Different paths
pasadena planner Brigham Yen searches for the best way from here to there
By Joanna Beresford 01/07/2010
“Nobody walks in LA”
— Missing Persons
Oh, man, how I loved Dale Bozzio when I was a kid growing up in the Midwest. She was the ethereal everything that a star-struck wannabe singer or actress, dazzled and daunted by the prospects of the Golden City at the edge of the American world, wanted to be. When the band performed “Walking in LA,” I missed the irony altogether and actually thought that was a good thing. What a f*@#ing cool city, where everybody is so rich, so aloof, so outerspaceville that nobody walks.
And you know what? I know better now, but I’ve got to say that Los Angeles, and even our beloved Pasadena, really hasn’t changed that much in terms of walkability over the intervening decades. People “go for a walk,” or they hike in the hills, or they walk down Colorado Boulevard from one shop to another. But when it comes to transportation, we’re really still a community of cripples, wheeling around in our cars.
Why, why, why is this true?
“Conformity is a powerful phenomenon,” says Brigham Yen, Pasadena real estate agent and urban planning guru. “If I don’t see other people walking, if all I see is a sea of red lights, if there’s no support system for walking, I’m going to get in my car.”
Brigham has always been fascinated by cities. When he was 13 his father bought two Greyhound Bus tickets and the father/son pair set off on a whirlwind, street-level tour of the United States. They visited communities, from Provo, Utah, to Denver, Vail, Chicago, Boston and Niagara Falls. When they finally reached New York City, it was like reaching a “city on steroids,” Brigham says. Massive, pulsing with energy and superbly, remarkably efficient.
Brigham studied at Pasadena City College, then earned a degree in mass communication from UC Berkeley. In 2004, his sister gave him a camera and he hit the streets of downtown LA, capturing the images of a city he says was originally built with people in mind (think of El Pueblo and the small neighborhood that grew around it), but had evolved into a strapping complex of traffic and sprawl.
His perambulations led to friendships, contacts and eventually a job with a nonprofit economic development organization dedicated to bringing fresh business and residents into downtown LA. Meanwhile, Brigham pursued a similar passion for the city of Pasadena. He analyzed historic and emerging demographics, traffic patterns, cultural and economic factors and commercial and residential trends. Mostly, he took to the streets, as he did downtown. He recorded his experiences in postings on relevant sites and eventually on his own blog and Web site.
Brigham’s deepening commitment as a visionary of urban development is to transform metropolitan areas like downtown LA and Pasadena into walkable regions. According to Brigham, walking is primarily a lifestyle, rather than a matter of cosmetics, politics or environment.
“In a healthy, functional city,” Brigham says, “individuals have civic pride and they walk among their neighbors and fellow citizens.”
The American Dream involves owning a house, land and essentially securing the private world. Brigham believes that ultimately people want more than that. We want culture, museums, theaters, a shared public world and, in fact, we need these amenities and we need them to be connected, intertwined with our lives in order to function — particularly in regions of high density.
“Look at New York City, Tokyo — these are highly dense cities, but they are functional. A city is only as healthy as its circulatory system.” Like an athlete.
In other words, if public transportation, multi-use development and pedestrian-friendly or bike-friendly neighborhoods emerge and facilitate circulation, a healthy, vibrant community will thrive.
It’s not a revolutionary idea, but his applications are unique to our city. Most recently, Brigham has advocated for improving the journey from Old Pasadena to the Norton Simon Museum. He’s searching for suggestions and support in a quest to make the relatively short distance between the two locations more pleasant, convenient and … walkable.
Not a bad way to start a New Year: seeking better connections.
Contact Joanna Dehn Beresford at truewrite@yahoo.com.
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Having a walkable city is crucial as the age of the automobile wanes. And although LA as a whole will probably never be a completely walkable city, it is essential that there are interconnected nodes of activity that are pedestrian-oriented.
The best cities in the world have great choice and mix of lifestyles; however, LA by and large does not. Creating walkable areas will allow for a greater diversity of living options, which will bring us closer to becoming a truly vibrant city.