Ballpark streetscaping

[Gaspar]

Application of Reason

Gotta have enough up-shine to see a fly ball in the center of the field.  As you move away from the fixtures you are going to need to achieve an angle of light in excess of the maximum height of a pop fly. 

564 feet.

Otherwise the ball disappears into the night sky.

[rwarn17588]

At least they are flush enough with money so they dont have to worry about all the light being wasted up in the clouds.  Not that they would design responsibly or anything...
(hint:  you should not be able to see the source of properly-designed lighting from a helicopter or tall building).

Apparently Patric wants all of the outfielders to get conked in the head with pop flies during a night game. 

[TheTed]

Still no signs of progress on a sidewalk from the Blue Dome to the ballpark as of a couple days ago.

[sgrizzle]

That'll be awhile. Probably before first street lofts open, but not necessarily by much.

[patric]

Honest question: Are there stadium lights in this world that do not offend a lighting conservationist?  What fixtures should they have used?

http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=12977.msg124410#msg124410

So it's not like we didnt know...
(or wont have to pay the electric bill)

[Gaspar]

All of these ideas are great for little league fields and high schools, but for big hitters you are going to have to light the sky, cause dats where da ball goes!  You have to be able to see it.

Football, soccer, and other field games are great for down-lighting, but you can't get away with it in baseball.  If you want to avoid light pollution don't build a baseball field.

[sgrizzle]

I have to say with "no exposure is too long" patric's photo, it still didn't look too bad.

[patric]

All of these ideas are great for little league fields and high schools, but for big hitters you are going to have to light the sky, cause dats where da ball goes!  You have to be able to see it.

Football, soccer, and other field games are great for down-lighting, but you can't get away with it in baseball.  If you want to avoid light pollution don't build a baseball field.

The lack of optical control also translates to a lot of spill light far beyond the stadium.  While more light in the surrounding area might sound good, it's light at very shallow angles which means it's in-your-face glare.
With that kind of glare, people will be uneasy about not being able to see well, and will be at Maria Barnes doorstep demanding more streetlightng to compensate.  The city will, of course, respond with more Acorn lights (with their own glare problem).

Without a real streetlighitng plan, we're just burning more tax dollars on electricity and fixtures that dont address the problem. The first priority of streetlights should be to improve human vision, not look pretty.

As for the stadium, shielding the shallow-angled, off-site spill light would not only alleviate the perception of dark streets but shield the glare that actually presents pedestrian and motorist hazards.   

[Gaspar]

The lack of optical control also translates to a lot of spill light far beyond the stadium.  While more light in the surrounding area might sound good, it's light at very shallow angles which means it's in-your-face glare.
With that kind of glare, people will be uneasy about not being able to see well, and will be at Maria Barnes doorstep demanding more streetlightng to compensate.  The city will, of course, respond with more Acorn lights (with their own glare problem).

Without a real streetlighitng plan, we're just burning more tax dollars on electricity and fixtures that dont address the problem. The first priority of streetlights should be to improve human vision, not look pretty.

As for the stadium, shielding the shallow-angled, off-site spill light would not only alleviate the perception of dark streets but shield the glare that actually presents pedestrian and motorist hazards.   

?OK?

I was just talking about the sky.  Unlike most sports, much of the game of baseball takes place in the air.  Way up in the air.  You gotta have light there.

[TheTed]

They've put some giant planters up every few feet on the east side of Elgin between First and Archer. They're in the outside traffic lane south of the tracks and in the grass strip between the street and the sidewalk once you get north of the tracks.

I assume this is just temporary. I don't like the way it makes pedestrians feel more relegated to the sidewalk. I generally walk in the street in that area because there are far, far more pedestrians than cars during games and because the sidewalk doesn't cross the railroad tracks. It's ridiculous to push pedestrians to a tiny sidewalk before/after ballgames. Not when that's one of the few streets less hostile to pedestrians in an area surrounded by oversized one-way streets.

[sgrizzle]

They've put some giant planters up every few feet on the east side of Elgin between First and Archer. They're in the outside traffic lane south of the tracks and in the grass strip between the street and the sidewalk once you get north of the tracks.

I assume this is just temporary. I don't like the way it makes pedestrians feel more relegated to the sidewalk. I generally walk in the street in that area because there are far, far more pedestrians than cars during games and because the sidewalk doesn't cross the railroad tracks. It's ridiculous to push pedestrians to a tiny sidewalk before/after ballgames. Not when that's one of the few streets less hostile to pedestrians in an area surrounded by oversized one-way streets.

I believe those planters are there because there is no sidewalk on the east side currently.

[TheTed]

I believe those planters are there because there is no sidewalk on the east side currently.

I'm pretty sure there's a sidewalk on the east side from First to Archer with the exception of the area where you cross the railroad tracks.

[sgrizzle]

In some parts.

In other news: Google maps finally updated:
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&q=archer+and+elgin+tulsa&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=E+Archer+St+%26+N+Elgin+Ave,+Tulsa,+Oklahoma+74120&ll=36.158892,-95.987844&spn=0.002244,0.004823&t=k&z=18

[Hoss]

In some parts.

In other news: Google maps finally updated:
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&q=archer+and+elgin+tulsa&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=E+Archer+St+%26+N+Elgin+Ave,+Tulsa,+Oklahoma+74120&ll=36.158892,-95.987844&spn=0.002244,0.004823&t=k&z=18

Yeah, I mentioned that in the Reservoir Hill post...

http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=15547.msg164395#msg164395

Deserved its own post probably.

[sgrizzle]

Yeah, I mentioned that in the Reservoir Hill post...

http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=15547.msg164395#msg164395

Deserved its own post probably.

I created another one for it. Looks like this one was a month or two ago on a workday.