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Neighbors & Friends
continued

The long-term improvements such as slowing down the
traffic, creating a safer pedestrian and cycling walkway,
tree-scaping, landscaping and building up the seawalls
won’t happen overnight. But the urgency has been
expressed and locals are making noise.

On Wednesday June 27th a Las Olas Mobility
Workshop was held from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at City
Hall. Commissioner Glassman and Vice Mayor Ben
Sorenson were there along with a packed room of
locals. Neighbors, retailers, restaurant owners, realtors
and many others attended. The city began by showing
studies and projects from 2000, 2009, 2013 and
2016. These can be found on the city’s website at www.
fortlauderdale.gov. They also showcased a beautification
plan that Tom Godart spearheaded. This plan would
narrow the lanes to help slow traffic, create a large tree-
scaped walkway with park benches and bike racks for
cyclists. The intent is to make it more beautiful, easier
and safer to get from Las Olas to the beach. And there
are other plans that people have submitted that were
briefly reviewed.
Although there were differing opinions on what the plan
should be and how it should be executed, there were
some common themes: slow down traffic, make
walkways safer and more pedestrian friendly, fix what
needs fixing, have consistency from Andrews to the
beach, and again…slow down traffic! There were 21
people who stood up to speak and express their
concerns and ideas. Many recommended we hire a
world class professional urban planner, architect or
engineer who can help with the design.
So what are the next steps? Many supported putting
together a smaller working group similar to that of the
17th Street Mobility workgroup so we can focus and
prioritize all that needs to be done. The take-away sound
bite of the day was to “make Fort Lauderdale an 8 - 80
city:*” If everything we do in our public spaces is great
for an 8-year-old and an 80-year-old, then it will be
great for all people.
*(8-80 Cities is a non-profit organization founded in
2007 dedicated to transforming and enhancing mobility
and public spaces).
To all the residents and businesses of Las Olas, keep the
surround-sound booming and let’s make this the best 2.4
miles in the state!

32 LAS OLAS BOULEVARD & ISLES