Signe&Henderson&and&Whitney&Naylor

Bookstore(Redevelopment
&&
&&&&&&&&Prior&to&the&start&of&the&Thayer&Street&
Redevelopment,&the&area&outside&the&Brown&
Bookstore&at&the&intersection&of&Thayer&Street&and&
Angell&Street&was&much&different.&In&terms&of&
physical&differences,&the&sidewalk&was&narrower,&
the&area&was&cluttered&with&trafCic&signs&and&poles,&
and&crosswalks&were&faded.
This&street&corner&is&always&busy&because&
the&Brown&bookstore&attracts&Brown&students,&and&
being&in&the&very&middle&of&Thayer&Street&it&sees&a&
lot&of&foot&trafCic.&However,&prior&to&redevelopment&
the&clusters&of&people&proved&to&be&problematic;&
the&Thayer&Street&Redevelopment&Plan&explains&
how&pedestrian&accommodations&at&signalized&
intersections&[were]&generally&ineffective&(33)&
because&the&walk&signal&at&the&intersection&was&not&
automated,&so&people&would&forget&to&push&the&
button&and&create&trafCic&jams&by&weaving&through&
the&trafCic&to&cross&the&street.&The&faded&crosswalks&
also&enhanced&this&problem.
The&space&was&also&typically&dominated&not&
only&by&masses&of&students&hustling&to&class,&but&also&
by&panhandlers,&loiterers,&and&buskers.&Because&the&Thayer&and&Angell&Street&intersection&is&
a&central&location,&people&
asking&for&money,&playing&
music,&or&hanging&around&
Thayer&Street&typically&hang&
around&in&this&area.&The&
Thayer&Street&redevelopment,&
however,&aims&to&get&rid&of&this&
loitering&so&that&the&sidewalks&
are&clear&for&foot&trafCic,&it&is&
free&of&crime,&and&is&
welcoming.&Storeowners&have&
talked&about&these&types&of&
drifters&being&a&threat&to&their&
businesses,&and&have&urged&
the&community&and&Business&
Association&to&take&action.
Today,&the&area&on&the&west&
corner&of&the&Thayer&and&
Angell&Street&intersection&is&

physically&remorphed.&The&
sidewalks&have&been&
widened&in&front&of&the&
Bookstore&in&order&to&
create&better&Clow&of&foot&
trafCic,&and&a&parklet&with&
benches&and&greenery&has&
been&added.&Moreover,&this&
space&is&now&designated&as&
a&no&smoking&area.
Urban&planners&
have&aimed&to&gentrify&this&
street&corner&by&making&
this&area&more&inviting,&
cleaner,&and&bigger.&It&is&
the&direct&center&of&Thayer&
Street&and&is&somewhat&of&
a&showcase&of&College&
Hill&due&to&its&location&and&attraction&of&the&Brown&bookstore,&drawing&in&both&locals&and&
students.&Although&it&is&the&Brown(University&
bookstore,&it&is&still&a&public&space&so&the&goal&
was&to&make&this&area&attractive,&welcoming,&and&
easily&accessible.&While&the&widening&of&the&
sidewalks&creates&for&more&Cluent&foot&trafCic&by&
creating&an&unobstructed&area&for&people&to&
walk,&the&addition&of&the&benches&in&the&
amenity&and&curb&extension&zones&has&done&
little&to&remove&the&panhandling,&loitering,&and&
busking&in&the&space.

257(Thayer
&&&&
&&&&&&What&now&stands&as&a&giant&apartment&building&soon&to&be&the&glamorous&257&Thayer&
student&apartments&looking&down&at&Thayer&Street&amazingly&used&to&be&a&few&low&rent,&old&
apartment&style&houses,&a&pizza&in&a&cone&shop&(Fig.&1,&was&on&the&corner&of&Thayer&and&
Euclid,&where&the&showcase&corner&of&257&Thayer&apartments&will&be),&a&cheap&place&to&get&a&
haircut,&a&small&Ben&and&Jerrys&(Fig&2.,&on&Meeting&street,&it&is&the&Cirst&of&the&building&on&
that&street&to&be&taken&out,&right&next&to&it&the&old&building&still&stands,&a&hooka&bar),&and&a&
hookah&bar.&In&between&these&structures&was&a&small&parking&lot.&This&provided&cut[through&
paths&from&Euclid&Street&to&Meeting&Street&in&between&Thayer&and&Brook.&In&this&plot&of&land&
were&a&plethora&of&dumpsters,&poles,&and&broken&fences.

Fig.&1

&&&&&&&& All&of&these&buildings&have&recently&been&ripped&out&of&the&ground&in&order&to&
construct&the&large&apartment&building&that&is&under&construction&(Fig.&3&is&based&on&the&
Cinished&product&as&based&on&the&developers&sketches).&These&apartments&are&designed&to&
be&leased&by&college&students,&so&while&mostly&students&will&occupy&the&area,&the&
environment&is&much&different.&The&luxurious&apartments&create&more&of&a&high&end,&
wealthier&feel&as&opposed&to&the&low&rent&and&low[income&stores&that&once&occupied&the&
space.&On&the&Cirst&Cloor&of&the&apartment&building&will&be&some&kind&of&high[end&retail&store;&

the&Thayer&street&developers&have&goals&of&creating&a&clean&and&safe&retail&corridor,&so&this&
addition&will&play&into&that&objective.&They&want&there&to&be&diverse&retail&options&and&wish&

Fig.&2

to&promote&the&retail&district&in&order&to&attract&higher&end&locals&into&the&area&as&opposed&
to&just&students.
&&&&&&&& 257&Thayer&will&also&have&a&parking&garage&underneath&it.&Lack&of&parking&is&one&of&
the&many&challenges&the&district&faces,&and&while&the&developers&wish&to&create&more&
alternative&transportation&usage,&the&new&parking&garage&will&allow&for&improvements&along&
the&street&to&make&multimodal&transportation&more&functional.
This&major&transformation&of&a&central&area&of&Thayer&Street&encourages&a&student&
and&higher&class&citizen&vs.&local&environment,&and&gives&the&area&a&whole&new&character.&
Constructing&this&opulent&building&with&the&high[end&retail&store,&gym,&and&parking&garage&
takes&away&from&the&blas&feel&of&college&hill.&Not&only&does&it&alter&the&atmosphere,&but&also&
we&can&see&gentriCication&acting&as&somewhat&of&a&displacement&of&the&lower&class&by&
inviting&upper&class&locals&and&students&into&the&area.&This&upscale&apartment&complex&
eliminates&spaces&once&engaged&by&small&local&businesses&and&affordable&housing&renters,&
effectively&forcing&them&to&Cind&other&places&to&occupy.
In&general,&developers&have&aimed&to&maintain&and&encourage&diversity&on&Thayer&
Street,&encouraging&a&welcoming&space,&and&in&general&to&remorph&this&area&to&eliminate&any&
crime.&However,&this&urban&space&has&been&historically&vibrant&from&the&street&performers&
to&the&small&business&owners&and&low[rent&houses&that&once&stood&at&257&Thayer&Street.&

Fig.&3

This&swanky&new&apartment&complex&will&instead&eliminate&the&dynamic&culture&of&Thayer&
Street&through&effectively&only&enticing&white[upperclass&people&due&to&its&astronomically&
high&rent&of&the&apartments&and&lavish&retail&store.&