Albert Avenue lanes closing for downtown East Lansing’s Albert EL Fresco in 2022
EAST LANSING — Two lanes of Albert Avenue between M.A.C. Avenue and Abbot Road will close once again in 2022 to provide the city's pedestrian-friendly space, Albert EL Fresco.
East Lansing City Council voted Tuesday night to close the lanes no sooner than April 27 and reopen no later than Sept. 11. Councilmember George Brookover was the sole dissenting vote and councilmember Dana Watson was absent.
“I think that it’s something we should be looking and growing, to not shy away from this,” Mayor Ron Bacon said. “This is the future."
Albert EL Fresco is a pedestrian-only area in the heart of downtown East Lansing. In the past it had hammocks, outdoor yard games, hopscotch, picnic benches and turf grass.
Albert EL Fresco was piloted from June to August 2021. In 2022 it will be extended an additional two months, said Adam Cummins, East Lansing’s community and economic development administrator.
"There's a lot of interest in providing this amenity when the students are here so that they have an opportunity to see what downtown's like over the summer, and enjoy it,” he said.
Closing the Albert Avenue lanes is expected to increase pedestrian foot traffic, address traffic and pedestrian safety concerns, increase opportunities for visitors to socialize outdoors, reduce noise pollution generated from vehicles, and further community and economic development goals for a vibrant city and downtown, according to an East Lansing agenda item report.
Alcohol consumption is only permitted in approved outdoor dining areas operated by adjacent restaurants, according to the report.
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Mixed perspectives on Albert EL Fresco were shared at the city council meeting Tuesday.
Andrew Woodruff, vice president of finance for HopCat’s parent company BarFly, said Albert EL Fresco would have a negative impact on the East Lansing restaurant by making street access more difficult for curbside pickup and third-party delivery sales, which has helped the company weather the COVID-19 pandemic.
To counteract reduced street traffic, he strongly urged the council to reconsider allowing the consumption and sale of alcohol within Albert EL Fresco, beyond restaurant seating areas.
“Allowing alcohol consumption within the zone will create stronger excitement, attract more individuals, encourage guests to stay longer and will, most importantly, drive economic energy and growth for the restaurants within the zone,” he said.
During council discussion, Brookover shared multiple concerns about the zone, including getting mixed feedback from merchants and seniors living in the Newman Lofts.
“I think, unfortunately, we invited seniors into a downtown building, and at some level we’ve isolated them, and I don’t think we’ve solved that problem yet,” he said. “And I think this simply continues to isolate them.”
Others spoke positively, like Bacon, who asked about possibly extending Albert EL Fresco’s timeline in the future, and Mayor Pro Tem Jessy Gregg.
Gregg owns Seams Fabric and Mercantile on Grove Street in downtown East Lansing. She said the zone didn’t impact her sales, but she could say traffic was very different in 2021 than the summer before.
Students leave during the summer and residents take multiple extended vacations, giving the city a ghost town feel, she said. But last summer she saw families with strollers and on bikes coming to downtown. They typically go to parks for recreation.
“That’s exactly what we need to be doing for our business district in the summer,” she said. “Is finding a way to give people a reason to come down there.”
Contact Bryce Airgood at 517-267-0448 or bairgood@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @bairgood123.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Albert Avenue lanes closing for East Lansing’s Albert EL Fresco again
