Streets Without Cars: The Urban Experiment of State Street

Madison, Wisconsin is home to one of America's urban success stories: State Street, a pedestrian mall in a downtown shopping area. According to this film, 215 downtown pedestrian malls were constructed from the 1950s through the early 1970s but only the eight-block State Street strip remains, connecting the state capitol with the local state university (that it has survived intact is something of a minor miracle of urban planning, political elbowing, and consumer support). Filmmakers Troy Lanier and Brewer Stouffer's documentary Streets Without Cars offers a quotidian examination of State Street's past and present, with the archival material more intriguing than the contemporary examination (particularly the story of a local Walgreen's that needed to redesign its facade to resemble a somewhat Stygian fortress when Vietnam-era protest riots inevitably resulted in broken store windows). Today's State Street feels like a less-than-interesting place, its charms championed here by smug municipal politicians and local “colorful” characters (all of whom are fairly monochromatic, despite their eccentricities). In addition, State Street is home to more than a few homeless, taking a bit of shine off this urban “success” story, but that's never addressed. Optional. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)