Stepping Up continued from page 6 be raw and in the moment. In June 2021, he created the Pedestrian Dignity TikTok page, and “it just took off,” says Stalls, who describes his experience on TikTok as simultaneously wild, amazing and hard. He primarily makes videos that show undignifi ed aspects of the pedestrian experi- ence, like when a section of Denver caters totally to cars and is unpleasant or downright dangerous for pedestrians; he narrates the pieces. But when there are dignifying aspects of infrastructure, he’ll highlight those, too. Pedestrian Dignity TikTok videos have led not just to connections, but to collective action in the real world. “It feels to me like he’s been a person who has been doing this work for a long time, and because of TikTok, it just kind of exploded at the local level and maybe national,” says Alejandra Castañeda, a 48-year-old Denver resident and com- munications professional who reached out TALKING THE WALK to Stalls after seeing one of his TikToks. Castañeda now accompanies Stalls on many of his walks with government offi cials. “Every one of those events where I have been present, someone either from CDOT or DOTI or some other agency like RTD has said, ‘This is the most impactful thing. I’ve been working at X for ten or fi fteen years, and this is the most impactful thing that I’ve done.’ Actually going out there and leading and feeling and facing all these different challenges. And I tell you this and I get goosebumps. Because how is it that people leading these agencies have not done this?” Castañeda asks. Justin Bai, a 24-year-old Ph.D. student in linguistics at the University of Colorado Boul- der, also connected with Stalls after seeing TikTok videos on Instagram. “With Pedestrian Dignity, he doesn’t see it as a hierarchical thing where he’s the leader,” says Bai, who co-led a walk with RTD offi cials in west Denver in July. Bai, who lives in Denver, has taken to organizing walks even outside of official Pedestrian Dignity events. In August, during RTD’s Zero Fare for Better Air initiative that Jonathon Stalls, the man behind the Pedes- trian Dignity TikTok account, self-identifi es as a “walking artist.” He walks...a lot...and can create quite a picture of what it’s like to live in this city without a car, as a true pedestrian. So we asked him to share fi ve of his favorite spots, as well as some that need improvement. THE GOOD Stalls prefaces his list of fi ve positive places to walk by pointing out that they generally “lack centering pedestrian mobil- ity [at the] level they could or should.” Nice as they are, all of these areas could benefi t from improved infrastructure, accessibility, dignifi ed public restrooms, and public seat- ing and shade, according to Stalls. Union Station’s outdoor plaza Stalls loves this spacious area with trees, shade and places to play and rest. The plaza is “generally accessible,” he notes, and easily reachable by bike, but also has limited car mobility in front. City Park Denver’s most popular park also happens to be Stalls’s “absolute favorite place” in Den- ver. There’s plenty of room for everyone and all sorts of activities, with shady sections for simply relaxing. Add in the City Park Jazz series and the vibrancy of surrounding com- munities, and you have a winning combina- tion, says Stalls, who has hosted thousands of walks in City Park over the years. Lakewood Gulch parks/greenways This waterway, which juts out from the South Platte River through west Denver, has a lovely trail alongside it all the way to Lake- wood. “I am really grateful for this path and how it practically connects to mixed hous- ing, the west rail line, Paco Sánchez Park, the Platte River Trail and more,” Stalls says. 8 Welton Street and Historic Five Points Stalls cares deeply about racial justice and equity, so it’s no surprise that he loves walk- ing in Denver’s historic Black neighborhood. He cites jazz, Juneteenth, art, community organizing and local businesses as some of his favorite aspects of Five Points. There are also plenty of food options, he notes, as well as good light-rail access. South Broadway between Mississippi and Yale avenues Stalls loves some routes not for their natural settings or interesting history, but because of made public transit free for a month, Bai chal- lenged himself to visit every single RTD rail station in as short a time as possible. It took him just over eight hours and thirty minutes. Using RTD isn’t just an experiment for Bai. “I’m someone who doesn’t drive. I can’t drive, because I don’t have a driver’s license,” he says. Nica Cave, a software developer who relies on a wheelchair to get around, also met up with Stalls through Pedestrian Dig- nity’s social media. “Using a wheelchair as a pedestrian makes all of these issues in our infrastructure and issues of equity so much more present,” says Cave, noting that it highlights “just how much more diffi cult it is for people with disabilities to get around in our cities.” Cave recently founded her own nonprofi t advocacy organization, Human Centric Design, which focuses on the pedestrian mobility experience. “I call myself the glue between advocates and these agencies, be- cause as one advocate, it’s a little bit diffi cult to talk to these different agencies. You kind of get shuffl ed around in the bureaucratic routes from a Pedestrian Dignity vantage point, considering the dangers faced by people who walk, use a wheelchair or take the bus. Colorado Boulevard between Seventh and Alameda avenues Of all the thoroughfares that bother Stalls, Colorado Boulevard tops the list — and the section from Seventh to Alameda is the worst of the worst. “It’s an impossible corridor for so many on such a practical transit/destina- process,” she says. “We’re much more pow- erful as a group.” In July, Cave and Bai organized a Pedestrian Dignity “walk and roll-around” with advo- cates and RTD offi cials that began at the Interstate 25 and Broadway light-rail station before continuing south down Broadway and then west along Mississippi Avenue. “We will sort of select a section of a street that has very loud pedestrian problems — broken sidewalks, non-present crosswalks, just really dangerous roads that we rely on to get around,” says Cave. “We will choose a road that is personal to somebody.” Stalls, who considers Pedestrian Dignity a non-hierarchical entity without a leader, was on that walk. As he does at most of these events, he encouraged participants to smell the gasoline, hear the loud noise of cars pass- ing by and feel the lack of comfort and safety that pedestrians experience. Seventy-four-year-old Phyllis Smack, who uses a wheelchair, was also on the trek. She lives in a Denver Housing Authority unit right transit route corridor that ultimately ignores pedestrian and wheelchair mobility,” Stalls says. “While improvements are coming to the Edgewater stretch next to Sloan’s Lake, it re- mains to be seen if improvements will stretch all the way to Tenth and all the way to 52nd.” Mississippi Avenue from Broadway to Federal Boulevard Stalls often takes public offi cials, Colorado Department of Transportation workers and RTD employees for walks along this route. While it has many positive elements, including mixed-income and public housing, schools, grocery stores and a high-use bus route, it “largely ignores all aspects of pedestrian mo- bility,” he says. “There are studies and plan- ning committees being formed as we speak on making needed improvements to this area.” Alameda Avenue from Broadway to Federal Boulevard Stalls is not fond of this section of Al- ameda, a transit/commuter corridor that he refers to as “one of the most dangerous” and “high-speed” stretches in Denver; it “largely neglects and dismisses the needs of pedestrian mobility as a connected, complete network,” he says. And the intersection of Alameda and Federal is possibly the most dangerous in the city, the site of many “pre- ventable pedestrian fatalities,” he points out. West Colfax Avenue and Federal Boulevard This area has a lot of foot and wheelchair Jonathon Stalls in City Park, his favorite place in town. what they represent. The section of South Broadway that runs from Mississippi to Yale avenues appeals to him because of the wide range of people represented along this stretch, from different income brackets and back- grounds. He also appreciates the art, local busi- nesses, food options and transit stops along the way. And he always looks forward to relaxing at Gypsy House Cafe, at 1545 South Broadway. THE BAD In coming up with this list, Stalls assessed tion/mobility route,” he says. “It’s embar- rassing for a city and state to have roads that literally ignore the needs of pedestrians on such a high-use network.” Sheridan Boulevard between Tenth and 52nd avenues This section of Sheridan has alternating sidewalks on many stretches, requiring a pe- destrian who is walking or rolling to constantly shift sides, crossing a heavily traffi cked street in the process. “This is another practical, high- traffi c related to “many origins and destina- tions,” Stalls says, pointing to the Denver Human Services building, Servicios de la Raza, community health and mental health offi ces, clinics and mixed- and lower-income housing, a public library branch and stops for several high-use bus routes. But it’s also in- credibly inaccessible for pedestrians on foot or using wheelchairs, ranking as one of the most “chaotic, disconnected and uncomfort- able environments for pedestrians,” he says. Stalls notes that CDOT built a headquarters here in 2018, which underscores how car- centric this area has become. — MCCORMICK-CAVANAGH SEPTEMBER 22-28, 2022 WESTWORD | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | westword.com COURTESY OF ART HEFFRON
