Castro Street leads the way Castro Street leads the way (January 23, 2004)

Downtown MV considered model for neighbors

By Julie O'Shea

Castro Street has a fan club.

Officials from Sunnyvale, Livermore and Fremont said they have been taking strolls along Mountain View's tree-lined downtown strip to get some new design ideas for their own cityscapes.

The street's landscape, lighting posts, flexible parking and transit-oriented housing are creating a stir with the visitors. Of course, many of them also noted that they were equally as taken with City Hall, the performing arts center and the newly refurbished two-story library on Franklin Street.

But the buzz hardly seems to faze Mountain View leaders, who have given tours of their famous street to dignitaries, intrigued by the Castro Street model, from as far away as Japan and Australia.

City Manager Kevin Duggan said he wasn't aware of the recent interest from the surrounding South and East Bay cities, but he is nonetheless flattered.

"We do have lots of people from all over the place come to visit to take a look at the Civic Center, the library and the downtown from time to time, which is a nice compliment," Duggan said.

Livermore City Manager Linda Barton said her planners have looked at a number of downtown designs from around the area, but were "very impressed" with Castro Street's flexible parking and high-density housing that is close to public transit. These features, along with a new performing arts center, are some things Livermore hopes to incorporate into a new downtown look.

Sunnyvale officials, who are hunting down ideas to spruce up downtown Murphy Street, have also toured Castro and other Mountain View locales, city spokesperson John Pilger said.

Pilger said the city is looking to tear down the vacant Sunnyvale Town Center and replace it with retail, residential units and maybe even a theater. Planners from Sunnyvale have gone on a national search for design concepts, but Pilger said they have taken an interest with Mountain View's Civic Center.

"We are looking to build a new city plaza," he said.

A representative from Fremont said Mountain View was a one of many cities visited to get ideas on mixed-use retail and retail concepts. She added that Fremont has no set plans yet for their downtown redevelopment.

E-mail Julie O'Shea at joshea@mv-voice.com

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