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-   -   Phoenix Development News (3) (https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=173764)

Gump Dec 5, 2010 1:26 AM

Can't we all just get along...

Vicelord John Dec 5, 2010 1:35 AM

I've tried to be nice to the guy, countless times, as has everyone else... so the apparent answer to your question is no. :(

Leo the Dog Dec 5, 2010 4:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HooverDam (Post 5080858)
An excerpt from an article on Phx parking meters:



This is good news, Phoenix's quarter only payment system for the parking meters is a freaking joke. Every other major city in the country seems to have some system that allows you to use credit/debit cards, I hope Phx switches to one of those systems. Making parking downtown easier by being able to pay via debit/credit can only help downtown businesses as its one less impediment to downtown shopping.

I agree. Phoenix needs to also look at the pricing. $1.50/hour is a little steep, for the area. Its not a cosmopolitan area just yet, where people are fighting for spots.

I know its a fine line to try to get people to ride the LR vs. driving to DT and also trying to generate as much revenue as possible, but wherever the city installs meters, nobody ever parks there. So it seems like the high price and the extended hours has actually discouraged on-street parking, therefore, a drop in revenue for the city.

Vicelord John Dec 5, 2010 5:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HooverDam (Post 5080858)
An excerpt from an article on Phx parking meters:



This is good news, Phoenix's quarter only payment system for the parking meters is a freaking joke. Every other major city in the country seems to have some system that allows you to use credit/debit cards, I hope Phx switches to one of those systems. Making parking downtown easier by being able to pay via debit/credit can only help downtown businesses as its one less impediment to downtown shopping.

Quarter only? I pay with nickles and dimes all the time and have for 10 years. The only denomination the meters don't take is pennies. There are a large group of meters which take credit/debit, and they are currently installing more. I'm the king of argumentative fallacies, eh? You are basing your argument on what you've read on AZ Central, which is always wrong.

Vicelord John Dec 5, 2010 8:12 PM

where do these fucks get off talking like they do?

http://www.eateraz.com/2010/11/the-peoples-court/

HooverDam Dec 5, 2010 9:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vicelord John (Post 5081605)
Quarter only? I pay with nickles and dimes all the time and have for 10 years. The only denomination the meters don't take is pennies. There are a large group of meters which take credit/debit, and they are currently installing more. I'm the king of argumentative fallacies, eh? You are basing your argument on what you've read on AZ Central, which is always wrong.

Jesus fuck, you love picking fights. Im sorry I should've said "change" not "quarters." I usually just use quarters because its easier to carry $1.50 in quarters than in nickels or dimes. You of course knew damned well thats what I meant but were being a fuck just to be a fuck. Also, congrats on completely misunderstanding what a argumentative fallacy is, me using the wrong word on accident isn't one.

The fact that we have so few machines that take ATM/Credit is a freaking joke. This summer I spent time in LA, Portland, Houston, Chicago, St Louis, Dallas, & Denver and not once did I ever need metal money in my pocket to use a parking meter.

Some cities had each meter with an ATM/Credit device, others like Portland had a kiosk at mid block that printed out a little ticket that you put in your window. I also hear Vancouver has a system in which each meter has a 1-800 number on them that you can call and then you can pay via ATM/Credit on an automated line, then you can apparently text that number when you need more minutes & it charges you automatically.

Vicelord John Dec 5, 2010 9:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HooverDam (Post 5081809)
Jesus fuck, you love picking fights. Im sorry I should've said "change" not "quarters." I usually just use quarters because its easier to carry $1.50 in quarters than in nickels or dimes. You of course knew damned well thats what I meant but were being a fuck just to be a fuck.

no, I didn't know what you meant. I thought what you wrote was what you meant. How am I supposed to know what you meant? ESP? Sorry, my crystal ball is broken. When you say quarters only, I have to assume you mean quarters only.

pbenjamin Dec 6, 2010 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vicelord John (Post 5081820)
no, I didn't know what you meant. I thought what you wrote was what you meant. How am I supposed to know what you meant? ESP? Sorry, my crystal ball is broken. When you say quarters only, I have to assume you mean quarters only.

That's the way I read it too. Wondered if he actually ever used the meters.

HooverDam Dec 6, 2010 2:31 AM

Jesus Christ lets cut to the point and quit with the semantics: Phoenix is one of the only big cities in the West (I can't speak for the East, haven't traveled as much there) to have its meters primarily only take change. The fact that the City is going to potentially stop pinching pennies and go for 21st Century style meters is a very good thing.

Don B. Dec 6, 2010 2:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vicelord John (Post 5080981)
Sounds like pent up agression from being bullied as a childhood and a father who probably shunned your lifestyle.

When you make inappropriate comments like this, everyone can see what sort of a childish buffoon you are. It really eliminates any chance of having anyone take your argument seriously. That is a logical flaw in your argument, Mr. "I'm the king of argumentative fallacies." LMAO...

And for the record, you are rude. There's no reason to be like this, except that you exhibit behavior here on occasion that can best be described as being like a bully.

--don

exit2lef Dec 6, 2010 4:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vicelord John (Post 5081746)
where do these fucks get off talking like they do?

http://www.eateraz.com/2010/11/the-peoples-court/

Eater AZ is definitely Scottsdale-centric. Their offices are in the Galleria (Scottsdale's answer to the AZ Center), and they events they sponsor always seem to be in Scottsdale. It's therefore disappointing but not surprising that they have a dim view of Downtown Phoenix, even though the ratio of restaurant openings to closures is probably better Downtown than in Scottsdale. They did, however, seem to love Verde, so I'm dreading their take on its closure yesterday. I fear that one isolated restaurant failure will become an excuse for "told ya so" negativity toward Downtown Phoenix.

Vicelord John Dec 6, 2010 4:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by exit2lef (Post 5082151)
Eater AZ is definitely Scottsdale-centric. Their offices are in the Galleria (Scottsdale's answer to the AZ Center), and they events they sponsor always seem to be in Scottsdale. It's therefore disappointing but not surprising that they have a dim view of Downtown Phoenix, even though the ratio of restaurant openings to closures is probably better Downtown than in Scottsdale. They did, however, seem to love Verde, so I'm dreading their take on its closure yesterday. I fear that one isolated restaurant failure will become an excuse for "told ya so" negativity toward Downtown Phoenix.

Oh totally. Tyda is a little prick that constantly tells people how great he thinks tey are and then publishes humiliating things about them. He really insulted two good friends of mine Richardson Browne and Beau Macmillan. I wrote him a note today and his reply was equally as snide as my comments to him.

PHX31 Dec 6, 2010 4:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HooverDam (Post 5081809)
Jesus fuck, you love picking fights.

Yeah, he likes nothing better. He enjoys being a huge douche and putting his two cents into every discussion and everyone's replies.

Vicelord John Dec 6, 2010 4:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PHX31 (Post 5082210)
Yeah, he likes nothing better. He enjoys being a huge douche and putting his two cents into every discussion and everyone's replies.

Adding two cents into discussions is sort of the point of a forum...

combusean Dec 7, 2010 12:26 AM

I love watching this place self-moderate. All of you can hold your own as far as I can tell. Please try to keep it on topic tho.

How did Verde close? Their carrying costs looked unbelievably low. (probably had something to do with the building, i'm guessing).

I posed a question in the scottsdale thread ... wtf is going on there? Nothing.

HX_Guy Dec 9, 2010 1:01 AM

This seems kind of cool...

Quote:

ITEM 35
DISTRICT 8
ORDINANCE S-37555 -
DESIGN CONTRACT FOR THE GIMME SHELTER PIERCE STREET PUBLIC ART PROJECT

Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to enter into a contract with Matter Architecture Practice (NY), for an amount not to exceed $30,000, to design unique and effective shade structures and possibly other pedestrian amenities to be incorporated into the narrowing of Pierce Street between Central Avenue and 1st Street; and further authorizing the City Controller to disburse the necessary funds.

The Fiscal Year 2010-2015 Public Art Project Plan includes a project to commission an artist or design team to design and fabricate unique and effective shade structures for a wide range of public spaces in Phoenix.

Earlier this year the Office of Cultural Affairs Public Art Program received a $25,000 National Endowment for the Arts Mayor's Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative Grant for this project. The federal grant will be combined with City Percent-for-Art funds in the Gimme Shelter Public Art project to redesign Pierce Street, between 1st Street and Central Avenue, in front of the Downtown Phoenix Public Market. The redesign will transform the street's 300‑foot frontage into a comfortable year-round place to walk and enjoy the local foods and goods featured at the market. The Pierce Street improvements will follow the example of Taylor Street through the Arizona State University Downtown Campus, where a narrowed roadway, widened sidewalks, and integrated public art helped to create an urban hub of pedestrian activity.

The Pierce Street improvements would coincide with the Downtown Phoenix Public Market's use of Community Development Block Grant funds to shade its parking lot, adjacent to Pierce Street, creating a more comfortable gathering place for its outdoor farm market.

Employment Impact
The design of this artwork is expected to support work for an Arizona landscape architect and an Arizona engineer.

Financial Impact
The Gimme Shelter Shade for Pierce Street public art project is one of 80 projects in the Fiscal Year 2010-2015 Public Art Project Plan approved by City Council. The total budget for the five-year plan is $26,465,898 and $500,000 is available for this project in Fiscal Year 2010-2011. That amount has been supplemented by an additional $25,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Mayor's Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative Grant. The $30,000 artist design contract would cover all the artist costs related to the design of the project. The remaining $470,000 in City funds would be combined with $25,000 from the NEA Mayor's Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative Grant to narrow Pierce Street and design unique shade structures and possibly other pedestrian amenities for the site. A small amount of that $495,000 total would go toward project administration. The City funds come from Water, Wastewater, and Economic Development Capital Programs.

gymratmanaz Dec 9, 2010 5:45 AM

That is cool. Looking forward to seeing designs!!!

exit2lef Dec 9, 2010 7:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by combusean (Post 5083247)
How did Verde close? Their carrying costs looked unbelievably low. (probably had something to do with the building, i'm guessing).

The owners cited busy weekday lunches, but not enough traffic on nights and weekends. Of course, that could be said of a lot of Downtown restaurants.

In retrospect, I think the following would have helped:

-- Better music and speakers
-- A liquor license, at least a limited one for wine and beer
-- Better signs
-- More vegetarian choices on the menu
-- More illumination of the window that looked in on the room where tortillas were being made. Seeing the tortilla making would have been great advertisement, but you really had to look to see what was going on in there.
-- More social media activity
-- Better ulitization of the nearby Phoenix Public Market, maybe, as suggested by Michele Laudig of the New Times, by selling tortillas there

Or, you could go with my three-year-old daughter's theory. She really liked the place. In fact, it was the first restaurant she knew by name. When I told her it was closed, she pouted and then told me, "Batman closed the restaurant."

westbev93 Dec 9, 2010 8:44 PM

Reasons for Verde's fail:

1. The menu was too limited. My wife complained that she didn't like any of the 5 menu items so she refused to go there. As a result, I didn't get to go unless I was alone. If you are a vegetarian, you were pretty much screwed. Hell, the menu was too limited for me. Unless I was in the mood for pork, I couldn't really go there.

2. It's called marketing. If people don't know you exist, they won't come to your place. Especially when you are one of a whole lot of burrito places in Central Phoenix. Even driving by it was hard to tell what the building was. It looked like a gallery or something to me.

3. Be open on Sundays. I live close by. I like eating during the weeknight evenings, but I am usually too tired from work to actually go out. Know when I am hungry and rested enough to go somewhere? Sundays. And of course, just about everything is closed. If you want to be closed to get a day off, try Tuesday night. Be open on Sunday.

PHX31 Dec 9, 2010 8:57 PM

I thought Verde was a good concept. They just didn't quite execute everything great to succeed.

1. They were called Verde, meaning Green, because they were trying to be environmentally conscious. Not sure but I think they went for some kind of LEED designation with their building renovation. You may have noticed their recycle bins and the wooden stool things were a way to be "green", etc. That should have brought them more notariety and business.

2. The location seemed like it should be good, but in reality 1st Street and Garfield is 1 block too far south and 1 block too far east. They had zero driveby/walkby traffic.

3. Yeah, they should have definitely done more marketing.

4. They had some pretty cool plans, just ran out of money to do them. They wanted to have their parking lot be a place with music and drinking on First Fridays. They also wanted to use their little lunch truck that they had. If the lunch truck stuff takes off like it seems to be doing (with the Public Market, etc.), that would have/still could be a good idea.

5. Needed a liquor license, obviously.

6. They ran out of money (due to the construction) and didn't have enough steady business to recoup their costs, or improve, like getting a liquor license.

I'm a firm believer that a restaurant can have a very limited menu.. even more limited than Verde's.. but what you do have has to be unforgettable. If you do something unbelievably well, eventually your food and reputation will sell itself. They had good tortillas, but nothing else was truely great. A lot of downtown restaurants are in the same boat, but maybe they just have deeper pockets than Verde so they can stay afloat.


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