Kaiser River Plan Revealed

[Kenosha]

This is a really, really good thing.  Hard to find the negatives in this one, though I am sure you all will give it your best shot.

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I hate to point this out, but you dont make bad lights better by installing twice as many of them.

Since they're apparently re-thinking the whole trail, why arent they re-thinking the lighting (other than just how to burn more electricity)?  Did we forget we have an Energy Policy?

[aoxamaxoa]

It's not amusing reading about "chat" when the real hazard is the direction of the wind, if you catch my drift. I think this gift is great. If they would only do something to cut down on the air borne toxins and pollutants which are carcinogenic.

[sgrizzle]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I hate to point this out, but you dont make bad lights better by installing twice as many of them.

Since they're apparently re-thinking the whole trail, why arent they re-thinking the lighting (other than just how to burn more electricity)?  Did we forget we have an Energy Policy?

Those are goldfish bowls.

[brunoflipper]

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle



Turkey Mountain:


Crow Creek Bridge:


Map:

this is really, really great...

[patric]

Unless the city has done some serious re-thinking on lighting parks, then what they consider "improved lighting" is this glary horror:




I can elaborate on why glare and pools of intense light surrounded by large areas of dark dont enhance safety, but it's also important to remember the river is more than just real estate and is only being "borrowed" by humans.  If we abuse the privilege we might not get another chance.

Here's a note about lighting paths with wildlife in mind (always nice to hear from lighting experts who arent in the business of selling electricity):

As one of the Environmental Specialists working on the U.S. Wildlife Lighting Program, I was asked to respond to your email request. Yes, we are doing a large amount of ground work right now in the United States with Wildlife Lighting Partners including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The National Park Service, the USDA Forest Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
 
The Three Criteria of Wildlife Lighting:

> 1)       *Keep it Low* (mount the fixture as low as practicable for the illumination task. Path lights, shielded bollard lighting and louvered step lights are good examples. Avoid floodlights and pole mounted fixtures whenever possible. The higher the fixture is mounted -- the harder to shield and the more atmosphere the photons must pass through. _Keep it low_ also refers to the lumens output. Use only the amount of light needed to take advantage of natural human night adaptive - mesopic and scotopic - vision)

> 2)       *Keep it Shielded* (Fixtures must be fully shielded and downward directed. The IES Classification of full cut-off (FCO) is a good starting point. No filament, bulb, or glowing lens should be directly visible from the wilderness area, wetland, natural buffer, beach, park, or migratory corridor. Many fixtures are available with house-side shields (HSS) that must be used to block light trespass visible from the wilderness area.  

> 3)       *Keep it Long* (Long wavelength light sources have been found to be less disruptive to many nocturnal animals. These light sources appear yellow, amber or red to the human eye. Examples include Amber LED bulbs, low-pressure sodium lamps, Red LED bulbs, some low wattage yellow "bug" lamps, and TSL filtered compact fluorescent. Energy efficient lamps also increase the total score on the Wildlife Lighting review because they help protect natural resources by decreasing energy consumption.)
(MY NOTE: Metal Halide light (the so-called "white light" that's actually the very bright blue light like you see at car lots) is short wavelength light, and shouldnt be used anywhere near the river.)

When lights are needed, the best balance has proven to be 580nm or longer. Here we see humans readily accept amber colored light as being "romantic" easy to see and navigate in low-light conditions and many people are already comfortable in this type of "nocturnal light conditions" in theater lighting, sunsets, restaurant and step lights.

It is important to remember that light wavelengths are only one of the three criteria for Wildlife Lighting. Fixtures must meet ALL THREE WILDLIFE LIGHTING CRITERIA to be considered acceptable. Only those fixtures and lamps submitted to the USFWS and/or FWCC that successfully pass lighting inspection (No uplighting and minimal lateral light trespass) and wavelength analysis receive certification and permission to use the Official Wildlife Lighting logo device in marketing materials.

Some fixtures and lamps that may help you in your path lighting project:

http://www.state.hi.us/dlnr/dofaw/fbrp/sos.htm
http://www.wfharrislighting.com/store/index.php?catid=61

Dean Gallagher, ESII
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission
Division of Habitat and Species Conservation
Imperiled Species Management Section
620 South Meridian Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1600



OK, maybe a bit more technical that what you really need but you get the picture.  Also, since were talking about a city park intended for human utilization, were possibly looking at slightly greater lighting levels than the Forest Service, etc., would recommend so scale accordingly while keeping these basic principles in mind.      

[sgrizzle]

How about lining the edges of the trails with EL wire? It would look like "TRON" at night...

[Kenosha]

quote: Hard to find the negatives in this one, though I am sure you all will give it your best shot.

Patric & Aoxo,

I knew you had it in you.  Nice work.

[sgrizzle]

Here's a mockup:

[Ed W]

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

I agree the monies are great, but with that much money we can do much more than just jogging trails. Not everyone is into jogging. We can make River park a show place.

It costs about $1 million per mile to build trails and this plan calls for both building a new one and widening the existing one.  The present trail is too narrow and doesn't meet AASHTO standards.  But the really expensive items are the bridges.  

Also, River Parks want to re-locate the trail to the west of the casino, between it and the river rather than the present alignment.  But if I recall right, that has to wait until the construction is finished in that area.  Or is it finished already?  It's been months since I've been down that way.

Regardless, the River Park is a gem - something Tulsa should be proud of having.

[YoungTulsan]

quote:Originally posted by citizen72

I agree the monies are great, but with that much money we can do much more than just jogging trails. Not everyone is into jogging. We can make River park a show place.

Actually, that is about what you can do with 15 million dollars.  You'd need more money for other ideas.

[BKDotCom]

quote:Originally posted by Ed W
Also, River Parks want to re-locate the trail to the west of the casino, between it and the river rather than the present alignment.

That's good to hear!  No parking lot entrances to deal with.

quote:Originally posted by Ed W
But if I recall right, that has to wait until the construction is finished in that area.  Or is it finished already?  It's been months since I've been down that way.

I don't know what the timeline for the trail renovation is...  But, I'm guessing the casino is between 18 and 24mo to completion.

[YoungTulsan]

I like this news, and only hope that the trail construction doesn't make it impossible to run on the trails for a long amount of time.

[brunoflipper]

quote:Originally posted by BKDotCom

quote:Originally posted by Ed W
Also, River Parks want to re-locate the trail to the west of the casino, between it and the river rather than the present alignment.

That's good to hear!  No parking lot entrances to deal with.

quote:Originally posted by Ed W
But if I recall right, that has to wait until the construction is finished in that area.  Or is it finished already?  It's been months since I've been down that way.

I don't know what the timeline for the trail renovation is...  But, I'm guessing the casino is between 18 and 24mo to completion.

they were out shooting grades this week... trees have been tagged between 21st and the ped bridge...

[carltonplace]

quote:Originally posted by BKDotCom

Originally posted by Ed W
Also, River Parks want to re-locate the trail to the west of the casino, between it and the river rather than the present alignment.

The Casino is actualy paying for that.