Fullerton street to stay closed through 2024

A segment of downtown Fullerton’s Wilshire Blvd shut down in 2020 to make way for outdoor dining.

Bise said. As Walk on Wilshire’s Sept. 30 shut down date looms, the departments involved in the discussion of the parklet pilot plan had to quickly come up with a solution.

“We received feedback, both positive and negative, for the closure of Wilshire and the deployment of outdoor dining,” said Bise. The council’s approval sparked both praise and criticism throughout Fullerton.

to dismount and walk their bike through, but Bise said the program will relieve that. “One of the benefits of the parklet, we wanted to make sure we incorporated cyclists who use the bike route in bike boulevard,” he said.

A downtown Fullerton street segment will remain closed for outdoor dining through mid-2024, the Fullerton City Council voted Tuesday.

Walk on Wilshire, a 200-foot portion of Wilshire Blvd, was closed to traffic to expand outdoor dining for struggling downtown businesses in 2020, but persisted long after pandemic regulations ebbed. The approved proposal will see the area turned into parklets, which are sidewalk extensions that serve as a platform of extra seating or amenities.

The 18-month program will strt January 1, 2023. Construction on the parklets will begin in the following months and must be finished by the year’s end, said Stephen Bise, city engineer and assistant director of public works.

This trial parklet plan has only been in the works for about a month,

“We didn’t have enough time or do enough analysis or have more of a citywide equity study for outdoor dining. So, because the deadline was quickly approaching, we wanted to deploy a pilot program on Walk on Wilshire because we did receive a lot of support from residents and other businesses,” Bise said.

They were reluctant to produce a permanent plan due to the lack of time, so the parklet pilot came into fruition, he said.

Walk on Wilshire, a popular study spot for CSUF students, stands as one of Orange County’s few remnants of pandemic restrictions. While several outdoor dining areas closed roads in 2020, many have reverted to their original forms, like Glassell Street in Old Towne Orange. Those that remain open, like Wilshire, have fueled conversations surrounding public property’s relationship with private businesses.

Some of the public raised questions of equity for the parklets benefiting adjacent businesses, like Smoking Tiger Coffee Lab and Rialto Cafe.

Mayor Pro Tem Bruce Whitaker pointed out that businesses bordering the parklet are paying rent for that space.

“They’re going to be investing large amounts of money to make this work,” he said. “So while other businesses might look at that with a little bit of envy, I don’t think that envy should be used as a way of preventing something like this from occurring.”

Though downtown Fullerton is known for its nightlife, Whitaker said keeping Walk on Wilshire would aid making the area a daytime destination. He said that downtown would benefit as a whole as the parklets attract more customers, and even non-adjacent businesses would benefit from the overflow.

The removal of the bike boulevard has been a criticism of the Wilshire segment, which requires bicyclists

The model that was presented showed about 12 to 15 feet of parklet space, with 20 to 26 foot street space, per fire department requirements. The 20 to 26 foot clearance is mandatory to provide required access for fire trucks, according to the parklet guidelines.

The 18-month parklet pilot was approved by Whitaker and Council Members Zahra and Silva. Mayor Fred Jung abstained and did not speak on the matter as technical difficulties arose on Zoom, but previously spoke against extending Walk on Wilshire in past meetings.

“I will not compromise with Wilshire. I think it needs to be opened. It’s a street and it should be treated as such,” Jung said in March. He did not respond to requests to comment regarding Tuesday’s vote.

Jung’s perspective has been backed by some speakers like Matt Leslie, who called the extension “ludicrous.”

“This is a public street that’s being given over to businesses, most of whom already have some form of outdoor dining and have had for years either on the sidewalks outside or on their patios,” Leslie said during public comment. “Why is so much time staff time and public time being used up for this sort of thing?”

Meanwhile, other residents welcome Walk on Wilshire’s extension with open arms. Curtis Gamble, a public speaker who was homeless for eight years, said his experience showed him the public’s desire to be outdoors.

“They want to be outside. I noticed that when I was out there for eight years, that people in every way they want to be outside even if it’s two seats,” he said. “And I think we should give the public that option.”

Parklets are explained to be sidewalk extensions that are seating areas created as a public amenity. Commonly, parklets are installed alongside a sidewalk or what was a former roadside parking space.

After many meetings held alongside Public Works, the Community & Economic Development department, and the fire departments, a plan has been devised to possibly satisfy both spectrums of supporters and non-supporters.