Waterside Woonerf

Woonerf is not a new spin on a spongy football. It’a Dutch word for a shared street prioritizing pedestrians but where cars and bikes are welcome. Think Pike Place Market when vendors pull trucks and cars in amongst pedestrians in a harmonious democracy of feet and wheels.

That’s kinda how Hidden Beach operated for decades—gravel driveways allowed access to private homes to the north and south, while granting pedestrians priority. Mutual respect allowed people, kayaks and cars to work together and look out for each other. It just worked.

This is recent (not ancient) history, and it’s worth considering a return to permeable drives on public land. A return to mutual respect and mutual access.

Just throwing the Woonerf idea back out there. Don’t worry—as with a Nerf Ball nobody gets hurt.