Follow Up: Crosswalks and Roadways

[Colleen Pate]

This expands on my previous message board post regarding the edict to remove certain painting on roadways, including crosswalks. The federal guidance states that “Word, symbol, and arrow marking on the pavement” are to be “used for the purpose of regulating, warning, or guiding traffic”. Those words and symbols are generally required to be white. The regs also say, “Crosswalk markings shall be white”.

When the relevant roads were painted, including the 4th Street crosswalk, it was known that they arguably violated federal roadway requirements.
It’s ridiculous that with all our needs and all the good we could be doing, some people use their power to divide and demean people and to devalue things that make our communities special.

We must protect Austin’s values. These artistic expressions are important to our constituents. They’re important to me. This threat, whiIe uninvited, creates an opportunity. In fact, I want to use this opportunity to enhance bringing people together, to better celebrate every Austinite’s value, and to highlight our diversity and creativity more. I want to increase the ways we show our love. And I want to do all these things while fulfilling our responsibility and obligation to safeguard hundreds of millions of dollars we need to meet critical city needs.

In other words, to those who threaten us, I say: “You want to take away a crosswalk that symbolizes how we value equality and love for all? You want us to remove a symbol of our appreciation for Black artists? You want to jeopardize our city’s prosperity and quality of life by blocking critical, necessary funding for valued projects from trails to airports to climate protection and more?
“Well, we’ll raise you. We’re going to do more to show our love, respect and appreciation for all our people, and we’re going to do it in a way that is clearly Austin.”

The City honored Bettie Naylor, who I first met around 1984, by naming a portion of 4th Street as “Bettie Naylor Street”. I was there and spoke about the impact she had on me and so many others through her advocacy, common sense, compassion, and energy.

For many of us, Bettie Naylor Street has a spirit. I remember and still feel the happiness we shared on June 26, 2015, when we packed onto that street celebrating the Obergefell decision. This assault on that spirit reenergizes me.

It’s the same on East 11th Street, where Austin shows support of the city’s black artists and recognizes they’re important contributions to Austin’s spirit, energy, and vitality.

As potential compliance with federal requirements, I’ve asked City Manager Broadnax to seek an exception or waiver from this negative decree, and I’ve asked a state official about the possibility. According to the letter the City received, exceptions may be granted based on “demonstrated public safety benefit or compelling justification.” In the past, I’ve seen no evidence from those involved in making these decisions that they’ll be inclined to grant an exception. The edict itself is an intentional attack on values we consider to be a compelling justification. And we’ve seen other shocking attacks on the basic concepts of equity and inclusion.

I’m not getting my hopes up that an exception will get us to compliance.

I said I would offer a plan. My proposal is that we immediately create a task force on the use of public spaces (including sidewalks and other transportation items) to celebrate Austin’s love, diversity, and creativity. It would include a representative from each of the following Boards and/or Commissions, which have some coverage of this issue: African American Resource Advisory Commission, Arts Commission, Downtown Commission, LGBTQ Quality of Life Advisory Commission, Parks & Recreation Board, Tourism Commission, Urban Transportation Commission, and the Design Commission. It would also include a representative from each of our DECA Chambers: Austin LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce, Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce, Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce. We should also include a representative of the Six Square Cultural District. Finally, each one of us would recommend one person. The task force will pick its chair.

The charge would be to identify ways and make recommendations to City staff for the City to celebrate diversity, show our love of equality, acknowledge contributions to Austin’s culture and character, and present Austin as a unique, creative place wanting to be better by being inclusive. The work should focus on ideas that do not violate federal or state requirements. And the task force should consider means for funding, including seeking corporate and philanthropic giving.

It would be great if we could get the task force put together by Monday, October 27th. I’ll reach out to the Boards, Commissions, and Chambers. Please let us know your appointee via message board. The City Manager’s Office will provide support.

There will be some details that we’ll need to work through, and there will be some ideas that improve this proposal, but I want to get us moving. And whether or not an exception is given, this is something I think we should do. As I’ve said, this gives us an opportunity, should reenergize us, and prompt even better celebration of Austin’s love, pride, diversity, and creativity.

Let’s seize the opportunity. There’s more than one way to show our love, our pride, our respect for diversity, our defiance. Let’s protect, defend, and shine a light on Austin’s values at the same time we protect grants for programs and projects important to Austin like the airport expansion, Vision Zero, climate pollution reduction, potentially Project Connect, and other current and future State and Federal grants that we’ll want and need to properly build Austin.

Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you.

Kirk

On behalf of Mayor Watson

[Ryan Alter]

Thank you Mayor for putting together this plan with a clear vision for how we can show who we are as a city. I look forward to seeing the work of the task force and agree that we can and will emerge from this pettiness stronger than ever.

- Ryan