There are many great things about living in Sewickley: the wonderful schools, a vibrant small village atmosphere, amenities like the YMCA, Public Library, and Sweetwater Center for the Arts to name a few. However, we have all continued to live among unprecedented times that have left us and our community facing the challenges COVID-19 has presented.
We believe in ‘building to give back’, the purpose beyond the occupation and commitment to community. This is what motivates us and drives our work. So, we decided to take these challenges head on and start asking questions, hoping to find thoughtful solutions.
How can we (our firm, our borough, our citizens) help sustain our local businesses?
How can we expand the footprint of the Sewickley Village businesses to help increase their potential revenue given the current occupancy restrictions?
How can these concepts be mutually beneficial, fostering collaboration between the businesses, Borough Council, Planning Commission and the community?
After we posed these questions, we generated conceptual ideas and created visualizations to support our thoughts for Sewickley Village Outdoor Design Strategies.
Open Streets Concept
The open streets concept is conceived as a pedestrian only zone that would include Beaver, Broad and Walnut streets.
This concept is meant to provide the village businesses an opportunity expand their current footprint while giving the community a place to enjoy a meal or shop outdoors.
It is imagined to occur on weekends periodically throughout the summer and fall seasons.
Occupied Parking Concept
The occupied parking concept will offer restaurants and retail establishments the option to occupy parking spaces adjacent to their businesses.
This concept is expected to increase occupancy for outdoor seating and retail sales.
It is envisioned to occur on both weekdays and weekends. It’s intent is to generate revenue for the businesses and the borough through a split incentive program. The borough can negotiate fees for the parking spaces while the business benefit from additional space to operate.
Occupied Public Space Concept
The occupied public space concept is intended to offer additional seating and services to existing underutilized public spaces throughout the village.
This concept is proposed to encourage the community to spend time outdoors.
It is projected to occur on both weekdays and weekends. It’s intent is to provide additional space for citizens and businesses to socialize and enjoy the outdoors. This concept is meant to change the paradigm from social distancing to physical distancing.