Born out of a tragic attack on the corner of Flagler Street and NE 3rd Avenue in September 2016 that claimed the life of Vizcayne resident Tom Lang, his partner Steve Dutton seeks volunteers and resources to help transform the two blocks of NE 3rd Avenue into Avenue 3 as a new Downtown destination. With focus on 1) physically changing the street so it is more pedestrian-oriented, 2) reducing the number of unsheltered homeless & panhandlers residing on the street, and 3) creating a volunteer Neighborhood Watch group, we seek to make it healthier and safer for everyone who lives-in, works-in or visits our Downtown neighborhood.

If you attended the LAUNCH event, Taste of Avenue 3, in October you witnessed excitement coming from the more than 600 neighbors joining at a shared table on the street for a light tasting of some of the food available from the twelve (12) restaurants on NE 3rd Avenue, plus local music and dance. The parking lanes were colorfully painted and a Parklet (seating area) was installed in front of one restaurant as a demonstration of how our street can be cost-effectively transformed into a “promenade” by installing Parklets, better lighting above the sidewalks and street, more “green” landscaping and barriers at the end of the block, controlled electronically, so the street can still be shared with vehicles.

The City’s Special Event Permit for this LAUNCH event was only for four days and soon after the event, the City repainted the parking lanes black, a “traffic-approved” color. The Parklet was removed and is in storage until an extended Permit under new City legislation that allows Parklets to remain on City streets can be funded.

We want to program more events on Avenue 3 in 2019 and we look forward to meeting you and recruiting your help.

Steve Dutton chairs the DNA committee on Homelessness & Ave 3