union man? These are all well reported numbers, not Zenger opposed feelings. Numbers belie your “bought” council narrative. Maybe they just agree with Bushala on certain things and agree with Ahmad Zahra on certain things (they vote together 5-0 most of the time).
Jung has called Bushala his friend. Maybe that’s why Bushala supports Jung’s election = because they’re pals.
Jaramillo took a lot of money from the Thakur family who owns a lot of property in her district. Would this site call her “in the pocket” of the Thakurs?
I didn’t claim he’s a “megadonor.” I didn’t say anyone was “in the pocket of”. Please be careful with quotes they’re supposed to mean something in this context, that I used those words. Nor did I use the word “bought” to refer to any councilmember in this post.
My “narrative” if it was unclear went to *his* thinking, expectations and feelings of entitlement and righteousness that he communicates to the public and council through his money, his actions and the blog. And that I hope that he’s wrong in his expectations.
But even donations the size he makes absolutely matters! One guy giving 2% of a politician’s haul? It’s a heck of a lot more money than almost every other Fullertonian donates, and people tend to expect something for their money. At minimum I guarantee it allows him to bend the ear of recipients. Whether they get what they want is another matter.
“Maybe that’s why Bushala supports Jung’s election = because they’re pals. ”
Well. I’ve never just given a pal $5,000 but I admit some things are outside my ken.
I think you’re making a mistake in just comparing his donation to the outlier maximum donation. Compare to the median. And compare to other Fullertonians. Don’t forget to divide corporate donations by shareholders and divide union donations by dues payers. Then re-sort.
Lies, defamation?
Also, completely non responsive. Try and pay attention to the actual point if you’re interested in anything but trolling. I’m talking about expectations of outsize influence versus other residents. The richest people on earth seem to be the biggest cheapskates. They don’t spend something for nothing.
It is mind blowing that Jung raised a quarter million and Dunlap raised close to $100,000 for a city council seat. Where did those contributions come from?
Check out the Follow the Money report on this site to find out the actual numbers and list of contributors and how many are from out of town. What do these contributors want is a good question.
Anjali,
I would find your editorial more convincing if it included a detailed analysis of how long it would take the city to recoup its sizable investment in infrastructure for the Walk on Wilshire (and please included the cost of repaving that stretch of Wilshire, an investment made for the Bicycle Blvd., without which diners would be tripping over potholes). A source of revenue or a money pit, I don’t think WoW is likely to contribute much toward a looming $ 8 million budget deficit, which should be the real story here.
I’d also like to know why the six businesses cited in the editorial don’t support the street closure. Are they located close to it? How are their businesses affected by it? What are the general locations of the businesses that do support it? Are their businesses affected by it one way or the other?
I still don’t see it used all that much. I was on that block this past Saturday night and saw about eight people at two tables on one side of the street. The entire north side was empty. It seems to be that if it was such popular dining destination it wouldn’t require 1,500 signatures to retain it. How often do you dine there?
Off the top of my head:
– There are no potholes because cars don’t drive over it and rip up the road.
– Some don’t support it because their owners want more parking. Some seem to want to park right in front of their shop but I cannot confirm this.
– Restaurants are already leasing out some parklets, amd more would if the space were to be made permanent. By my own rough estimate, the city would recoup it investment in 1-2 years at the current rate, faster if it made the space permanent and more businesses participated in the parklet program.
– It’s often busy when I’m there at peak hours. I see lots of diners, people strolling by, parents teaching their kids to bike in a safe car-free space, young people sitting eating ice cream, and people listening to the buskers. I meet up with friends all the time there. It’s a nice, peaceful spot to just relax. With a little effort, public seating, planters, etc, it will be an even more be an even more inviting space.
This will be my last message on the topic as all has been said. Public sentiment and business responses speak for themselves.
“By my own rough estimate, the city would recoup it investment in 1-2 years at the current rate,”
How funny. “Your” rough estimate doesn’t seem to correspond to the City’s own projections in which it would take at least six years to cover accrued costs, neglects true running costs, and the cost of money. You people really are in a class by yourselves.
David, having a snarky attitude and making fun of every comment that goes against your side does not make you look smart. Having an actual, meaningful debate begins with mutual respect, integrity, and an open mind to at least understand the other person’s point of view.
That said, I am genuinely curious on the real reason why you and Tony are so aggressively against WoW. Is this about the feeling of having control? I also heard that you may be worried that WoW will take away business from the future Fox Theater Plaza. Is this really true? If so, I can assure you that won’t be the case. Both the Fox Theater Plaza and WoW can mutually be great attractions to bring visitors to our beloved city. If you can provide some transparency on your true intentions of dismantling WoW, then maybe we can have an honest discussion.
You and Tony have a history of using money to get our city council to vote against public interest. I would like to provide some insight that the further you push on this, the more upset the public will become. Your names will continue to spread in a negative light, and you may eventually lose control over our city. Despite all that though, is this really how you want to live your lives? As you get older, will you really be satisfied and happy with all of the harm your actions have caused to the people in your city?
I implore you to really take some time to reflect on everything that has happened in your life and ask yourself if you are truly happy. Please reflect on how you went down this road of misery – when did it all begin? Spending so much hateful energy like this is truly not good for your health.
Anyways, I hope you have a nice day.
Mike, Dave can speak for himself, of course, but I’ll take a snarky attitude over a city owned financial sinkhole any day. I’d like to know which cost analysis is correct. Can the city’s paper of record tell us?
Interesting reply. I don’t believe this is a matter of choosing either the snarky attitude or the city finances. People should have the capability of making their points without being condescending. I truly hope you don’t think it is acceptable to speak that way towards the people in your life
I appreciate your empathetic and thoughtful response. Although I am not optimistic, I hope your words are received in their intended spirit.
“and please included the cost of repaving that stretch of Wilshire, an investment made for the Bicycle Blvd., without which diners would be tripping over potholes”
Cyclists still have full access to it, so I don’t see how the asset is impaired by WoW relative to the bicycle blvd grant. Given that logic, I don’t see how it would be a factor in recouping “investment” costs.
And again, is it actually an investment that is expected to provide tangible ROI? Parks and roads don’t typically provide any direct ROI unless it’s a special case like an amusement park or a toll road. If it ultimately breaks even or close, I think it will be a big success.
“And again, is it actually an investment that is expected to provide tangible ROI?”
For a City in dire financial distress one would hope so. And sadly, its adherents keep referring to it as business development. What a hoot.
A lot of businesses also benefit from the increased foot traffic from the spillover effect. People walk around the walkable space, then walk over to other nearby shops instead of just getting back into their cars and driving off. Some of those effects are difficult to measure at the city level – you’d have to get cell phone ping data which is expensive and hard to parse – but large-scale studies have demonstrated this. Improving city walkability has basically zero downsides.
Has this beneficial spillover effect been documented in any way in Fullerton?
Business owners themselves have told me this. But as I said, it is difficult to quantify on a small scale. Larger studies support this idea as mentioned in the article above.
So, no. If it has been documented on a larger scale, what we should do is formulate a comprehensive plan for downtown, not just a piecemeal micro effort.
Maybe other people just like other things than you like. Nothing but using a road as a road makes sense to you. That’s you. Others see possibilities beyond the mundane and pedestrian.
Which is fine except you have to bash everyone else and come off an unpleasant person in every interaction.
Matt – many wonderful things start small and become better as time goes on. Adding WoW and improving on it is possible. Downtown is a rushing highway to the 91 for many who never stop. We could make a wider plan – maybe cutting the thoroughfare to one lane in each direction with signage to the parking lots and widen the sidewalks. But that would take another many years and a bundle of money we don’t have right now.
We have WoW now. It is a good beginning to a more family friendly downtown instead of just a bar-dominated area. The three businesses who said they don’t want it are leasing space from Bushala who is against it for some reason he is keeping secret. They really can’t go against their landlord without repercussions.
The real drain to city finances downtown are the bars, enforcement and clean up which was $1.6 million over revenue brought in by taxes from the area in the study done years ago and may be even more now. Are bars charged for those city services? No they are not. That is a problem.
WOW is not the problem and was a thriving family friendly space until new requirements that businesses build permanent structures – which many won’t do until the council (hopefully) makes the 200 foot stretch permanent. They are unwilling to spend the money to build and then dismantle if the council decides to scrap WoW. That it is not as pretty as it could be is certainly true and could be easily remedied.
Nothing good happens in this town without the people coming out. We would have no bike trails, no museum plaza, no museum, a polluted Laguna lake, no open space in Coyote Hills, no chance at a restored Fox Theater, no UP Trail, and polluting flour mill towers among many other examples – except that residents got together to make wishes known.
Sharon, I hope you including the participating WoW restaurants, who all serve alcohol, in your tally of the bars costing the city money.
Thanks for this piece, but we need more information on the 19 businesses who support WoW and the six who oppose it. Who are they, where are they located, what are their arguments? What’s their assessment of how WoW has affected their bottom lines? Also, WoW is referred to as a revenue generating space. What Fullerton-centered data are attached to that? Does it generate more or less revenue than when it was open pre-COVID?
There has been nothing done with the space that makes it an amenity that brings people to the area. People are either going to visit the restaurants that are there or they won’t. But what keeping it closed does do is prevent people from accessing the area.
Mike,
Many people and studies refute your assessment. Access to the area is plenty. Do you travel? Have you ever been to Carmel, Santa Cruz, or outside California there are Incline Village, Nevada – Moab, Utah – Taos, New Mexico – Berry Hill, Tennessee – Williamsburg, Virginia? These places have courtyards full of stores that are not seen from the Main Street, but are wonderful discoveries on foot and everyone knows that people walking into your restaurant or store are more apt to buy than a car driving by.