Green Alleys in L.A.--doable in St. Louis?

Los Angeles is turning some of its urban alleyways into greenways.

Seeing this story is funny; I was just thinking today of my previous misconception of alleys. To me, they signified urbanity. I grew up in the Bevo neighborhood and always had an alley to play in or to cut through when visiting a friend's house nearby. To me, alleys were a quintessential part of the urban experience. That harrowing alley with evenly spaced dumpsters and unadorned garages just screamed "city" to me as a child.

But check out this aerial view of a typical New Orleans block (Make sure you zoom in unless you have really good eyes):


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There are no alleys. Buildings generally span the entire length of their allotted parcel. Only one neighborhood in New Orleans has alleys--Lakeview--and it's mostly a post-War neighborhood. After all, the purpose of alleys was for loading, in commercial areas, and to allow off-street parking in rear garages, in residential neighborhoods. So, that makes the alley a post-automobile phenomenon.

The L.A. case is interesting: in a park deprived city, alleys can serve as linear parks, offering an automobile-free pathway for pedestrians without also cutting off the connectivity of the city via automobile and bicycle.

The opportunities of green alleys are many. For one, storm water runoff would be lessened if several alleys became strips of greenery instead of impervious pavement. Second, residents could garden their share of the green alley. These alleys could also serve as quiet walkways for neighborhood residents and their dogs.

It's something to think about on an alley-by-alley basis. Would you surrender your alley for green space?