Friday, October 6, 2017

Draft resolution to extend the car-free event on JFK Dr. to a year-long event.

RESOLUTION URGING THE EXPANSION OF HEALTHY SATURDAYS IN GOLDEN GATE PARK, A ROAD CLOSURE ON JFK DRIVE BETWEEN THE TEA GARDEN AND TRANSVERSE DRIVE TO BE A YEAR LONG EVENT.

WHEREAS,  A car-free street in Golden Gate Park will expand the opportunities for health, recreation, and fitness in the safety of a traffic free environment; and

WHEREAS,  Healthy Saturdays serve a vital role in providing a safe space for children to enjoy the outdoors on bikes, trikes, skateboards, and roller skates without close supervision from parents: and

WHEREAS, A car-free JFK Drive will enable seniors to access the Park by bicycle or on foot.

WHEREAS, The popularity of  the car-free area in Golden Gate Park over the last fifty years shows the need to be expanded to every weekend; and

WHEREAS, Cities around the world are finding that car-free areas provide urban dwellers with a healthy respite from noisy, busy everyday life; and

WHEREAS, Healthy Saturdays is an opportunity to enhance the park at little or no cost to taxpayers; and

WHEREAS, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department and San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency are under a mandate to make Golden Gate Park safer for all travelers from the 1998 Golden Gate Park Master Plan, which prioritizes pedestrians first, bicycles second and motor vehicles third; and

WHEREAS, the area of the closure will stay the same, and will not directly impact access to park institutions like the Cal Academy or the museums;  THEREFORE, BE IT

RESOLVED, That the San Francisco Pedestrian Advisory Committee supports and endorses San Francisco Department and Recreation and Parks' proposal to expand Healthy Saturdays in Golden Gate Park into a year-long event.