I was reading Bradley’s plan again that will go before the City Council next Tuesday. I’ve been a pretty harsh critic of the university’s tactics, especially as they impact the Arbor District. But after thinking it over, I’ve come to a couple of conclusions, and subsequently come up with an idea that I, of course, think is brilliant.

First, I believe that there are two issues regarding Bradley’s tactics. One is the way they surreptitiously purchased the properties on Maplewood. But the other has to do with their use of those properties. They want to put a five story parking deck there, right behind the houses on Cooper with nothing more than an alley and 25 feet of buffer separating them.

I’m convinced that the way Bradley acquired the properties on Maplewood might have been forgiven if their use for that land were more reasonable, more suitable as a transition from institutional zoning to residential.

To that end, I’ve devised a compromise. In Bradley’s plan, I noticed that the height of the new student recreational complex is only 48 feet, whereas the parking deck is 66 feet. So, why not switch the two sites? I know this would require some redesign work (especially on the rec center because it’s too wide for the parcel I’m suggesting in its current configuration), but seriously, this has numerous advantages:

• The recreational complex would, in my plan, be located on the southwest corner of Main and Maplewood. The most obvious advantage is that the height of the buildings going from the new arena to the neighborhood would decline. The new arena (replacing the Fieldhouse) would be 66 feet tall, then the athletic facility would be 48 feet, and then the houses on Cooper which are probably in around 30 feet tall. This would make a more reasonable transition and not feel nearly as oppressive.
• The parking deck in my scenario would then be located at the northeast corner of Maplewood and Bradley Avenue. If the university didn’t vacate Maplewood, but let it continue to be a through-street, this would allow deck traffic to dissipate in three directions: west on Bradley to Western, east on Bradley to University, and north on Maplewood to Main. This would ease the congestion of constricting traffic flow to Main only (the way the current plan does).
• This would make Main Street more attractive. There’s nothing uglier than a parking deck right on your main drag.
• The recreational center will be closer to Bradley Park, making it easier to access all the outdoor amenities it has to offer students.
• The parking would be moved to the interior of the institutional boundaries — in fact, the parking would be kept within the current N1 boundary and further away from the neighbors.
• By changing a major component of their plan, the university would take the first step toward rebuilding trust with the neighbors, as it would mark the first time it made major concessions for the sake of neighborhood stability.

I’m still not condoning the university’s encroachment into the Arbor District. Ideally, I’d like to see them come up with a way to do all the stuff they want to do within their existing boundary and leave Maplewood alone. But I’m offering this idea as a compromise.

And I know Bradley won’t voluntarily do this, either. So, I guess I’m suggesting that the City Council press the issue. I’m not suggesting that they take a confrontational tack with the university, but rather come at it from a collaborative angle. That they say, “Bradley, we’re excited that you’re offering more amenities for your students — it’s good for Bradley, and it’s good for Peoria. We want to see you succeed. All we need to do is reconfigure things a little to make it more suitable for transitioning into the neighborhoods, because strong neighborhoods are also important to Peoria and Bradley….”

And then Bradley will squawk about time lines and when they can build and all that stuff. But you know what? This is a 15-20 year plan. A couple months delay isn’t going to blow it out of the water. Yes, it will be a big inconvenience and time lines will have to be redone and costs will go up, but I think the neighbors are worth a little inconvenience on the university’s part, don’t you?

All the plans are only on paper at this point and can still be changed with relatively little expense compared to the total cost of the construction project. Why not explore some other options that would support the neighborhoods a little more?