If you haven't been to Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix in a while, there are some new additions that are stirring up some conversation.
"You get the Super Mario aspect to them," Paul Dominguez, shop manager at Golden Rule Tattoo, said.
"I kind of wanted to jump in on one of those things and see if I go underground," Andrew Jemsek said.
Perhaps there is a little similarity of several giant planters that line two blocks of the south side of Roosevelt Row to Mario Brothers, the old arcade game.
"At first glance, they look kind of ridiculous," Dominguez said.
The five-foot-tall, $2,800 planters are paid for by federal money and a small percentage is local money for these kind of specific projects, according to city spokesperson Monica Hernandez.
"Wasted money is still wasted money," Jemsek said. "It's a tacky and has a wasteful feel."
But Hernandez said the planters are a part of a bigger plan that began in 2005. Hernandez said this is an initiative the city undertook to create what they're calling "complete streets."
Hernandez said that includes pedestrians, cyclists, parents with a stroller or those operating a wheel chair.
Phase I of this plan has already included widening sidewalks, adding bike lanes, re-stripping and paving new asphalt on the road. Hernandez said they have also installed art sculptures for extra shading and seating around the area.
She said the planters have drought-tolerant trees and are supposed to provide shade. She said the pots will constrict the tree from growing too big and said they're not planted in the ground like the trees on the north side of the street.
"On the south side, we have underground and overheard utilities," Hernandez said. She said this way, when it's time for utility and maintenance activities to take place, companies can move the pots and allow for equipment to be staged on the sidewalk.
"They look pretty nice," said Darion Leahy. "They can add some scenery to the street."
"I think they're pretty interesting," Heather Hudzinski said. "Roosevelt Row is pretty interesting itself, it's pretty diverse."
Hernandez said Phase II from 4th to 7th streets is under design and set to begin later this summer. She said that phase will include smaller versions of the planters.
