awilliams29fall2015.files.wordpress.com€¦ · Web viewWhen we were wandering in the Ped Mall, we encountered three people from different stores. Seeing as they were alone and

Rhetoric of a Public Space


The Iowa City Ped Mall

Megan MacArtney, Ana Munson

Kyoungbin Ahn and Jess Engleman

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Overview

In the center of downtown Iowa City lies the Ped Mall, a space very close to the

campus of the University of Iowa and great place to feel a sense of community. The

Ped Mall offers many things to do any places to go as it is full of restaurants and shops

to entertain you. The Ped Mall has something for everyone and depending on which

time of day you go, could be a very energetic place. Since the Ped Mall is so diverse

we wanted to look into and learn more about why people like to come to this downtown

attraction and what they like most about it. It seems as if the location is perfect and it

caters to everyone’s needs, being walking distance from everywhere of the university

campus. The classic brick walkways and big trees provide a sense of nature by making

the public feel like they are in less of an urban area. They add to the charming

atmosphere the Ped Mall provides. There is less of an urban feel even though it still

feels that way because you can feel a sense of nature when you are surrounded by the

seasonal planters and sounds of water from the unique and popular water structure.

The water structure is a focal point for the Ped Mall and adds something for children to

do there. It seems as if the Ped Mall tries to cater to many age groups. Businesses do

very well in this location because of its convenience. A majority of the businesses and

restaurants are not chains so the location helps them stay open because they are being

seen. People are also more inclined to support small, local businesses because there

are so convenient and well located. The Iowa City Ped Mall, a space that contains many

stores and restaurants in a close proximity, was created to bring the community

together and support local businesses.

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Stories from the Community

When we were wandering in the Ped Mall, we encountered three people from

different stores. Seeing as they were alone and didn’t look too busy, we decided to ask

them some questions about the reason they were here and their thoughts on the Ped

Mall. The first person we asked was a young woman named Caitlyn. She looked to be

around our age. We met her at Yotopia; a yogurt shop close to outside of the front of the

Ped Mall.

The facade of Yotopia

We asked, “Hello! Do you enjoy coming to Yotopia?”

She responded, “Yeah! It’s a really nice place to just chill and study. I also come

here with my friends to meet up.”

As to implore why she loved it so much here, we asked, “Is there any reason you

chose this yogurt shop instead of going to another restaurant?”

She said, “Well, one day, my friends asked me to come here with them. They told

me it was the greatest yogurt shop around. I followed them and then I just came to like

the place. So later on, I went by myself to have some yogurt. It’s close to my dorm too”

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After this interview, we decided to go to a different location to find other people to

ask. We decided to go the the most iconic center of the Ped Mall: the Fountain. The

Fountain is the most iconic part of the Ped Mall besides the cobblestone streets and is

usually full of families. As we went near the fountain, it looked emptier than usual; most

likely from the dropping temperatures as winter approached. As we circled around the

fountain, we met a little kid. His name was Darius and we decided he would be our next

and final interviewee for that day.

The fountain at the center of the Ped Mall

After asking for his name and getting permission from his parent if we could

interview their child, we asked what he liked about the fountain. He cheerfully

responded, “I like playing in the water!”

We asked, “Playing in the water is fun isn’t it. It’s a little cold right now, but can

you give me a clue to why your parent’s take you here?”

Darius replied, “It’s not cold! I ask mommy and dad if I can play here! They

always say yes!”

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Seeing as this response talked about the family more than the area itself, we

decided to keep looking. We decided to go to another shop in order to see if proximity

would come up again or if another reason would appear for the visiting of the shops.

The next shop was Nori. Nori is a clothing shop near the US Bank, which is near the

more isolated very back edge of the Ped Mall. We went up to a woman named Eli.

We asked, “What purpose did you come to this store?”

She responded, “I came to this store because I wanted to find clothes that would

suit me.”

“Is there any reason you came to this store specifically?”

Eli thought about it, and replied, “I chose this store because it was pretty close to

where I worked before. One day, I chose to look around during my break. Lo and

behold, I found this place. Everything here looked like something I liked, so I decided to

keep coming here after I left my job. This place offers clothes I can’t find online and it’s

really relaxing and fun to just walk in the store.”

We thanked her for the interview and left. After all three interviews, we got a

general idea as to why the Ped Mall was so popular. The proximity to local houses and

the unique products, experiences from local businesses, and the famous fountain help

the businesses to grow and to constantly gain new people.

History

The famous Ped Mall of Iowa city hasn’t always been a thing that was around. In

fact, it isn’t as old as you may think. In the 1960s and 70s ideas of “pedestrian malls”

started to pop up all over the country. The idea was that it would be a good space for

people of the community and visitors to be able to enjoy themselves. By removing the

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worrisome streets to cross, pedestrian malls made shopping, eating and socializing a

fun way to spend your time. Pedestrian Malls were a way the entire country could

participate in Urban Renewal (Lumbreras, para. 4). The government gave money to

participating cities to help make this happen.

Jeff Davidson,

in the Wiki on Uiowa’s

website tells us all of

the following

information on the Ped

Mall. Iowa City’s “Ped

Mall” was planned in

the early 70s and finally built in 1977. The space was once just College Street and

Dubuque street (Lumbreras, para. 4). There weren’t many buildings and one building in

the Ped Mall is still fairly new. Jeff Davidson, a University of Iowa student at the time the

Ped Mall was built, now works at city hall as the Director of Planning & Community

Development here in Iowa City (Lumbreras, para. 5). He has been able to see the Ped

Mall bloom since the beginning. In the 1970s there was a lot of discussion of where the

city would put in the most money to “recreate” the look of their city. The UIowa Wiki

says “...the Iowa City Press Citizen reported that the funds were approved for the

pedestrian mall and it was going to cost roughly $1.8 million” (Lumbreras, para. 8). The

same article says they put aside $400,000 for the basic needs of the area like sewers

and water. To keep their spending around their budget they decided to spend $12 per

square foot (Lumbreras, para. 8). This brought them close to the maximum price.

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The Pad Mall has always been made of brick pathways, although the bricks that

are in place today are not the original ones from 1977 (Lumbreras, para. 10). The city

has replaced the bricks over time to ensure the space is in tip top shape and always

looking nice. The same goes for the many planters with trees and seasonal plants and

flowers, which were initially made of old railroad ties. Davidson recalls the trees being

much smaller than they are now since they were new at the time. The structures were

later changed to the limestone we see today as a way to preserve the look for many

more years to come (Lumbreras, para. 11). One feature of the Ped Mall that has

always been in place is the fountain seen near the park for children. When the area

was being built there was much

thought put into what type of water

structure would be put into place.

The city ultimately decided upon

what it is now because it isn’t too big

and flashy but is still unique and

eye-catching. In the warm months

you can often find children switching from playing in the water to playing on the

playground. At the time it was built the children’s park was often referred to as the

“Black Hawk Mini Park”.

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Of course over the

years, establishments in

the city have changed

including some of the cities

attractions. Iowa is a city

known for bars and going

out to have a good time.

Davidson said that he remembers there being a different bar in the place where The

Union now is, that was just as popular as the new one in its place. He also remembers

Brothers Bar & Grill not being as popular as it is now.

“... there being a different bar in the place where The Union (above) is,

that was just as popular as the new one in its place.”

Perhaps it is gaining popularity as it is one of the few places that has been in the Ped

Mall since the beginning. Food was and still is a big part of the space as people use

food as a way to gather. Food carts started popping up in the city in the 1990s to cater

to the late night crowds (Lumbreras, para. 15). As they were there, fast, easy and

affordable after a night out in Iowa City.

The flow of people and business in the Ped Mall largely depends on the season.

The winter is less busy as Iowa gets very cold during the winter months. Summer is

always beautiful and popular. The leaves have grown back and provide shade all over

the area to keep people cool when it’s hot out. With the summer comes the Iowa City

Jazz Festival. People from all over the state come to the festival that started in 1990.

AccrHowever, Iowa City being a college town brings the Ped Mall to life come the fall.

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Year after year students love the Ped Mall as it is a great place to unwind after a busy

week of classes.

Description of Daily Activities

Various activities go on at the Ped Mall at almost all times. However, these

activities change due to different times of day and day of the week. The Ped Mall is full

of a variety of shops, restaurants and bars. In the morning on a weekday the mall is

scattered with shoppers and a people out for coffee. People often find something they

will like with the several cafes or restaurants that serve breakfast. Since the Ped Mall is

so close to the University of Iowa campus, you can find students sitting on benches

doing homework or catching up with one another. As the day progresses into the

afternoon it gets a little bit busier but remains very peaceful. Around lunchtime is one of

the busiest parts of the week day with

all the restaurants in the area that

draw people in. You can find people

that work near by sitting down for their

lunch break as well as students

grabbing a quick bite to eat in between

classes.

Night time in the Ped Mall is about the same as during the day. Restaurants

have people in them for dinner. You can find a variety of people such as families or

couples on a date getting dessert at one of the several ice cream or frozen yogurt

shops. However, the mood of the night life changes as Friday, Saturday and even

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Thursday nights get

closer. These three

nights are big party

nights for students. The

Ped mall during

Thursday, Friday and

Saturday nights are

crowded with mostly

college students at not only the bars, but at late night restaurants and frozen yogurt

shops. These three nights are really loud and busy compared to the other days of the

week. There are also musicians during numerous times on these nights on benches

performing. Also there are a few singing on weeknights too as well as during the day

time. This creates a fun party vibe on weekends or a soothing, mellow during the week.

Art fills the streets of the Ped Mall as well. One weekend there was a man carving a

sculpture out of a tree trunk as a crowd gathered around him, People are always selling

paintings and doing art work for others to purchase.

Sunday is not a very busy day at the Ped Mall. During the morning there are

people getting something to eat for breakfast at the local restaurants with their families

and college students enjoying breakfast after a long weekend. Children are playing on

the playground in front of the fountains. You can see their parents relaxing and chatting

on the benches near by. During the day there are musicians playing again. This is the

mellow vibe coming back again for another week. Sunday nights are about as dead

and quiet as the Ped Mall gets, almost no people are around. This can also be due to

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the fact that store and restaurants close earlier than usual. Overall, the Ped Mall is

hardly ever empty. It also seems as if there is somthing for everyone to do.

Description of Physical Condition

As you walk past Yotopia and take a right, the concrete sidewalk turns into

smooth cobblestone and the busy traffic noise generally heard closer to the roads is

nonexistent, especially when a local

singer or event is going on. From

one of the “entrances” between

Yotopia and Western Bank, all the

way down past the bars and

restaurants, you’ll be bombarded

with signs of happy hour specials

and dinner specials that cater specifically to a group of people of that are 21 years of

age or older. The bars itself have a more mature feel to them, as they don’t have bright

colored awnings like Yotopia, and are darker in color and lighting.

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Coming in from a different “entrance” where the Bread Garden Market and the

Library are, you can easily see how this place caters to families with little children.

There is a small playground with rubber flooring and a water pad with water that arches

up so that kids can run under it. Off to the side, you have a little outdoor dining area for

customers from the Bread Market Garden which is a grocery store with its own little

buffet bar and bakery section.

These two “entrances” of the Ped Mall couldn’t be any different. While the

cobblestone walkway by Yotopia and Western Bank looks older and cramped with all

their different restaurants and bars, the stores and shops by the Bread Market Garden

and the playground is spaced out with plenty of room for little children to run about. You

can easily see which part of the Ped Mall caters to who. The playground and fountain

are more for the children, while the bars and restaurants are for the adults.

Although there are many different parts of the Ped Mall, these two parts show the

differences of who the Ped Mall is for and they accommodate for their visitors. 21 years

of age and older are in the section of the Ped Mall across the street from the Old Capitol

Mall while children and families are by the Bread Market Garden and the library.

Arguably the most important feature of the Ped Mall is probably the fountain

itself. The fountain is in the center of the Ped Mall, so it usually attracts a lot of attention.

While it’s currently not as busy due to the cold temperatures of fall, the fountain acts as

a nice, cool place to take kids with to let them play and to let the adults take a break

from supervising the children in the summer. Since so many families go the Ped Mall,

the fountain is often bustling with the yells from children in the summer. This also

attracts musicians, as they want to gather where the most people are. In the busiest

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times of the day, the fountain at the center of the Ped Mall is the heart of energy for kids

and families alike.

Assessment of Public Space’s Argument

Since the Ped Mall is right in the heart of downtown Iowa City, its main purpose

is to create a sense of community. The University of Iowa Campus is basically just

across the street on the west side as well as a big neighborhood on North, South and

East sides. The Iowa City Ped Mall was created in order to bring the community

together by supporting local businesses and by being close by and contained in one

area people are able gather together.

When you walk through the Ped Mall of Iowa City you may realize that there are

very few chain businesses and places you could find anywhere you went. Consisting of

clothing stores, restaurants, bars and other stores there is bound to be something for

everyone that is exciting and unfamiliar. The main attractions of the area are the

several bars the Ped Mall has to offer, such as The Union, DCs and Brothers Bar &

Grill. These are locally owned establishments that do very well because people go to

them for a good time. The heavy traffic flow on the weekends is what earns the bars

money. Locally owned bars like this only have competition with each other because

they are the only ones around, but none the less are supported because they are

always getting customers. Small clothing stores such as Velvet Coat and Active

Endeavors give a wide variety of options as far as what people can afford. There is

even a discount shop with used clothes called Revival. There are stores for everyone to

be able to buy new clothes. Since they are so close by people are more inclined to go

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there and since it is a small business in their town, spending maybe a little more than

they usually would is justified. In an interview done at Yoptopia, a local frozen yogurt

shop, a girl says she likes to come there because it is close to her dorm. This gives the

businesses even more of a boost because they are convenient. The Ped Mall is

successful in providing a close location that isn’t very spread out for people to go to eat

or shop.

The Ped Mall also offers the people that live in Iowa City a sense of community.

Since it is so close by and central to pretty much all parts of the city it is a convenient

meeting place for people to come hang out together. One person could live by Kinnick

Stadium while the other could be in the neighborhood on the east side of campus.

Meeting at the Ped Mall to eat or grab coffee provides a place right in the middle. It

helps allow people to meet together more because possible issues of location are less

of a problem. Since the Ped Mall is so close to the University of Iowa, many students

are likely to go there at some point in their time at the school. The Ped Mall creates a

neutral place for people to meet. A

student could recognize someone in a

lecture or that they see grabbing some

frozen yogurt at Aspen Leaf. People can

meet and become friends if they

recognize that they have similar places

they like to go. The Ped Mall offers a

sense of similarity between people whom

may not have met otherwise. This overall

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will make the community stronger. Eventually people are bound to meet since the Ped

Mall is so contained and central. You may find more and more familiar faces. The Iowa

City Ped Mall, a space that contains many stores and restaurants in a close proximity,

was created to bring the community together and support local businesses.

Assessment of Public Space’s Value in Community

After looking at the various arguments for the importance of the Iowa City

Pedestrian Mall and its importance to local small businesses and the community, we

believe that the existence and use of the Ped Mall is invaluable to the surrounding

community that it supports. The proximity, as well as the absence of many chain

businesses in the area, aids the Ped Mall in its rhetoric of helping small businesses

grow by being convenient for the local community.

One important facet of the Ped Mall’s rhetoric is how appropriate it is for the

setting. Is having a small businesses community near the university and pre-existing

housing helpful to small business? Most likely. The way the stores are presented helps

the community as well. The stores are small and tightly packed together with many

unique signs. The streets are also cobblestone instead of plain asphalt or concrete,

making the whole Ped Mall have a very grassroots feel. The vintage atmosphere also

lends itself with the narrow streets and old-looking street lamps. This homemade feel,

made prominent by these features, helps the value aspect by making the Ped Mall feel

more like a product of the people instead of a product of corporations.

Another important thing to keep in mind when talking about value is the content

of the shops themselves. Many of the nearby shops in the Ped Mall sell clothes, food,

and art products. This is key. Shops can sell a variety of things, but why are those three

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categories so prominent in the Ped Mall? This is because of how all three can be made.

Art can be made by many independant and local artists. Clothes can be made

specifically by the owner or in junction with local clothes makers. Food from restaurants

can be homemade recipes passed down from families or just local restaurants trying to

have just one shop. This availability of having homemade or local products makes the

Ped Mall have more value as the center for individual products.

All of these help the argument the Ped Mall is trying to make by giving the Ped

Mall not only some historical value, but emotional value from being a community-made

product. The difference from the cobblestone streets to the asphalt and concrete of

other parts of the city help the Ped Mall seem more familiar to the average person. The

Ped Mall’s convenience, with its clothing, entertainment, and restaurant stores, help aid

the community feeling by having local home-goods close by homes and dorms. The

long history of the Ped Mall adds to this familiarity by having nostalgic value to many in

its community. Through the Ped Mall’s use of history and convenience, the Ped Mall

makes its importance to the community well known.

Advocate for Change

One thing that we thought could be changed or added to the Ped Mall, is offering

places that cater to the college students who are not old enough to drink and to bring in

places with more affordable restaurants and clothing shops. This is important, so that

college students still have that college experience of hanging out with classmates but in

a setting that they can be in without the pressures of consuming alcohol and be able to

buy food and clothes without breaking the bank.

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As previously stated, underage college students might feel left out with all their

fellow classmates being old enough to go out on the weekends and be in a place that

caters to them where they can all drink and party. However, there is really no place for

underage students unless they go to the movies. Introducing a place nearby that

doesn’t force you to pay money just to be there like the movies, is ideal for a college

campus.

A place that could provide a fun and enjoyable experience is a bowling alley. The

closest on in Iowa City is Colonial Bowling Lanes which is 3 miles away. Most freshmen

do not have their cars with them since it costs a lot of money, so taking the bus or

walking would make going there seem like a waste. and with most of us lacking a

reliable way of going out to Coralville to have more options for things to do. Something

that is true for most students is that we’re broke, so one way that is realistic for us to get

up to Coral Ridge Mall is by taking the Iowa City bus.

However, by the time we do make it to Coralville by using the bus, we only have

a short amount of time before we have to make it back to the bus stop or we walk back

to campus with a minimum of 5 miles. Having shops close by where we can get clothes

such as winter clothes for this upcoming winter season, is helpful as it provides more

options and hopefully lowered prices. At Active Endeavors, they had snow boots for

$150 while at Coral Ridge Mall they had boots as low as $60. Almost half the price and

still a good pair of boots.

A reason for having cheaper food places is the prices of steak at Givanni’s which

can cost a person from $25-30 while at Texas Roadhouse, you’re spending $10-20.

You’re paying almost double for the same thing. Some might argue that it’s because it’s

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local, but a short drive to Coralville will satisfy your steak desires or provide you with

clothes that are maybe priced lowered or give you more options.

While the local shops do provide a lot for the Ped Mall such as being easily

convenient and faster for locals to get to, it makes being satisfied with your overall

purchases a little difficult after you realize that you spent more than double on the same

product you could’ve bought for less. While having big businesses nearby that people

will feel more welcome with, by having a familiar place, some could say it would hurt the

local businesses which isn’t necessarily true.

Each business no matter how big or small will provide people with different

options like the local clothing stores that sell more unique clothing. Having more big

businesses nearby and places for underage students to feel comfortable in without

alcohol are just two changes that we thought could be changed about the Ped Mall.

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Citations

Diana Alfaro, Jared Chandler, and CJ Kwak (Photographers). (2009). Yotopia [Photograph], Retrieved from http://ideal.uiowa.edu/files/ideal.uiowa.edu/files/styles/large/public/photo%202.JPG?itok=8AEJ1n08

Fountain [Picture]. (2005) Retrieved from https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/26/39543457_57726dbecb.jpg

UIowa Website Wiki:

Nicole, Lumbreras. M. (2011, November 3). The History of Iowa City’s Pedestrian Mall.https://wiki.uiowa.edu/display/opensesame/The+History+of+Iowa+City's+Pedestrian+Mall,+by+Colie+Lumbreras

The Union. [Picture]. (2014) http://www.thegazette.com/2014/03/05/iowa-citys-union-bar-declared-entertainment-venue-will-open-for-patrons-19-and-up

Ped Mall History. [Picture]. (2011). https://wiki.uiowa.edu/display/opensesame/The+History+of+Iowa+City's+Pedestrian+Mall,+by+Colie+Lumbreras

Fountain. [Picture]. (2011). http://facilities.uiowa.edu/mlagm/about.html

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awilliams29fall2015.files.wordpress.com€¦ · Web viewWhen we were wandering in the Ped Mall, we encountered three people from different stores. Seeing as they were alone and