tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85926610284889512232024-03-13T08:15:53.624-07:00CityRegionNationWorldCityRegionNationWorld is a forum dedicated to thoughts on urban and regional planning, transportation, land use, economic development, real estate, architecture, urban design, cartography, the environment, and other tangentially related topics, including, occasionally, politics.Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-49801788471571123692014-08-30T22:44:00.001-07:002014-08-30T22:44:45.357-07:00How much vehicle traffic should a main street have? <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blogs.reed.edu/reedreslife/files/2013/05/moreland-theater-003And8more_tonemapped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://blogs.reed.edu/reedreslife/files/2013/05/moreland-theater-003And8more_tonemapped.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Westmoreland district, Portland. <i>Image: Ashley Brandt</i></td></tr>
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Picture a vibrant neighborhood business district in an American city – one that’s located outside of the downtown area. Or, envision the main street of one of your favorite small towns. Think cafes, restaurants with sidewalk seating, quirky stores, street trees, two- to four-story buildings close to the sidewalk, people strolling about.<br />
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Now, what is the car traffic like? Is it busy? Too busy? Not busy enough? Moving too fast? Not moving at all? Or is it just right?<br />
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Some might ask, isn’t the number of people <i>walking</i> along a main street more important than the traffic volume? In theory, yes, but not all of these people walked here directly from their houses. Some may have taken public transit or ridden their bikes. Many people probably drove and parked – either on their way to somewhere else, or specifically to visit this part of town.<br />
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The reality is, unlike in much of the rest of the world, American main streets need car traffic to thrive. If traffic volumes are too low, businesses don’t get the visibility they need to attract customers. American experiments in pedestrian-only main streets have been largely unsuccessful, with a few notable exceptions such as Church Street in Burlington, VT or Washington Street in Cape May, NJ.<br />
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Conversely, if traffic volumes are too high, the main street doesn’t feel safe and pleasant enough for people to stroll or eat an ice cream cone on the sidewalk. Major arterials with four or more lanes of heavy traffic have proven difficult to foster a pedestrian-friendly business environment. Instead, they often attract gas stations and discount stores. Only a few urban boulevards have bucked this trend – usually with major beautification and traffic calming investments.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-4Uj6RaLGDLktG1PnQTB7g5eoOcovf1GVcuxyQpvdiwL5OEKmrbCzcey5xGm_RIE1-fNJrz18gsK5Ys48aMlUZSxpxzLvzQEFIKKTK32xkKFJAgRBV_LJmJqi_QwjRcWRuMc7rmU2BaS/s1600/portland-mississippi-avenue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl-4Uj6RaLGDLktG1PnQTB7g5eoOcovf1GVcuxyQpvdiwL5OEKmrbCzcey5xGm_RIE1-fNJrz18gsK5Ys48aMlUZSxpxzLvzQEFIKKTK32xkKFJAgRBV_LJmJqi_QwjRcWRuMc7rmU2BaS/s1600/portland-mississippi-avenue.jpg" height="257" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portland's Mississippi Avenue. <i>Image: Scott Keith</i></td></tr>
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Is there a “Goldilocks” traffic volume for main streets in neighborhood business districts and small towns? I would argue that there is, and that it’s within a range of <b>5,000 to 15,000 vehicles per day</b>. My evidence, far from exhaustive, is based on traffic counts from 26 neighborhood business district main streets in Portland, Oregon. With few exceptions, Portland’s most vibrant, successful neighborhood main streets – Mississippi, Alberta, NW 23rd, for example – have 5,000 to 15,000 cars drive through on an average day.<br />
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There are successful outliers, from Clinton Street’s modest 2,300 motorized vehicles (which join more than 3,000 daily cyclists on this busy bike boulevard), to the 18,000 vehicles seen daily on both Hawthorne and East Burnside (both 4-lane roads). But most good main streets are in the Goldilocks range. Three of them – Milwaukie Avenue in Westmoreland, inner Division Street and Belmont Street – have daily volumes around 12,000.<br />
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Once you surpass 20,000 vehicles per day, conditions for a traditional main street deteriorate, as seen on 82nd Avenue and Barbur Boulevard. Surpass 40,000 – as on McLoughlin Boulevard – and it’s very unlikely you will be able to create a pedestrian-oriented main street at all.<br />
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Of course other factors play into the success of a main street, particularly the economic characteristics of the surrounding neighborhood and urban design features like setbacks, massing, trees and transparency. Even within the transportation realm there are other factors to consider, such as parking availability, number of traffic lanes, sidewalk width and spacing of pedestrian crossings. But vehicle volumes are nevertheless an important indicator.<br />
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The table below reports average daily traffic volumes for 26 neighborhood business district main streets in Portland, listed in ascending order of average daily traffic. Those familiar with Portland will notice how the viability of these main streets drops off toward the bottom of the list.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgrhtxSWaK-xopaJxUh1W70sfqMti2JnBOrYpIni7cNBdk-VHklOTucznU9a5SUe1gtcGETuB4Kp7D3T0xiO89xThuTC6wsd8a2O6hkVUCWauOxRFqXZQ1Ua29vAkn8cFHhPI6BHfAGhZw/s1600/MainStADTs.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgrhtxSWaK-xopaJxUh1W70sfqMti2JnBOrYpIni7cNBdk-VHklOTucznU9a5SUe1gtcGETuB4Kp7D3T0xiO89xThuTC6wsd8a2O6hkVUCWauOxRFqXZQ1Ua29vAkn8cFHhPI6BHfAGhZw/s1600/MainStADTs.png" height="400" width="356" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Sources: Portland Bureau of Transportation and Oregon<br />Department of Transportation</i></td></tr>
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Looking at these figures, it’s worth pondering where we should plan for future main streets. Portland Metro regional policy calls for vibrant mixed use “corridors” along arterial roadways with transit service. But will that work everywhere? I’m not convinced that busy suburban highways like 185th Avenue in Washington County, McLoughlin Boulevard in Clackamas County, or outer Division Street in Portland will ever become thriving, pedestrian-oriented main streets.<br />
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I think there’s more potential along intersecting roads that have lesser volumes and fewer lanes, like Alexander Street in Aloha or Oak Grove’s namesake boulevard in Clackamas County. These collector streets are visible from the busier arterials, but offer a quieter, safer and more intimate setting for pedestrian-friendly businesses. One of Oregon’s best examples of this is 3rd Street in McMinnville, a cozy two-lane main street perpendicular to bustling Highway 99W.<br />
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I believe we should question the expectation that our busy, multi-lane arterial roads can also be excellent main streets. Perhaps we should focus our commercial revitalization efforts on the Goldilocks streets – the ones with 5,000 to 15,000 vehicles per day.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-33466407277338806902014-01-12T14:21:00.000-08:002014-01-12T15:31:06.103-08:00Suburban active mode share: Let's kick it up a notch<br />
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We planners get excited about mode share – the proportion of trips taken by different modes of </div>
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transportation such as driving, transit, walking and biking. Mode share is often a source of bragging rights (Portland’s 6% bike commuting mode share is the highest of any major American city) or grounds for shaming (only 2% of Indianapolis commuters ride transit). Why does mode share matter? Because the better job we do with reducing driving (especially driving alone in urban areas), the more progress we make on reducing carbon and particulate emissions, alleviating traffic congestion, reducing transportation costs for people and governments, and leading healthy, active lifestyles.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4oPk81mAbashBFRa_W0OGa4fyqbykNMAEZhEp_hiGxvNBIdyTlrCnVQGjRG_s9AxrhkNR3GfiBfI2rtj5wgJcBX-mT9Y_IfuSt5G9nz5g1bamXKw-gbhl7SoM1XQNMMazE3lv1MxgZzW/s1600/IMG_8313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4oPk81mAbashBFRa_W0OGa4fyqbykNMAEZhEp_hiGxvNBIdyTlrCnVQGjRG_s9AxrhkNR3GfiBfI2rtj5wgJcBX-mT9Y_IfuSt5G9nz5g1bamXKw-gbhl7SoM1XQNMMazE3lv1MxgZzW/s1600/IMG_8313.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">A woman walks onto a MAX light rail platform in<br />
Washington County, OR. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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News stories about mode share typically boast of various large cities curbing their driving habits and successfully getting people to walk, bike and take transit. And good for them. But how are the suburbs doing? If much of the growth we’re expected to see in the 21st century is to occur in the suburbs of major cities, it is critically important that we plan for different ways of getting around. It’s easy enough for large cities, with their established transit systems, walkable street grids and dense development patterns, to cajole people out of their cars. The suburbs, however, face a tougher climb. Destinations are dispersed. Cul-de-sacs and looping streets thwart convenient walking and biking. Sidewalks, bike lanes and transit service are riddled with holes, if not absent altogether.<br />
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But some suburbs offer a respectable array of multi-modal travel options that inspire many of their residents to trade car keys for bike locks or transit passes. A handful of suburban counties actually outperform car-centric city jurisdictions elsewhere in the country (Bergen County, NJ’s transit commuting rate is thrice that of Houston, for example). How do they do it?<br />
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The US Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) is a go-to source for mode share data, even with its limitations (small sample size, exclusion of non-work trips, blind trust in people telling the truth about their behaviors). While it lacks the comprehensiveness of a survey-based travel demand model, the ACS provides reliable, apples-to-apples data for every jurisdiction in the country and is updated every year (Congress willing).<br />
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Let’s take a look at some ACS mode share data – “Means of Transportation to Work” – from the recently released 2008-2012 Five-Year Estimates. I'll focus on “active mode share” – the percentage of commuters that usually walk, bike or take transit to get to work. For comparison’s sake, a medium-sized American city with at least one rail transit line and a growing interest in bike commuting – Minneapolis, let’s say – has an active mode share of 24%, comprised of 6% walking, 4% biking and 14% transit. New York City, the obvious champion of carlessness, has an active mode share of 67%, including 56% participation in public transit. Car dependent Indianapolis, on the other hand, fails to reach a 5% active mode share.<br />
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Now let’s head to the ‘burbs. To get a meaningful sample size and provide a somewhat uniform comparison, I retrieved data at the county level. Due to having a life, I was not able to test every suburban county in the USA, but managed to investigate 27 that I suspected to be good, bad, or otherwise useful to compare with my own region’s suburbs. I also avoided suburban counties that are mostly urban (like Hudson County, NJ) or mostly rural (like Anoka County, MN). Finally, I provided mode share data for the central city around which these suburbs are situated. So who is the fairest suburb of all?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjocd8-MGfvykTRI-CUlWpQLoOhom4LZ52wy8xSWq16qTPLAFRAku1kCQA2HWvykAYIFqAAKlJcS4uJblodf9v7cv6Kr5xdOQfLJMQTmX6f1Jn1vReOzlxDjvfgLrXSDr3t0bHrxuNzqhT1/s1600/MetroNorth.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjocd8-MGfvykTRI-CUlWpQLoOhom4LZ52wy8xSWq16qTPLAFRAku1kCQA2HWvykAYIFqAAKlJcS4uJblodf9v7cv6Kr5xdOQfLJMQTmX6f1Jn1vReOzlxDjvfgLrXSDr3t0bHrxuNzqhT1/s1600/MetroNorth.png" height="400" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Metro North commuter rail lines in<br />
Westchester County, NY. <i>Image: MTA</i></td></tr>
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One could be forgiven for assuming that a wealthy enclave like <b>Westschester County, NY</b> is a bastion of latte-sipping, single-occupancy BMW drivers. Perhaps to some extent it is. But Westchester also has the highest active mode share that I could find for a suburban county in the United States: 26%. This figure is higher than the active mode share of many large cities, including one that’s famous for active transportation – Portland, Oregon, which sits at 24%.<br />
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Being immediately adjacent to New York City certainly helps the cause. More importantly, three Metro North Railroad commuter lines serve a combined 44 stations in the county’s leafy suburbs, all with direct service to Grand Central Station in midtown Manhattan. For this reason, transit represents the bulk of the active mode share here: 21% of all commutes. Biking is a mere blip at 0.1%, but the balance of the mode share, 5% for walking, could be attributed to walkable towns like Rye, Tarrytown, or the increasingly dense and tower-studded county seat of White Plains.<br />
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Respectable active mode shares can be seen in other suburban counties next to old East Coast cities with established transit systems: Long Island’s <b>Nassau County</b> at 19%, <b>Montgomery County, MD</b> (just north of Washington, DC) at 18%, <b>Bergen County, NJ</b> (near New York) and <b>Middlesex County, MA</b> (northwest of Boston) both at 17%, and <b>Delaware County, PA</b> (west of Philadelphia) at 13%.<br />
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A small handful of West Coast counties also benefit from well-developed regional transit systems and increasing options for biking and walking. In the Bay Area, <b>Alameda County</b> (home to Oakland) is the champion at 17% active mode share, with high tech <b>San Mateo County</b> not too far behind at 13%. Both counties are connected to San Francisco by BART rapid transit. In Oregon, <b>Washington County</b> is flirting with a 10% active mode share.<br />
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By contrast, the Midwest and South have very few shining examples of suburban active transportation usage. I thought I would see positive results from the radial commuter rail network of Chicagoland, but two key counties that these railways pass through – <b>Lake County</b> on the north shore and <b>DuPage County</b> on the west side – hover in the 7 to 8% range. Better performance can be found in the Twin Cities, where <b>Ramsey County, MN</b> has a 10% active mode share. Heck, even <b>DeKalb County, GA</b>, Atlanta’s eastern neighbor, has 10% of commuters walking, biking or using transit.<br />
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But in most metro areas that people typically associate with driving – Houston, Dallas, Indianapolis, for example – suburban active mode share is in the low single digits: 3% in <b>Montgomery County, TX</b> (home to Houston-area mega-suburb The Woodlands); 2% in <b>Colin County, TX</b> (which includes Plano, the northern terminus of a Dallas-bound light rail line); and a depressing 1.5% in <b>Hamilton County, IN</b> (where Carmel and Fishers residents have almost no choice but to drive).<br />
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So what are the lessons? What do suburban counties with high active mode shares have in common, and what can other counties and regions do to be more like them? I would suggest the following:<br />
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<b>Strong central city</b>.<br />
It may be out of suburban jurisdictions’ control and contrary to their economic development goals, but the fact of the matter is that a strong central city encourages transit and bike commuting from the suburbs. This is especially true when downtown parking prices and bridge/tunnel tolls further discourage driving, as in large cities like New York or San Francisco. Transit works very well when it connects suburbs to a dense, job-rich central city like spokes on a wheel. Encouraging more growth in a region’s central city may be a tough sell for suburban mayors, but it is a sound regional transportation policy.<br />
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<b>Extensive network of efficient trains</b>.<br />
The most “active” counties tend to have multiple, well-established passenger rail lines that offer travel times competitive with or better than peak-hour drive times. Nassau County features a whopping nine branches of the Long Island Railroad. Five BART rapid rail lines converge in Alameda County. Bergen County has four NJ Transit rail lines and Westchester has the aforementioned three Metro North lines. These transit systems attract suburban riders not just because they’re convenient to many locations; they’re also fast and reliable due to exclusive rights-of-way, grade separation and appropriate station spacing. Systems that rely on mixed-traffic bus, light rail and streetcar service with tightly-spaced stations – such as Portland’s system – are slower and more prone to run-ins with cars and pedestrians. These travel time and reliability issues may deter some commuters.<br />
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<b>Walkable, mixed-use towns</b>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Downtown Westwood, NJ from the train station platform.<br />
<i>Image: Keller Williams Valley Realty</i></td></tr>
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Step off a train in Bergen or Westchester counties and you will most likely find yourself in a walkable town or neighborhood with a small business district (with at least one pizza or bagel joint) surrounded by tree-lined residential streets. This is an ideal arrangement that encourages transit ridership, promotes walking, and stimulates neighborhood and business district revitalization. Towns like Westwood, NJ and Pleasantville, NY owe their function and form to the railroads that arrived in the 19th century.<br />
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While newer suburban regions can’t replicate the exact feel of a 19th century railroad town, they can certainly work to create walkable, dense, mixed-use communities, with or without rail transit. Hillsboro, OR is currently a high performer in this regard – its Orenco station area is filling in with hundreds of apartments and dozens of new retail spaces in four-story mixed-use buildings within a stone’s throw of the light rail station.<br />
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<b>Transit-oriented employment</b>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">A new light rail line connecting job-rich Bellevue with Seattle is<br />
scheduled to open in 2023. <i>Image: Visit Bellevue</i></td></tr>
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The suburbanization of employment has caused commuting headaches for many Americans (cue the opening scene of “Office Space”). But if suburban employment hubs are sited along transit lines (or vice versa), it not only reduces driving trips; it can also double transit agencies’ return on investment by filling trains in both directions. Suburban counties with major employment hubs near transit lines seem to benefit from this practice. In Washington County, OR, large Nike and Intel campuses sit within a mile of MAX light rail stations (and that last mile is made easier through employee shuttle buses and bike share programs.) Many other suburbs are either increasing employment density near transit stations, or threading new transit lines through existing job hubs. White Plains, NY and Bellevue, WA, offer respective examples.<br />
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<b>Bike/transit coordination</b>.<br />
Some suburbs are catching onto the urban bicycle renaissance. In doing to, they are making efforts to provide easier transitions between bicycling and transit. Three east bay BART stations offer BikeStations with secure self-service or valet bicycle parking. Washington County now has two Bike & Rides, a similar concept. More common in the latter location, however, is to bring bikes on MAX light rail trains, ideally using one of the eight bike hooks provided on each trainset. This practice has become so popular that demand far exceeds available space. Some cyclists have fashioned their own portable bike hooks to hang on the train’s metalwork.<br />
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Bikeway network investments are also important. This means providing safe, continuous bike lanes and pathways leading to transit stations. In Clackamas County, OR, the southern terminus station of the under-construction Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail will connect directly to the recently completed Trolley Trail, extending the effective reach of the system.<br />
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If suburbs can work with their regional partners to do these and other things, they may be able to kick their active mode shares up a few notches, reverse their auto-oriented reputations and, in doing so, create some nice places to live and work.<br />
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The table below provides active mode share figures for selected suburban counties and their "parent" cities, including those discussed in this post. All data is from the American Community Survey 2008-2012 Five-Year Estimates, Table BO8006 - “Sex of Workers by Means of Transportation to Work.”<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-31326781061595174472013-10-13T14:02:00.000-07:002013-10-13T14:02:18.097-07:00When backage becomes frontage and frontage backage<br />
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One suburban design flaw discussed far less often than the cul-de-sac or the strip mall is the “backage” road – a road that provides vehicular access to the rear of properties that otherwise have “frontage” along an arterial road. The backage road optimizes vehicular operations on the arterial by limiting access and reducing turning movements. This improves the arterial’s capacity and, some say, its safety. Indeed, this arrangement is much safer than 1950s-era arterials, where a constant barrage of driveway openings create turning conflicts for people driving, walking and cycling.</div>
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However, backage roads have unintended consequences. By providing direct property access for vehicles, backage roads have encouraged land uses to “front” them. Front doors, windows and parking for businesses and homes are oriented toward the backage road instead of the arterial. In effect, the backage road has frontage, and the arterial frontage has backage. Zounds!<br />
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What’s wrong with this situation, beyond awkward semantics? It’s urban design. You end up with an arterial road lined with the rear ends of buildings. In commercial areas this means loading docks and dumpsters; in residential areas it means backyards and back fences. Reinforcing this set-up, road agencies sometimes build sound walls along arterials where they pass through neighborhoods (sometimes with doors for pedestrian access.) The end result is an access-managed, backage-served, walled-in arterial that is less of a public thoroughfare and more of a car sewer.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Farmington Road, Aloha, Ore. A walled arterial. <i>Image: Google</i></td></tr>
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Drive through any conventional suburb that developed primarily after 1980 and you’ll see this pattern. In my neck of the woods, examples abound in Washington and Clackamas counties just outside Portland. Farmington Road, Scholls Ferry Road and Murray Boulevard zip through the western suburbs, five lanes wide and lined with sound walls and trees, with people’s backyards just on the other side. Sunnyside Road ferries east side commuters in a similar fashion, but with an emphasis on landscaped berms and retaining walls. Homes and businesses are accessed by collector and local streets, sometimes quite circuitously.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoavoSmluOfga-pU5TtDCWu4jXPTiyouJwbfUJ-xcQkl75GRMYgjtUTmJ0XUuJzXIvFlMBFmCfNQiKEAPBgYuKVVzSCS0AP5PhMwl-6BN9nHercp92EGjApG6_bS3QiJMOaxHImHBQhro/s1600/Picture+6.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoavoSmluOfga-pU5TtDCWu4jXPTiyouJwbfUJ-xcQkl75GRMYgjtUTmJ0XUuJzXIvFlMBFmCfNQiKEAPBgYuKVVzSCS0AP5PhMwl-6BN9nHercp92EGjApG6_bS3QiJMOaxHImHBQhro/s1600/Picture+6.png" height="328" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The best of intentions: On Scholls Ferry Road in Beaverton and Tigard, Ore., access is controlled but homes and<br />businesses face backage or intersecting streets. <i>Image: Google</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.borderstan.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/AdamsMorgan_Borderstan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.borderstan.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/AdamsMorgan_Borderstan.jpg" height="222" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adams-Morgan, Washington, DC. <i>Image: Luis Gomez Photos</i></td></tr>
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It doesn’t have to be this way. For millennia, major roadways were lined with building frontages: Avenue of the Dead in pre-Columbian Teotihuacán. The Champs-Élysées in 18th century Paris. The broad avenues of Washington, DC (also of French origin.) Wilshire Boulevard in 1920s Los Angeles. It wasn’t until the mid 20th century, when we wanted to drive cars to these buildings, that things got all screwy.<br />
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Yet even in this continuing age of the automobile, compromise is possible. There are ways to design our arterials and surrounding land uses to be vibrant and dignified while still enjoying the operational benefits of backage roads and access management. All it takes is a more thoughtful development code. Buildings can be required to have front doors and windows facing the arterial, while still allowing access from rear parking lots or alleys. Street connections to the arterial can be required at urban-type intervals (200-400 feet), but can be limited to pedestrian/bicycle access in order to protect vehicle operations. Wide sidewalks, buffered bike lanes, multiple rows of trees, and dual-paned windows can be required to provide visual, audible and physical separation from arterial traffic, rather than relying on concrete sound walls. Depending on the operational characteristics of the arterial, on-street parking may be appropriate – it can make arterial-fronting retail spaces an easier conversation to have with developers.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBiFcZZWS2wWRBAbJy7qFgLk6kuXgQ_ss0oT-mkK-Q9jbfHIl2vG5WPsTOwO8z2XWZ1pZ5_DmzpA0EK6yu8O7V4MxQSPpYpkcr5p3JkcLpWaYYt2-5gE_-xYQ3ZLwENFTL2-6BQlzYhDf/s1600/22190044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBiFcZZWS2wWRBAbJy7qFgLk6kuXgQ_ss0oT-mkK-Q9jbfHIl2vG5WPsTOwO8z2XWZ1pZ5_DmzpA0EK6yu8O7V4MxQSPpYpkcr5p3JkcLpWaYYt2-5gE_-xYQ3ZLwENFTL2-6BQlzYhDf/s1600/22190044.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cornell Road in Orenco Station, Hillsboro, Ore. Three-story<br />mixed-use buildings face a busy arterial. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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In practice, provisions like these can make for challenging site planning, and some developers are hesitant to deviate from cookie-cutter layouts. But successful modern examples exist – not just along the historic boulevards of older cities, but in new urbanist communities that have busy suburban arterials running through them. Locally, I often point to Cornell Road where it passes through the <a href="http://www.orencostation.net/">Orenco Station</a> neighborhood in Hillsboro, Oregon. Professional offices, apartments and retail stores in amply-fenestrated three-story buildings face a four-lane arterial with tens of thousands of cars going 40 mph. Wide, lush planter strips lessen the sensory impacts of this traffic. Direct building access is provided both for people walking along Cornell’s sidewalks and for people driving to the rear parking lot via backage roads.<br />
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On the east coast, NJ Route 33 and County Route 526 pass through <a href="http://www.sharbell.com/residential/washington-town-center-0">Washington Town Center</a> east of Trenton, with stores and houses proudly presenting their front doors to Jersey drivers. A similar layout can be found along the arterials in Denver’s redevelopment of <a href="http://www.stapletondenver.com/">Stapleton</a> Airport. Provision of on-street parking varies from place to place, but most parking spaces are tucked in carefully designed parking lots and alleys behind the buildings.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOksZot5FxMq2APQV6S00vXNk3nwvoLoDL6Bgd2MD4WtBA7CIORsRjUFoG433KwUQx2iPy894NEvHQLMdDZCJCEh66dtrJoe8yasUyYloWBj2cnUcm5uCCgddZyJQz21jnpwtYhI8dP5N/s1600/Picture+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOksZot5FxMq2APQV6S00vXNk3nwvoLoDL6Bgd2MD4WtBA7CIORsRjUFoG433KwUQx2iPy894NEvHQLMdDZCJCEh66dtrJoe8yasUyYloWBj2cnUcm5uCCgddZyJQz21jnpwtYhI8dP5N/s1600/Picture+5.png" height="264" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upscale townhomes and on-street parking along Route 526 in New Jersey's Washington Town Center. <i>Image: Google</i></td></tr>
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Balancing the form and function of arterial roadways can be difficult, and it requires deliberate coordination between transportation engineers, land use planners and developers. But I think it’s worth the extra effort. The backage situations we’re seeing today are a visual blight and a failure of community design. If our most heavily traveled urban roadways are to be lined with rear building facades and sound walls, they might as well be freeways and we should start building overpasses and interchanges.<br />
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Or we could resume the millennia-old tradition of orienting our buildings toward our grand thoroughfares.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-15804118469951870562013-09-29T20:06:00.000-07:002013-09-29T20:06:35.595-07:00Why I'm canceling my subscription to The Oregonian tomorrow<br />
The Oregonian newspaper is discontinuing daily delivery starting on Tuesday. Home subscribers will subsequently get three and a half newspapers delivered per week – three “premium” editions on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, and a thinner one on Saturday. Same price! The remaining three papers will be available at retail locations at marked up prices, or downloadable as a PDF called “<a href="http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/Oregonian/">My Digital O</a>.” Because everyone loves scrolling around an oversized PDF page on their iPad.<br />
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While I have been a print newspaper loyalist for all of my adult life (bucking the trend of most Gen X-ers), The Oregonian has given me no choice but to cancel and do other things with my time. Here are my top ten reasons why:<br />
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10. We’ve known since the popularization of the Internet that <b>print journalism can’t keep up with the 24-hour news cycle</b>. I’ve been able to forgive this fundamental flaw in exchange for more meaningful content and local coverage. But after awhile, it gets kind of silly when I read a story in the morning and my wife says, “Yeah, I read that on my Yahoo news feed yesterday.”<br />
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9. <b>The Oregonian has gradually reduced in size</b> to the point where it’s almost like the original newspapers of the 19th century – one page. I understand what the journalism industry is going through, and flimsy newspapers are the manifestation of that. But come on! First they folded the Metro section into the main ‘A’ section on Mondays. Then they combined the Sunday Travel section (one of my favorites) with the estrogen-centric Living section. Here and elsewhere, local content has been replaced with syndicated pieces from the New York Times and the like. Other times they don’t even print stories. So when I go into work and someone’s like, “Did you read The Oregonian story about that thing you’re working on?,” my answer is often, “uhhh…no!” because it either wasn’t printed in the Portland edition, or the story was released after the print deadline, or they didn’t print it, period. I guess it’s hard to fit everything onto three pages.<br />
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8. <b>I’ve been underserved too many times by delivery drivers</b>. Either they forget to deliver a paper or they knock down plants or break things on our porch. Now, I can’t be too angry with people who are probably receiving a meager wage to get up at 3:30am and drive their own vehicle all over the Portland metro area in the dark. On the other hand, my sympathy for their situation was quite muted a few years ago when I was unemployed and struggling to land any work at all. “Do your job! I could!”<br />
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7. This next one puts me in the same boat as fuddy-duddies that decry the digital revolution, but I’ll admit: <b>I like having a physical newspaper</b>. However, it’s not for the emotional reasons that you often hear from older folks (“My first job was delivering papers in the snow for 15 cents an hour!”). No, it’s because I stare at a damn computer screen for ten hours a day. I like having a break from the bombardment of electrons. I like not worrying about how much battery I have left. I like sitting in the sun, a celestial body that is quite effective at illuminating text on paper, less so computer screens.<br />
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6. Now let’s get into content issues, such as <b>sensationalism</b>. The Oregonian’s new strategy is to be primarily an internet-based news provider. As such, they are kicking out seasoned journalists in favor of internet-savvy reporters who have a knack for getting website “hits” that help meet advertising revenue goals. This was apparent to me recently when a reporter who covers the west side twisted and then “tweeted” the words of a Washington County commissioner, misrepresenting what he actually said. Insinuating that a politician doesn’t care about schools may be inaccurate, but boy, it brings in the web traffic!<br />
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5. The Oregonian has been on a continuous <b>slide to the right</b> for at least five years. Maybe their scant subscription audience skews conservative, but the Portland region certainly doesn’t. Right wing voices have gotten louder and louder with each buyout and leadership change. Now we have climate change deniers getting guest editorial space, and blowhards like <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2013/08/brendan_monaghan_lets_break_up.html">Brendan Monaghan</a> bashing the values of the city that the paper claims to represent. I enjoy hearing different perspectives, but not if they are the only perspectives. Today’s Sunday editorial page denounced urban planners who like tall buildings while simultaneously promoting the rollback of forest practices on federal land to better mimic private timberland. This illustrates perfectly the quintessential storyline of The Oregonian of the 2010s: public sector = incompetent bureaucrats that steal your money and murder kittens; private sector = brave, innovative job creators that save the world!<br />
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4. Not coincidentally <b>some of the best writers were let go</b>, including the only progressive member of the editorial board, David Sarasohn. Also shown the door were writers that handled topics that assumedly don’t match the interests of the 70-year-old suburban Republican reader: music reporter Ryan White, environmental reporter Scott Learn, and inner Portland neighborhood reporters Steve Beaven and Casey Parks. The only person left whose content I enjoy reading is transportation reporter <a href="http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/index.html">Joseph Rose</a>. People who read his articles love to spew online bile about traffic, bicyclists and light rail, so thankfully Joe fit in with The O’s Internet strategy.<br />
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3. These last three get at the undeniable practical implications of The Oregonian’s decision. Most obviously, <b>I can read every story online for free</b>. ‘Nuff said. If there’s no lock on content (as seen with the NY Times and other papers), why would I pay $28 a month to read stale news items that I can access online for free?<br />
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2. <b>Four days a week is not going to work for me</b>. If the newspaper has been part of my morning ritual for all of my post-collegiate life, I can’t just keep that habit for four days a week and then twiddle my thumbs three other days. That would be like drinking coffee on Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings and sipping lukewarm water the other mornings. Or breaking up with your girlfriend, but only effective Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. If my mornings are going to change, it needs to be a wholesale change.<br />
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1. To that end, the biggest blunder I see is <b>the decision to not create a tablet edition</b>. It can’t be that hard – local TV station KGW has a tablet edition, along with Time magazine and countless other publications. Instead, The Oregonian is offering “<a href="http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/Oregonian/">My Digital O</a>,” which is essentially a PDF of the newspaper. What a terrible idea! Instead of consolidated text and content that adjusts to the size of your mobile device, you’ll have to zoom in and scroll around a series of 15-by-23-inch PDF pages and click on links to page A12 (or wherever) to continue reading. Unfolding a sheet of paper that measures nearly 5 square feet is awkward enough on a train or at a café table. A PDF of that format will digitize this awkwardness. Alternatively, you can visit The Oregonian’s <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/">horrible website</a> with its baffling organization of content, clunky fonts and 1980s search engine technology. I’m completely amazed that a tablet edition is not being offered when everyone and their mother has an iPad or Kindle these days. And this comes from someone who doesn’t. I would be in the market for an iPad or a Microsoft Surface (and would be keeping my newspaper subscription) if The Oregonian offered a tablet edition.<br />
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Instead I will be cancelling, effective October 1. This is the end of an era for me. While my wife will not miss the clutter of newspapers on the breakfast table, there will be a noticeable chasm in my daily routine. Beyond these personal considerations, my heart goes out to the scores of quality journalists that have been terminated by The Oregonian over the years. While the fate of the newspaper may have been sealed the moment the Internet went live, it seems like The Oregonian could have adapted with better decisions and better leadership.<br />
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But what do I know? I’m just a tax dollar-wasting public sector commie like the ones they describe on the editorial page. So long, The Oregonian.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-74553343784741442852013-08-02T23:29:00.000-07:002013-08-02T23:29:36.806-07:00Connectivity barriers: When is it worth breaking them?<div style="text-align: right;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy3wnTAOjb0eQ6sYlYieWaPH3943soSB2Ph5Om-IfdAoKolmosxzuuU1a0wyF9AdITaNL9DwmtvtcqSW38SvHJWZCwfL7Y3g5mOwD-L6Z1NKtml18vrG0fwSiIcm6-E2u_xAbRmt8zyarY/s1600/IMG_6725.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy3wnTAOjb0eQ6sYlYieWaPH3943soSB2Ph5Om-IfdAoKolmosxzuuU1a0wyF9AdITaNL9DwmtvtcqSW38SvHJWZCwfL7Y3g5mOwD-L6Z1NKtml18vrG0fwSiIcm6-E2u_xAbRmt8zyarY/s1600/IMG_6725.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portland's Reedway Street at the Union<br />Pacific railroad. Try crossing this! Actually,<br />don't. <i>Image: author.</i></td></tr>
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Why did the chicken cross the road? You know the rest. But what if that road is a 16-lane freeway, or the busiest railroad in the state? Or, what if it is a natural “road” – a river, gulch, canyon, arroyo, cliff or hillside? To get to the other side, the chicken would need to somehow avoid dismemberment or drowning. More probable is that our feathered friend would stay on its side of the road, or take a circuitous route that increases the length and time of its trip by a large factor. As such, the chicken may be encouraged to get in its chicken car and drive two miles to a destination that is really just 200 feet away for a more flight-capable bird.<br />
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Transportation facilities – linear features intended to provide mobility – sometimes reduce it instead. Much has been written about mid-century freeways severing urban neighborhoods that, due to their disenfranchised minority populations and blighted housing stock, were deemed disposable. And most Americans have heard the expression that someone “grew up on the wrong side of the tracks.” While we have enjoyed the economic benefits of freeways and railroads, they came with a steep social price that we are still paying today.<br />
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Sometimes, if a community gets sufficiently annoyed about the gulf separating them from where they want to go, they organize and ask their leaders for a crossing. If they’re lucky, someone listens, finds a few million bucks, and gets it built.<br />
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This presents a series of policy questions. When is it worth spending millions to connect two sides of a freeway, railroad or river with a grade-separated crossing? What are the density thresholds or other criteria that make it worthwhile? How far apart should these crossings be spaced in urban, suburban and rural contexts? Should a new crossing be just for people on foot or bike, or should it be a complete street, or even a new interchange? How about just peds, bikes and emergency vehicles? Conversely, when is it okay to say, “No, you people don’t need to get from point A to point B in any sort of direct fashion”?<br />
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The answer is usually, “It depends.” But that’s not very helpful. Short of a doctoral thesis project, we can at least take an anecdotal look at how transportation planners have responded to these questions in practice.<br />
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Think of a freeway that passes through different parts of a major American city. Downtown, you’ll often see an overpass or underpass at every street – I think of the Vine Street Expressway in center city Philadelphia or Interstate 5 in downtown Seattle. In the first ring of pre-World War II neighborhoods, you may have a freeway crossing every quarter to half mile, some including interchanges. This is the case in most Chicago neighborhoods outside The Loop, and in north Portland along Interstate 5. In the suburbs, crossings may be limited to freeway interchanges spaced one to two miles apart or more. In rural areas, the barriers created by interstate highways have necessitated 20th century inventions like frontage roads and ranch exits.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://galvanizeit.org/images/sized/images/sized/remote/project_images-s3-amazonaws-com--1356717901-SW-Gibbs-Street-10-440x330.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://galvanizeit.org/images/sized/images/sized/remote/project_images-s3-amazonaws-com--1356717901-SW-Gibbs-Street-10-440x330.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Darlene Hooley Pedestrian Bridge at Gibbs Street.<br />
<i>Image: galvanizeit.org</i></td></tr>
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Where mid-century highway builders created significant hardships, later planners have occasionally mitigated matters. Portland last year finished the $6.7 million Darlene Hooley Pedestrian Bridge at Gibbs Street, connecting two southwest Portland neighborhoods that had been sliced and diced by decades of highway infrastructure. Tacoma’s ongoing revitalization has been aided by the 2001 Chihuly “Bridge of Glass,” spanning six lanes of Interstate 705 and three main line railroad tracks to connect downtown with the waterfront and namesake glass museum. And we can’t forget Boston’s “Big Dig,” which despite its infamous cost and schedule overruns, managed to completely eliminate an egregious connectivity barrier and provide acres of new parkland.<br />
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New river crossings are less common. Portland is building an entirely new span over the Willamette River just for light rail trains, buses, bicyclists and pedestrians. When the bridge opens in 2015, downtown Portland will have nine river bridges over the course of three miles. But to the south in suburban Clackamas County, there are no bridges over the Willamette River for nearly nine miles. We’re not talking about the Amazon Delta here – the Willamette is in several places just 400 feet across. Significant towns and neighborhoods line the shores, apparently content to be isolated from one another. This issue is not nearly as severe in other riverine metro areas like Pittsburgh and Minneapolis/St. Paul. Eugene, Oregon has seven ped/bike bridges to supplement its four road bridges over the Willamette River, which in this stretch is similar in width to the Clackamas County segment.<br />
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So why build ped/bike crossings? Can’t people just get in a car and drive around the offending barrier, or find somewhere else to go? Sadly, that is the mindset in some places. But beyond the obvious equity arguments about people who can't afford cars, I would posit that any effort that gives walking and bicycling an edge over driving, but does not worsen operational conditions for vehicles, is a good thing. Awarding pedestrians and bicyclists a connectivity advantage by means of a bridge is one way to incentivize active transportation. If the distance between point A and point B is all of the sudden reduced from five miles to one quarter mile, you have potentially moved a whole set of trips from car to ped/bike. Furthermore, connectivity projects like ped/bike overcrossings are typically less controversial than projects that reduce vehicle capacity (like road diets), and they’re often cheaper than building a full-on road bridge or adding bike lanes and sidewalks to an existing bridge.<br />
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For six years I have been pitching a potential ped/bike overcrossing project to city officials and neighborhood leaders: connecting two stubs of Reedway Street over Highway 99E and the Union Pacific railroad in southeast Portland. Support for the idea has ebbed and flowed over the years, most recently cresting when <a href="http://trimet.org/pm/" target="_blank">Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail</a> planners proposed a station here. Ultimately, the Harold Street station was mothballed due to a combination of federal budget cuts, travel time concerns, alleged sub-par density, and - here's the Catch 22 - a need to build a ped/bike overcrossing. But despite the death (or dormancy) of the Harold Street station, I think the crossing is still a great idea.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBmy1Abt83a2tdVU-_kJxIr7BcNMjqrKjAcIWxACkeGSGN50xXtrOfSevtGyLeCUXyi4tN8wgyNfbdSg23XmscYn25wDWnStdPOCiP27dYcjq6_msZSHxIxOZ6rLiouhR-N8Hwoy6QqRz/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBmy1Abt83a2tdVU-_kJxIr7BcNMjqrKjAcIWxACkeGSGN50xXtrOfSevtGyLeCUXyi4tN8wgyNfbdSg23XmscYn25wDWnStdPOCiP27dYcjq6_msZSHxIxOZ6rLiouhR-N8Hwoy6QqRz/s1600/Picture+1.png" height="284" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212436456799357216161.0004e2d7818625447a5d3&msa=0&ll=45.5292,-122.612915&spn=0.164992,0.336113" target="_blank">Mapping geekery</a>: distance between crossings.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212436456799357216161.0004e2d7818625447a5d3&msa=0&ll=45.5292,-122.612915&spn=0.164992,0.336113" target="_blank">With the aid of Google Maps</a>, I discovered that the east side of Portland has an average spacing between railroad or freeway crossings of about a third of a mile. But here at Reedway Street, the nearest crossings are separated by over a mile. The crossing to the north, Holgate Boulevard, is a high-speed four-lane viaduct with narrow sidewalks obstructed by light poles and utility boxes. This prevents me and my neighbors from safely and conveniently walking or bicycling to destinations on the east side of the railroad, such as Reed College, two very nice parks, and several industrial employers (one of which happens to be a <a href="http://www.giganticbrewing.com/" target="_blank">fantastic microbrewery</a>). Similarly, the "Reedies" and other folks on the east side of the tracks are hampered from directly accessing services in my neighborhood, including a grocery store, restaurants and medical offices. But that hasn't stopped people from trying - several years ago a transient was hit and killed by a train while trying to cross the tracks at Reedway Street.<br />
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Building a ped/bike overcrossing would solve these problems. But it’s a mere speck in America’s 23rd largest metro area, in a nation where even basic infrastructure maintenance needs are going unmet. Similar connectivity challenges exist in Los Angeles, Omaha, Philadelphia, Miami, and pretty much anywhere else that has a transportation network. Who knows if anything will come of my crossing proposal, or the tireless efforts of countless other advocates for similar projects around the country. But someone has to call attention to these frustrating, sometimes lethal barriers to connectivity, or else we will remain a disjointed world where chickens want to cross the road but end up as ground meat.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-58317075719213566482013-01-13T20:15:00.000-08:002013-01-13T20:36:55.685-08:00The South Could Learn From The South<br />
When one thinks of innovative, sustainable urban planning, the American South doesn’t come to mind. As the story goes, the South’s most significant boom took place after World War II, spurred by the advent of air conditioning and the growth of defense-related industries. We know what forms of development the mid 20th century brought: sprawling, looping subdivisions with homes on oversized lots; seven-lane arterial roads with big box stores and garrish signage; downtown urban renewal schemes with brutalist concrete architecture and dead streets. Really, it was the same stuff being built everywhere else in mid-century America, just more of it, and worse. And with <a href="http://www.pigglywiggly.com/" target="_blank">Piggly Wigglys</a>.<br />
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Visiting family over Thanksgiving, I had a chance to see if the South had since learned some lessons – like in the 1990s when Atlanta was nearly <a href="http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publicroads/00septoct/atlanta.cfm" target="_blank">stripped of its federal transportation funds</a> for egregiously violating the Clean Air Act. Maybe I would be pleasantly surprised with post-2000 walkable streets, bike lanes and transit options. Charlotte has light rail now, after all.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Atlanta's Downtown Connector. <i>Image: ironchapman (Flickr)</i></td></tr>
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Unfortunately I witnessed a South still sprawling like it’s 1959, like land is infinite and there’s no such thing as climate change (a sentiment shared by many of the region’s politicians). My wife and I white-knuckled the 16-lane freeways of Atlanta. We walked disconnected South Carolina subdivisions with sidewalks built on one side of the street to save money. We plied suburban highways on missions for fried chicken at <a href="http://www.bojangles.com/" target="_blank">Bojangle’s</a> or pre-made appetizers at Wal-Mart. We drove through massive new industrial parks carved out of pine forest and ubiquitous construction zones destined for seven-lane arterials. There were even plans for a <a href="http://coastalconservationleague.org/projects/i-526-extension/" target="_blank">new freeway</a> to cross miles of sensitive tidal marsh outside Charleston with the purpose of saving one minute of travel time.<br />
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Obviously growth is inevitable and it has to go somewhere. People and corporations keep moving south, chasing sunshine and loose labor laws, respectively. You can’t blame someone for buying a house in an isolated subdivision if that’s the only option available. It’s the planners and their elected bosses who have dropped the ball.<br />
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So, what can be done? Is the South doomed to devolve into further automobile dependency and habitat degradation? Is there no hope for progressive planning concepts like urban growth boundaries, new urbanism, transit-oriented development, or (gasp) sidewalks on both sides of the street? Where can Southern planners and politicians look for inspiration? Another obligatory field trip to Portland, Oregon?<br />
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No. The good news for the South is that exemplary communities are not too far afield. In fact, they’re right here. Simply put, the South could learn from the South. <br />
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<b>Lessons From The Past: Charleston and Savannah</b><br />
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Among the South’s best examples of sustainable development are its earliest ones: Charleston, South Carolina and Savannah, Georgia. I would say these two Low Country Colonial cities are among North America’s best places, period. Any practitioner, student or aficionado of planning, architecture or urban design should visit them – preferably between October and April to avoid sweltering humidity.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tradd Street, Charleston. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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Charleston and Savannah, founded in 1670 and 1733, respectively, developed around the needs of human beings, not cars, trucks or even trains. The size of both Colonial capitals is manageable for the primary transportation of the era – a pair of shoes. Historic Savannah is one mile long and ¾ mile wide. The oldest part of Charleston, at the bottom of a peninsula, is roughly 1¼ mile wide and tapers to a point about the same distance south. Within these areas are dense assemblages of homes, shops, offices, restaurants, schools, churches, and virtually anything else one would need to live a happy life (though full-service groceries are somewhat underprovided).<br />
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On a finer scale, the cities’ streets, buildings and open spaces were also designed for humans. Street networks are interconnected, and the streets themselves are safe and pleasant, with sidewalks and trees. Homes and commercial buildings have comfortable dimensions, tall enough and close enough to achieve a sense of enclosure, but rarely more than three stories. Facades have interesting details and eye-pleasing proportions. Open spaces – whether Savannah’s famous squares or Charleston’s church cemeteries – provide shaded respite from the hot Southern sun.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lafayette Square, Savannah. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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The cities differ most in their intentionality. Charleston developed somewhat haphazardly like many Colonial settlements. The initial central core – once a walled compound – spread outward in rough-hewn grids and occasional diagonals. Block shapes, lot sizes and street widths were unscripted, and public open spaces were few. Savannah, on the other hand, is one of the most famous planned cities in the world. General James Oglethorpe imposed a beautiful order, a <a href="http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2547" target="_blank">measured grid</a> of wards outlined by grand avenues and each with a public square.<br />
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Charleston and Savannah may have vastly different layouts and be of slightly different vintage, but their combined effect is the same: pleasant, human-scale urbanity with mixed uses and safe streets that allow you to walk most places. Why don’t we see more of this in the South?<br />
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<b>Lessons From The Future: Atlanta</b><br />
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Imagine a shiny metropolis of glassy towers and speedy electric transit, with chic restaurants and museums bringing life to the street. Envision a beltline, not of congested freeway lanes, but of streetcars, multi-use pathways and parks. This is the future of Atlanta, and in some places, the future is already here.<br />
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Atlanta, a city of 430,000 in a metro area of over 5 million, gets a bad rap, much of it deserved. The region is a poster child for sprawl – a low-density landscape of subdivisions and office parks splayed across 28 counties (28 counties!), connected by monstrous, smog-inducing highways, and punctuated by a lackluster downtown of oppressive buildings.<br />
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But things are changing, and not just because the region got in trouble with the feds. It turns out that Atlantans, like many other Americans, don’t want to or can’t afford to drive 100 miles each day to and from work. Nor do they necessarily want that 3,000-square foot McMansion on two wooded acres. Atlantans (and newcomers from elsewhere) are returning to Atlanta proper, reinvesting in older neighborhoods and creating brand new ones on recycled land. They’re also discovering that they’ve had a world-class rail transit system since 1979.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peachtree Road, Midtown Atlanta. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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These changes are evident in <a href="http://midtownatl.com/" target="_blank">Midtown Atlanta</a>, immediately north of downtown along tree-lined Peachtree Road. Having undergone a century of constant reinvention – from 1920s mansion and cultural district, to downtrodden 1960s freeway blight, to 1990s corporate phallus farm – Midtown is now filling in its remaining spaces with gleaming condo towers with active ground-floor uses home to popular restaurants. Add in art museums, theaters, colleges, leafy side streets, rapid rail transit and a large urban park, and you have one of the best places to live in the 21st century South.<br />
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Similar transformations are underway in Buckhead, Atlanta’s upscale shopping district to the north; at <a href="http://www.atlanticstation.com/" target="_blank">Atlantic Station</a>, a high-density mixed-use redevelopment of a former steel mill; and in other pockets within a few miles of downtown. One of the most exciting planning initiatives is the <a href="http://beltline.org/" target="_blank">Atlanta Beltline</a>, a partially-abandoned 33-mile railroad encircling downtown that would be transformed into an emerald necklace of parks, trails and light rail transit.<br />
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But Atlantans need not wait for quality transit. The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (<a href="http://www.itsmarta.com/default.aspx" target="_blank">MARTA</a>) operates 48 miles of electric rapid rail in exclusive rights-of-way fanning out in five directions from downtown, plus a network of 92 bus routes. In terms of travel time, MARTA rapid rail puts many other American transit systems to shame, including Portland’s light rail system. A Red Line train from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport to downtown Atlanta takes 17 minutes – competitive with free-flow driving conditions. Continuing to the terminus in North Springs takes an additional 26 minutes. MARTA doesn’t get bogged down by a multitude of tightly-spaced downtown stations like in Portland or San Diego. These trains get you places quickly and are clean, safe and affordable at $2.50 per ride. Maybe Atlanta is figuring it out.<br />
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<b>Will The South Learn?</b><br />
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People continue to move to the South in droves. Will Southern policymakers recognize that 20th century suburban sprawl is obsolete? Do public sector leaders care enough about sustainable development to make controversial changes to land use, zoning and transportation plans? Do private developers understand the largely untapped regional market for walkable, mixed-use communities, and if so, do they know how to build them? It remains to be seen. But if Southerners need inspiration from on-the-ground examples of great places, they don’t have to look far.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-60864742615692425052012-10-28T20:14:00.000-07:002012-10-28T20:18:43.092-07:00Attack of the house clones!<br />
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In the spirit of Halloween, I’ll tell you what spooks me. It’s not ghosts, ghouls, goblins, the Frankenstorm, or the prospect of a Romney presidency. No, it’s the outsized neo-traditional house clones that are popping up en masse in many a Portland neighborhood. Like zombies, they rise from the graves of once-affordable properties. What are these strange, deformed creatures of the night, with names like Meriwether, Ainsworth and Montgomery? They are the <a href="http://www.renaissance-homes.com/portland-homebuilder-vintage-collection" target="_blank">Renaissance Homes Vintage Collection</a> – new homes with “all the updated charm, built-ins and period details of the Portland homes you’ve come to love.”<br />
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Okay, in the scheme of things, a recovering housing market is nothing to be scared of, and I applaud the effort to design homes that attempt to blend into the milieu of older neighborhoods. But I take issue with these offerings from Renaissance for several reasons:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An authentic 1910 foursquare in Southeast Portland.<br />
<i>Image: Portland FourSquare</i></td></tr>
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<b>1. Awkward proportions.</b> These homes are inspired by classic single-family home styles of the early 20th century, including the foursquare and the craftsman bungalow. In practice, the house clones fail to replicate the aesthetic of these styles. Viewed from the street, something’s just not right. The proportions are off. The ratio and spacing of fenestration (windows and doors) compared to the rest of the front façade is often awkward. Many of the designs have large expanses of blank siding and tiny windows, probably to accommodate the large closets and privacy that we Americans demand. Equally noticeable are the narrow overhangs. Old Portland homes were traditionally built with wide overhangs, in part to provide more shelter in our rainy climate. The house clones leave out this detail, and it compromises their authenticity. Finally, many of the house clones are essentially four stories tall, with the first floor elevated to make room for a garage. Convenient, maybe; attractive, not so much.<br />
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<b>2. Enormity.</b> None of the house clones are smaller than 2,000 square feet, and a few of them break the 3,000 mark. This is particularly obvious on 5,000 square-foot or smaller lots surrounded by more modest homes, a situation most of them share. I’m quite certain that the house clones max out the floor-area ratios and building heights allowed in the zoning code. A few of the house clones in my neighborhood are on 2,500 square foot lots, with no usable outdoor space. In an era when average household and family sizes continue to decline and many people can’t afford or don’t have time to maintain a four-bedroom house, the house clones buck the trend. I suppose they are meeting a demand for successful families that want to live in urban neighborhoods rather than flee to the suburbs, which is good.<br />
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<b>3. Limited designs. </b>The Renaissance website shows <a href="http://www.renaissance-homes.com/category/vintage+floor-plans" target="_blank">14 different models</a> in the Vintage Collection. Really, they are slight variations on just three styles – the foursquare, craftsman and gable front. The foursquare-based design is particularly popular, and is what prompted me to call them “house clones” in the first place. I estimate there are at least ten identical foursquare house clones (and counting) in my neighborhood. Renaissance classifies its Vintage Collection as “custom homes," but they are precisely the opposite: standardized, cookie-cutter home designs that minimize effort and maximize profit. While other infill developers are building true custom homes that meet client preferences and respect site context (solar orientation, views, vegetation, surrounding homes), Renaissance is cranking out carbon copies.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">R.I.P. 1135 SE Nehalem Street, pictured last summer on<br />
Google StreetView.</td></tr>
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<b>4. Scraping.</b> The house clones are typically established by demolishing existing homes, many of them modest bungalows that didn’t have much wrong with them. In doing so, Renaisssance is eliminating the few remaining affordable houses in Portland’s inner neighborhoods. Obviously this makes perfect economic sense: desirable neighborhood + cheap house – demolition and construction costs = profit. It’s perfectly legal, but it’s changing the character and scale of our old neighborhoods while not even helping with our city’s density goals. I find it exasperating that many of our city’s neighborhood associations (including mine) fight density and multi-family projects tooth-and-nail, but are happy to sit idle while bulldozers scrape dozens of modest homes to make way for outsized single-family house clones.<br />
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<b>5. Price.</b> The house clones start at $424,900. Many of them top $600,000. For a city with a median home price of $262,000, this is definitely an “upper market” product. The folks I see moving into the house clones are successful, white, attractive professionals in their 40s with two or three children and/or dogs. Good for them. For me, it’s more evidence that the wealthy continue to prosper while others of us struggle. Wealth inequality aside, there are scant for-sale housing products available in Portland for my income bracket. Portland developers are currently building either (a) ginormous house clones worth half a mil or (b) rental apartments. Meanwhile, homes in the $200-300K range have so much demand and so little supply that bidding wars are common. For my wife and I, who are in the market for a home, the house clones are not helpful. All they do is demolish homes that we could have afforded. Even if we had put in offers on some of these, we likely would have been outbid by cash offers from Renaissance and the like. Hooray for the free market.<br />
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While there are certainly more serious issues to worry about in Portland (homelessness and pavement conditions, for example), I can’t help but shudder every time I see a new house clone rise from the ruins of a modest, affordable home.<br />
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Happy Halloween, stay safe in the Frankenstorm, and regardless of who you vote for, please do vote.<br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-32499719237251827342012-06-30T17:39:00.000-07:002012-06-30T17:45:35.695-07:00Planner visits Vegas, isn't horrified<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bellagio fountains. <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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It’s Saturday night in Las Vegas, Nevada - 11:30pm in front of the Bellagio fountains, to be exact. It’s still a toasty 90 degrees after a daytime high in the mid-100s. My wife and I are standing near the intersection of two ten-lane roads packed with cars – Las Vegas and Flamingo boulevards, arguably the “100% intersection” of the entire region. We’re not alone. In fact, I can think of only one other place in America where I’ve seen this many people on a sidewalk without a special event taking place. That would be Times Square. Clearly my preconceptions about Vegas are a bit off.<br />
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I originally thought Vegas was a sprawling, water-wasting mistake of a place where renting a car is an absolute must. To some degree this is true, especially away from The Strip, where things look and function like any other Sun Belt sprawlscape of fast food, big boxes, gas stations and subdivisions. But the three miles of Las Vegas Boulevard between the Wynn and Mandalay Bay (and especially the mile between The Venetian and Planet Hollywood) are like no other place in the world.<br />
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Much to my surprise, this stretch of Strip is packed with people walking – people from all over the world, many of whom choose not to drive a car for their Vegas visit. It turns out this is a logical choice. In this three-mile corridor are tens of thousands of hotel rooms, about as many slot machines and card tables, hundreds of restaurants, hundreds of shops, and one of the largest concentrations of theater-based entertainment in the world - all connected by walkways and transit options in a warm desert climate.<br />
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I was not expecting this (though I did plan the bulk of our Vegas trip as a car-free one). Here are some urban planning-related observations from our enjoyable, eye-opening (and wallet-opening) trip to Sin City:<br />
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<b>Strip sidewalks are safe and interesting.</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0Zm9db1zqpwP49zL7u8-52VW-zr81_3x41t3qP1299jKD-nEgl-aU0RPtmvJA07FtJIqnkof7t8E6sWsuX_pDfyNSn1NOUASUZJA5A_bDjhJvXjktu-9EIVz4sQOpbuYmbgJS8KFSPMl/s1600/485316928_3e4ba119c5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ0Zm9db1zqpwP49zL7u8-52VW-zr81_3x41t3qP1299jKD-nEgl-aU0RPtmvJA07FtJIqnkof7t8E6sWsuX_pDfyNSn1NOUASUZJA5A_bDjhJvXjktu-9EIVz4sQOpbuYmbgJS8KFSPMl/s320/485316928_3e4ba119c5.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bellagio sidewalk. <i>Image: Life Cinematic (flickr)</i></td></tr>
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I’ve written before how walking along wide, busy roadways can be dangerous and disconcerting. Surprisingly, walking along ten-lane Las Vegas Boulevard is relatively safe – even pleasant and interesting. In recent years, the newer casinos (presumably in partnership with local government) have improved the streetscape with trees, planters, stamped and glazed concrete sidewalks, landscaped medians, meandering paths, mist sprayers and other amenities to improve the pedestrian experience. There is usually some sort of buffer between the “through zone” of pedestrians and automobile traffic, whether it’s trees, bollards, or pirate-themed ropes and pilings (see Treasure Island). Sometimes the buffer is a bit extreme, pulling pedestrians into casino properties where there happens to be a cluster of gift shops and other schlocky casino offerings (see Harrah’s). Additional sidewalk safety comes from the fact that cars on The Strip aren’t moving that fast. As we planners know, even ten-lane roads can get congested!<br />
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<b>Sidewalks are victims of their own success.</b><br />
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The worst that can be said of the Strip sidewalks is that they’re often not wide enough. Pedestrian demand far exceeds capacity, and people get squeezed where sidewalks are only eight or ten feet wide. In the core area between The Venetian and Planet Hollywood, sidewalks should be at least 25 feet wide. This area is packed with people, 24/7, and we found walking to be, in places, like pushing your way to the front of the stage at a rock concert. Widening sidewalks outward into existing casino properties would be nearly impossible. Here’s an idea: build them inward, taking away two of the ten traffic lanes! Yeah, that probably won’t happen either. Most feasibly, future development should be required to have wide sidewalks.<br />
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<b>Hooray for pedestrian overcrossings.</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihAl24yyBJN4g_PgFjqwXWtzeWlV7-AFd5BH7KOgRnR0Sx2sghpVp2vwEYqLRuIZ_jyguw4_kcTpWp9YuLN7oVnKFVPO7nU99E4wSNpZIfsEA9yOWmTA-oWm4-4a86LtrnWs_I0hujb1zY/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihAl24yyBJN4g_PgFjqwXWtzeWlV7-AFd5BH7KOgRnR0Sx2sghpVp2vwEYqLRuIZ_jyguw4_kcTpWp9YuLN7oVnKFVPO7nU99E4wSNpZIfsEA9yOWmTA-oWm4-4a86LtrnWs_I0hujb1zY/s320/Picture+1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Las Vegas and Flamingo boulevards. <i>Image: Google</i></td></tr>
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The skywalks of northern cities like Minneapolis create dead zones at street level. But in Vegas, they prevent dead <i>humans</i> at street level. Fact is, it’s hard for people to cross ten lanes of traffic on foot without problems. The pedestrian bridges of The Strip are key to keeping people moving safely on foot, as well as in cars, taxis, buses, motorcycles, or what have you (except maybe bicycles). The bridges do not create dead zones, because plenty of people are still walking to and from destinations on the same side of the street. The aforementioned intersection of Las Vegas and Flamingo boulevards has four pedestrian overcrossings linking all four corners, and is better because of them. Escalators included! Other locations along the strip have at-grade crossings that are mostly safe, with adequate crossing time and helpful countdown signals. But they are still a bit harrowing, involving turning vehicles and, well, Vegas drivers.<br />
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<b>Strip buses: FAIL.</b><br />
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The <a href="http://www.rtcsouthernnevada.com/" target="_blank">Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada</a> (RTC) operates two buses along Las Vegas Boulevard between Downtown and the airport through the heart of The Strip: The Deuce, a double-decker bus with frequent stops; and the Strip-Downtown Express (SDX), a double-articulated bus with stops every ¾ mile or so. Unfortunately, both buses fail in many ways. Ridership is not one of them. The two buses are the only transit options between Downtown and The Strip, so thousands of tourists use them. The problems, especially with The Deuce, are:<br />
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<ul>
<li><b>Too many stops.</b> The Deuce prides itself with stopping at every casino or hotel front door (Ironically, our stop at The Flamingo was permanently closed for reasons that are unclear). Some of these front doors are a few hundred feet apart. The constant stopping makes forward progress a patience-testing slog.</li>
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<li><b>Not enough riders pre-pay.</b> Every bus stop has electronic pay stations accepting cash and credit cards. To board the SDX, you must pre-pay (it’s an honor system, actually). But to get on The Deuce, you have the option of feeding the on-board fare machine next to the driver. Way too may people, apparently oblivious to the sidewalk pay stations, choose to pay as they board. At one stop, it took 15 minutes to process passenger fares and get everybody on board. It didn’t help that the bus was already 20 minutes late, so people had accumulated at the stop. This, on a bus with alleged 15-minute headways. </li>
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<li><b>Traffic.</b> The most basic problem is that Las Vegas Boulevard is congested with vehicles of all types, slowing down the buses even further. An excusive bus lane would help. They’ve installed one in the no-man’s land between Downtown and The Strip, where the primary land use is vacant lot. But just like expanding the sidewalks, it would probably be difficult to garner support for taking away two traffic lanes away from private vehicles.</li>
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<li><b>Sorry, you can’t get on.</b> Tragically, the three problems above compound each other to the point where buses end up stacking, with at least one filled to capacity and not accepting additional riders. At our stop, we waited 30 minutes, then boarded the second of two Deuces that showed up at the same time. Further down the line, both buses became full. The drivers had to skip several stops, stranding dozens of angry people in the hot sun. Who knows when bus #3 showed up!</li>
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<b>Extend the Monorail!</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPsIAI-AgXYs3WnBWxcmXjFAAFITQk2wWNKeLjdkODnReF542vXEcaj872sHyp1U3fQ1ZKnmTGKdfmjKqbCOtHy9qGEGMmU3XoXpnqZDE6FpUMtnGBXHCm1auTE8xeBe6FXjvRqA7d8Ieu/s1600/IMG_7615.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPsIAI-AgXYs3WnBWxcmXjFAAFITQk2wWNKeLjdkODnReF542vXEcaj872sHyp1U3fQ1ZKnmTGKdfmjKqbCOtHy9qGEGMmU3XoXpnqZDE6FpUMtnGBXHCm1auTE8xeBe6FXjvRqA7d8Ieu/s320/IMG_7615.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monorail! <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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In the congestion and density of The Strip, the <a href="http://www.lvmonorail.com/" target="_blank">Las Vegas Monorail</a> is the only reliable option for getting anywhere quickly. Elevated above roads, parking lots and sometimes buildings, the Monorail is a privately operated electric transit line stretching from MGM Grand to The Sahara, with seven stops at major destinations. At $5 a ride or $12 for a day pass, it’s a bit pricier than public transit (a glimpse of life without transit subsidies). But the Monorail is quick, clean, unimpeded by traffic, and well integrated into the buildings at each stop (except for the shuttered Sahara). Unfortunately, the Monorail goes neither Downtown nor to the airport, which are two miles and one mile away, respectively. Both would be logical destinations for future expansion, which would do wonders for mobility in Las Vegas.<br />
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<b>18b: So there <i>are</i> hipsters in Vegas.</b><br />
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Heading north toward Downtown, the action of The Strip pretty much ceases at Sahara Avenue. Once you pass the Stratosphere Tower, the urban landscape devolves into vacant lots, pawn shops, and tired old motels (some with redeeming mid-century signage). But at Charleston Boulevard, amidst the seediness, an arts district is taking hold. Creative types are breathing new life into old buildings and storefronts, even converting a former crematorium into an impressive collective called <a href="http://www.theartsfactory.com/" target="_blank">The Arts Factory</a>. The City of Las Vegas has branded these roughly 18 blocks as “<a href="http://www.18b.org/" target="_blank">18b</a>.” Urban observers know what follows low-rent art studios: restaurants, bars, cafes, apartments, condos. With plenty of room to expand, and a favorable location between The Strip and Downtown, I can only imagine 18b will blossom. Hopefully in doing so it can retain its creative, independent vibe that is a refreshing contrast to the commercialization of The Strip.<br />
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<b>Downtown is trying to reclaim its namesake.</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBRprtv_QmxaeAyr7bMGCBTMZ_MkiXNjrdwK17cllpI4jo9aG1VepHfM7Aqd4cnVvwbxWRUCC6vn0BFtBoseQnH-MSWIzL00PU8ahdUz8_XsVIlQIOQENWD-WRNrcUSxdyQbdeYmXDQ9T/s1600/IMG_7491.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBRprtv_QmxaeAyr7bMGCBTMZ_MkiXNjrdwK17cllpI4jo9aG1VepHfM7Aqd4cnVvwbxWRUCC6vn0BFtBoseQnH-MSWIzL00PU8ahdUz8_XsVIlQIOQENWD-WRNrcUSxdyQbdeYmXDQ9T/s320/IMG_7491.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fremont Street Experience. Now with ziplines! <i>Image: author</i></td></tr>
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Starting in the 1980s, Vegas's hive of human activity migrated from Downtown (home of Fremont Street) southward to The Strip. Nowadays, you could say Vegas’s de facto downtown is centered at Las Vegas and Flamingo boulevards, three miles south of the actual Downtown, and not even within city limits. Vegas’s skyline reflects this pattern when viewed from east or west. But while Downtown Las Vegas has seen better days, it has also seen far worse ones. It is evident that Downtown is gradually and deliberately climbing its way back. Positive developments have included:<br />
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<li><a href="http://www.vegasexperience.com/" target="_blank">Fremont Street Experience</a>, the light-and-sound-equipped-canopy-covered pedestrian zone that has occupied Downtown’s main drag since 1995;</li>
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<li><a href="http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/government/7589.htm" target="_blank">Fremont East</a>, a streetscape improvement and branding effort that attempts to pull the energy of the Experience eastward down a street of dated hotels, bars and shops;</li>
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<li>Online shoe store Zappos.com <a href="http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/nov/29/zapposcom-moving-green-valley-las-vegas-city-hall/" target="_blank">moving its corporate headquarters</a> from suburban Henderson to the old Las Vegas City Hall, and the city constructing its new seat of government along the west edge of Downtown; and</li>
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<li>The massive <a href="http://www.wmclv.com/" target="_blank">World Market Center</a> complex west of the railroad, home to world-scale home furnishing and other design industry trade shows.</li>
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<b>Vegas by bike: it could be great.</b><br />
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I counted just five people on bicycles in our three days in Vegas. Three of them were riding on The Strip in the middle of the day. Another was a restaurant worker in his chef whites, heading home on a children’s bike along the sidewalk of Flamingo Boulevard. Brave souls they are, considering both the traffic and weather. But I think Vegas could be a great biking city. It’s warm, dry and flat. The tourist areas are fairly compact. Major boulevards are often paralleled by lower-volume streets that could serve as bikeways. An RTC bike map reveals that bike lanes are not uncommon in Vegas suburbs like Henderson and Summerlin. But during our visit I saw only one bike lane-equipped street in Vegas proper. It was a green-painted bike lane like those popping up more bike-friendly cities. This is a good sign – it probably means the city’s transportation planners have more in the works.<br />
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<b>Et cetera.</b><br />
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I could go on and on about planning in Vegas. Water issues. Xeriscaping. Solar power. Foreclosures. Unincorporated areas. <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jun/20/travel/la-tr-0620-railfuture-20100620" target="_blank">Maglev trains to L.A.</a> But I’ll stop here. Las Vegas is a fascinating place, with a completely unique set of opportunities and challenges. As a visiting planner, I was surprised that I wasn’t totally horrified. I invite you to visit or revisit Vegas and see it from a different perspective. On foot, perhaps.<br />
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<br /></div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-58030255113374282192012-06-03T22:30:00.000-07:002012-06-03T22:30:19.896-07:00Where should affordable housing go?<br />
A family member of mine who works at a non-profit affordable housing consultancy in Portland was understandably irritated at The Oregonian’s Sunday feature story, “<a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/06/subsidizing_segregation_locked.html" target="_blank">Subsidizing Segregation: Taxpayer money meant to create affordable and desirable housing for the poor and people of color instead pushes them into the metro area’s worst neighborhoods</a>.”<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlYuF0UA6-iz4vjy0bAWKQMZkfvVnjC4zrMN-QO6eI-kcvQQbtJold0gFbOGroEJIWiWY_sc_ks1iot6p0egyTzsi3U0P4Qls6kjwASOlpi7IZLyHbQzPHjAhN8mqph5-_WIkGfgwp8lp/s1600/Patton_Park_for_web3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlYuF0UA6-iz4vjy0bAWKQMZkfvVnjC4zrMN-QO6eI-kcvQQbtJold0gFbOGroEJIWiWY_sc_ks1iot6p0egyTzsi3U0P4Qls6kjwASOlpi7IZLyHbQzPHjAhN8mqph5-_WIkGfgwp8lp/s1600/Patton_Park_for_web3.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patton Park Apartments. <i>Photo: Reach CDC</i></td></tr>
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I agree that the article has a pejorative tone, and deemphasizes any success stories or positive sides of the issue. Hundreds of housing professionals work tirelessly to provide decent places to live for our region’s less well-off. Far beyond tilting up four walls and a roof, our region’s housing agencies have created remarkable communities with state-of-the-art design and amenities. I’ve seen the quality first-hand during tours of North/Northeast Portland’s Patton Park and Shaver Green Apartments.<br />
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Where my family member and I may disagree is the central theme of the article – that the concentration of affordable housing in high-poverty neighborhoods is a problem. To be sure, my relative brings up two salient points – (1) that poor neighborhoods benefit from the construction of high-quality affordable housing and associated amenities like sidewalks, open space and ground floor retail; and (2) that land prices in the most expensive neighborhoods can make affordable housing projects very difficult to pencil.<br />
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I think where I differ – and where I agree with the newspaper article – is that our public housing providers should strive to build affordable housing in every neighborhood, not just the ones where land is cheap and poor people already live. Should we really build public housing in Lake Oswego? Yes! As long as it’s near transit and employment.<br />
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For me, it comes down to having equal access to jobs, transportation and community amenities. In the Portland region, we have the tragic irony of comfortable, middle class, white people living in walkable neighborhoods close to downtown, with sidewalks, parks, grocery stores and frequent transit. Meanwhile, struggling, poor minorities live along distant boulevards with no sidewalks, scant amenities, and few nearby opportunities for employment.<br />
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Yes, let’s build some good communities out in these depressed suburbs. But shouldn’t poor people also be offered the opportunity to live in places where they can walk safely down a sidewalk with their kids to a park, go to a nearby grocery store that isn’t a gas station mini-mart, or commute to a quality job by transit in less than 90 minutes?<br />
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Fortunately, the City of Portland has been proactive on this front. Thirty percent of funds in each non-industrial urban renewal area must be spent on affordable housing. While this target has been tough to meet in some places, we now have a sizable portfolio of affordable housing buildings in the tony Pearl District, in gentrifying inner North Portland, in the high-rise urban experiment of the South Waterfront, and scattered throughout numerous well-to-do inner neighborhoods. All of these places are close to jobs, have excellent active transportation infrastructure, and boast great amenities. The Oregonian article failed to mention these deliberate, impressive efforts undertaken by our public housing providers.<br />
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Portland needs to keep up the good work building affordable housing in a range of places, and other jurisdictions need to step up to the plate. To do otherwise is to perpetuate economic segregation. Will it be hard? Yes. Popular? Not among some. Expensive? Land prices may be high in places, but we're providing a social service, not siting a warehouse. Will the end result have us all holding hands in a utopia of socio-economic and racial integration? Clearly not.<br />
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But I don't think it's a stretch to ask for decent, affordable housing in as many neighborhoods as possible. That means in both Rockwood and Raleigh Hills. Where do you think affordable housing should be built?<br />
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<br /></div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-81751297501721097282012-05-09T00:10:00.000-07:002013-03-23T12:56:19.054-07:00Asking urban planners to be job counselors<br />
All across America, urban planners are being reassigned (if they still have jobs at all.) Nowhere is this truer than at urban renewal and redevelopment agencies. Experts trained and experienced in things like land assembly, mixed-use development and streetscapes are now being asked to work on more nebulous pursuits like capacity building, workforce development and corporate recruiting. It’s a sign of the times – times of anemic job growth, timid real estate markets, cash-strapped city budgets and anti-government movements. There is public pressure to stop messing with property and start creating jobs. In an extreme example, California has disbanded and outlawed all redevelopment agencies – an unusual move for a blue state.<br />
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This great reassignment is not going entirely smoothly. At the very least, it has reduced job satisfaction and self-worth among many planning professionals. At the worst, it has cost people their jobs and eliminated an entire sector of urban planning. The tragic irony is that now would be an ideal time to think big and put people to work on major redevelopment and infrastructure projects. But that’s not where we find ourselves.<br />
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At the Portland Development Commission – the urban renewal and economic development agency for Portland, Oregon – changes have been drastic. A previous staff of over 200 has been reduced to about 100. This wasn’t just a trimming of support staff (though they took a hard hit, too). Dozens of redevelopment professionals were let go, convinced to retire early, or otherwise left on their own accord, never to be replaced.<br />
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The agency has made a few new hires, though. Most of these new positions focus on either the recruitment of medium- to large-sized firms in a handful of industry clusters, or on workforce development initiatives that help lower income individuals escape poverty. Existing staff have been reassigned to work on these and other initiatives, including community-driven commercial district programs like Main Street.<br />
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In an economy that refuses to grow at more than a snail’s pace, these jobs-focused initiatives seem like a logical response. Some of them are actually working. But what about the traditional redevelopment, housing and infrastructure projects that were once a top mission of urban renewal agencies?<br />
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Cities are exercising understandable restraint in entering real estate deals with private developers. However, this is a great time to acquire property for future redevelopment, or perhaps even near-term projects like rental apartments or parking garages. East coast cities like Boston, New York and Philadelphia fund a bulk of their economic development activities through active management of sizable real estate portfolios. Perhaps Portland and other cities could learn. Why not start assembling properties now, with the real estate market scraping bottom? It’s also a great time to build affordable housing.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://greenworkspc.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/fmf3990.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://greenworkspc.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/fmf3990.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Denver Avenue Streetscape: One of PDC's last infrastructure<br />
projects? <i>Photo: GreenWorks</i></td></tr>
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That leaves infrastructure projects. Here’s where I think we’re really dropping the ball, especially now that federal stimulus dollars have run their course. Many cities seem to be taking a cue from our gridlocked Congress, forgoing the construction of roads, bridges, sidewalks and the like. Of course, many cities are truly broke and can’t afford to fill potholes, let alone build a new transit line or arterial road. But there are plenty of other cities that actually have some financial resources available, but are putting all of their eggs in the “jobs” basket.<br />
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Well, guess what? Infrastructure projects provide jobs. Lots of them, and fast. They create immediate employment and permanent benefits, unlike investing in a start-up that could fail, or shelling out millions to relocate an industry giant that could go under next year. Sidewalks and bridges don’t file for bankruptcy.<br />
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I think agencies under the guise of urban renewal, redevelopment and economic development need to keep all of those things – and more – under their umbrellas. We can’t expect people trained in urban planning and development to suddenly become experts in attracting energy firms or hand-holding individual residents out of poverty (though those things should still be done). More importantly, we shouldn’t completely gut a core function of redevelopment agencies: building stuff. There’s only so much that can happen in a typical year of an industry recruitment program, a Main Street program, or a workforce development program. Let’s go full steam on those things, but also move forward with urban infrastructure projects, land assembly, real estate portfolio development, and affordable housing projects. Just like President Obama’s all-inclusive energy policy, we need an “all-of-the-above strategy” for America’s cities. <br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-8117052784878577272012-05-05T16:43:00.000-07:002012-05-05T16:43:41.584-07:00What Portland could learn from L.A.<br />
The image of Portland in urban planning and transportation circles is of a compact, walkable downtown, surrounded by leafy neighborhoods with vibrant commercial districts, all connected by light rail and innovative bikeways.<br />
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These things do, in fact, exist, and they are mostly wonderful. But Portland also has a dirty, not-so-little secret. There’s an entire district – representing about a quarter of the city’s land area and population – that is the exact opposite of that picture-perfect planning ideal. Think strip malls; cheap, poorly-designed multi-family housing; dangerous five-lane arterial roads with nowhere safe to walk; sparse transit service.<br />
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Welcome to East Portland. Often called “The Other Portland” or “The Numbers” – the latter a reference to its numbered avenues that extend to 185th – East Portland is a world apart from the popular Portlandia. It’s a case of planning gone awry – within the limits of a city famous for planning. Perhaps most tragically, East Portland’s shortcomings have made it affordable, attracting the very people that need sidewalks and buses to access food, schools and jobs.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">SE Division and 122nd: Hard to believe this is Portland (except for the bike lane). <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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East Portland faces many tough challenges, the result of a complex history that could easily fill the remainder of this post. But let’s focus on one key issue: those five-lane arterials and the auto-oriented land uses that line them. The streets, built by Multnomah County in the mid-20th century boom years, are 60 to 90 feet wide. In addition to hosting tens of thousands of daily vehicles traveling upwards of 45 mph, these streets have sporadic sidewalk coverage and few safe places to cross (traffic signals are usually a half mile apart). The center lane is a “suicide lane” where motorists make opposing left turns.<br />
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"Sidewalk" on SE Stark Street near 155th. <i>Photo: author</i></div>
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Sidewalks, if they exist at all, are “curb-tight” – right up against the roadway, and penetrated by massive utility poles and signposts. The concrete walks start and stop, interspersed with footpaths where people have forged a track through the grass and mud. Immediately surrounding development, while offering the necessary trappings of modern life, is designed for cars, not people. Buildings are set back behind large parking lots accessed by multiple driveways that interrupt the already-questionable sidewalk. East Portland arterials, and the development that surrounds them, are among the ugliest, most hostile forms of human development. Corridors like these exist in every American metro area, and they need to be fixed.<br />
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Is there a better model for busy arterial streets in East Portland and in other suburban areas of its ilk? Should Portland look inward to its tree-lined thoroughfares closer to Downtown – streets like Martin Luther King, Jr. or Hawthorne? Should we look overseas to the grand boulevards of Paris or Barcelona? To the radial avenues of L’Enfant’s Washington, DC? To the New Urbanist design books by Duany and Calthorpe?<br />
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These are all good places to start. But I think there’s a better, more realistic model: Los Angeles.<br />
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Really?! Smoggy L.A., where the car is king, walking for transportation is only for poor people, and freeways are backed up at midnight on a Tuesday? Yes, that L.A. Contrary to popular belief, many L.A. streets – and I’m talking about the big ones – are pedestrian-friendly. At the very least, they are pedestrian-accommodating, which is more than can be said for many East Portland arterials.<br />
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Consider the following characteristics of L.A. boulevards (with the caveat that not all of these features are found everywhere in L.A.). Images below are courtesy of Google Maps.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQmyyzjSPWk12CCVSjIc00icTjn2t_UowlmkG3CJjuVsYxxHEcM8tLHp8FkP24suf6woISPevYw7coaNBMGRJAqQAD1CPKif90A6MLHiUCXCD2GzLHEgRgvOfwsHMd9MG3zR2wCwvrOdD3/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQmyyzjSPWk12CCVSjIc00icTjn2t_UowlmkG3CJjuVsYxxHEcM8tLHp8FkP24suf6woISPevYw7coaNBMGRJAqQAD1CPKif90A6MLHiUCXCD2GzLHEgRgvOfwsHMd9MG3zR2wCwvrOdD3/s400/Picture+1.png" title="Wilshire Blvd" width="400" /></a><br />
Almost all L.A. boulevards have sidewalks – many of them 12 or more feet wide, and some with beautiful, iconic palm trees and other landscaping. Not every amble down an L.A. sidewalk is a magical experience (see South-Central), but at least the city has provided basic, far-reaching pedestrian infrastructure for its citizens. Portland has failed to do this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvkEQoDIbxLLKRy-Es3wjCOAhg80LHXs3cI8Hr7CBdAvrbJNIYmy4Eu53zM2POQ_qXkQfAAWNrX63gfxdbMp-1abNMsIDVzW8epiLc5rtVs-KOlIqkbx8RhN89uE0j9zV0fB18xlv5SkSs/s1600/Picture+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvkEQoDIbxLLKRy-Es3wjCOAhg80LHXs3cI8Hr7CBdAvrbJNIYmy4Eu53zM2POQ_qXkQfAAWNrX63gfxdbMp-1abNMsIDVzW8epiLc5rtVs-KOlIqkbx8RhN89uE0j9zV0fB18xlv5SkSs/s400/Picture+2.png" title="San Vicente Blvd" width="400" /></a></div>
Many larger L.A. boulevards (Wilshire, Santa Monica, San Vicente) have medians with trees and landscaping. Medians are not just visually appealing; they also create safer traffic conditions by limiting left turns and providing refuge islands at pedestrian crossings. Medians can make a six-lane thoroughfare seem far less intimidating.<br />
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Some boulevards in West L.A. have parallel alleys that allow for rear parking and loading. This is a boon for pedestrians, bicyclists and through-drivers, who don’t have to deal with endless driveway cuts and turning cars.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOkQmJK3B77jEYMuf1pFfUgOANUhyphenhyphenlXaD2rbIkxt4ywpcrE18jo0rLilVmu0jft9T_QKIFzbyOsvGTX4S6obyDhAtWNbkH8CLXiizDZvabp1vc-PY1g7fXxHetka2qmSiQP61AXkIdQOhM/s1600/Picture+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOkQmJK3B77jEYMuf1pFfUgOANUhyphenhyphenlXaD2rbIkxt4ywpcrE18jo0rLilVmu0jft9T_QKIFzbyOsvGTX4S6obyDhAtWNbkH8CLXiizDZvabp1vc-PY1g7fXxHetka2qmSiQP61AXkIdQOhM/s400/Picture+4.png" title="Melrose Ave" width="400" /></a></div>
These boulevards with alleys, along with others sans alleys, feature buildings fronting the sidewalk with zero setbacks (with exceptions like gas stations and fast food). This traditional “main street” arrangement creates a pedestrian-friendly environment – at least when the buildings are amply fenestrated.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRU_K-VTGISoRioafnoz2rmjyOMQ6T9ixvl0R707a1VHQ8kg-WgPT_IzVWQ5dWU1BuLBOj8auJqfwLJ-BPmWCU3MCGLZpjKhRA-bor0I0KYXRut8aMpj8X5BUuFdOexD_WPmm4yfUvdGM7/s1600/Picture+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRU_K-VTGISoRioafnoz2rmjyOMQ6T9ixvl0R707a1VHQ8kg-WgPT_IzVWQ5dWU1BuLBOj8auJqfwLJ-BPmWCU3MCGLZpjKhRA-bor0I0KYXRut8aMpj8X5BUuFdOexD_WPmm4yfUvdGM7/s400/Picture+5.png" title="Hollywood Blvd" width="400" /></a></div>
Most of the older L.A. boulevards place electric and other utilities underground. This removes the visual clutter of power poles and wires, and leaves more room for trees, ornamental lightpoles, wayfinding signage and bus shelters. South-Central is not as lucky in this regard.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihFU3rFQeZiWkL_0cDh5hq45AdZcB906s4osB4NjZvtczdICQ31hFy0YjOxcYuSaxMuixnypyy6XEfg6EgLgPsDRkU2_fXL370yFMkjbkq0Mo74pzYsfdxVDKF1dIZ__DjZHqjVUiHsf9D/s1600/Picture+6.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihFU3rFQeZiWkL_0cDh5hq45AdZcB906s4osB4NjZvtczdICQ31hFy0YjOxcYuSaxMuixnypyy6XEfg6EgLgPsDRkU2_fXL370yFMkjbkq0Mo74pzYsfdxVDKF1dIZ__DjZHqjVUiHsf9D/s400/Picture+6.png" title="Manchester & Van Ness" width="400" /></a></div>
Outside the boulevards, there is a consistent street grid. Small blocks and high intersection density promote a more walkable environment, and provide parallel, alternative routes for bicycling and walking. (Portland is often praised for its small blocks, but East Portland suffers from extremely large blocks with disconnected streets and dead ends).<br />
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For these and other reasons, Los Angeles has much to teach East Portland and other suburban jurisdictions with busy, wide arterial streets. L.A. is far from perfect, and I may have chosen photos from the city's nicer sections, but I find that L.A. accommodates pedestrians, transit users, and the safety of all modes, better than a large chunk of Portland – a surprising statement. It would be difficult, costly and sometimes unpopular to install the best features of L.A. boulevards in East Portland, but I think it’s worth investigating the feasibility of doing so.<br />
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<br /></div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-53467795749055447432012-04-27T23:45:00.002-07:002012-04-28T00:01:30.006-07:00Seattle vs. Portland: Debate Club Edition<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seattle. <i>Photo: Author</i></td></tr>
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Seattle and Portland are in many ways two organic peas in a pod. Kindred spirits. We dwell in the upper left corner of the map, in mossy green landscapes surrounded by snowy mountains and tidal estuaries. We deal with nine months of rain and gray skies by drinking bottomless mugs of coffee and beer, then rejoice with hiking and biking when the sun comes out. We value freedom and individuality, but you can count on both of us to vote in the blue column and compost in the green bin.<br />
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But that’s where the similarities end. In addition to the most obvious difference – Seattle is bigger – there are nearly endless comparisons to be made. I think about them every time I make the 170-mile journey up I-5 (or on Amtrak Cascades) to the Emerald City. There are moments of jealousy, but also moments of “whew, glad I didn’t move here.” Each city excels at different things.<br />
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On that note, the following are my observations from 17 years visiting and 6 years living in the great Pacific Northwest. Let's do this debate club style, with 15 topics. (Deal with it - we like to read here in the Northwest). Representing my dual opinions will be <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Seattle" target="_blank">Chief Seattle</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portlandia" target="_blank">Portlandia</a> statue. We'll be "Portland polite" and let Chief Seattle state his arguments first (respect your elders), followed by a nice passive-aggressive rebuttal from our lady in copper, Portlandia. We used to settle our scores with NBA games, but now the only sport we have in common is Major League Soccer. And that can end in a 0-0 draw.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>1. WEATHER<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Seattle is further north, but we often have milder winters. The ample waters of Puget Sound moderate those Alaskan cold fronts. And unlike you poor saps in Portland, we don't have the Columbia Gorge sucking frigid continental air from the hinterlands, creating snow and ice and bone-chilling wind in Portland (especially Northeast Portland). Also, here in Seattle we have less of those fog-won’t-burn-off days in the winter. We may both be surrounded by mountains, but you're stuck in a bowl.<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Your ample Puget Sound also moderates warm summer air, making it…not warm. Bummer. On many a summer day, your citizens have to grab their sweaters as a breeze blows in off the 50-degree water. Meanwhile, it's 82 and sunny in Portland, thanks to our favorable location in an inland valley away from any huge water bodies.<br />
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2. MOUNTAINS<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Southeast Portland and Mount Hood. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"></span>Chief Seattle</b>: Come, marvel at our tall, jagged, snowy peaks to the east and west, as striking and beautiful as the Rockies or the Sierra! Did you know the Olympic Mountains are as high above Puget Sound as the Rockies are above Denver? And look to the southeast - it's ginormous Mt. Rainier, the tallest mountain in all of the Northwest!<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Our volcano is pretty too, and is not threatening to annihilate several towns.<br />
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3. WATER<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: People just can't stop taking pictures of our beautiful open expanses of saltwater, plied by ferry boats and seaplanes. Our big water also gives our ports the edge in the commerce category. I suppose in Portland you have a pair of okay rivers. But they're not very pretty when filled with roiling brown floodwaters.<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Our rivers are just fine, thank you. Plus, Portlanders can drive to the real, honest-to-God Pacific Ocean in 90 minutes. None of this Sound nonsense. From Seattle, a drive to the actual ocean will take you several hours, and when you get there, it will be depressing and cold.</div>
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4. URBAN DESIGN</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seattle and Elliot Bay. <i>Photo: author</i> </td></tr>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Hey, check out our downtown skyline. Now that’s a skyline! Tall, shiny skyscrapers (up to 932 feet tall), plus the iconic Space Needle. Sure beats Portland’s shrimpy skyline of dated, stumpy buildings. When was the last time a tall building was proposed in Portland? Oh, right, Park Avenue West, postponed indefinitely, a giant hole in the middle of your downtown for three years and counting.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: The streets at the bottom of your tall shiny skyscrapers are DEAD. With the notable exception of 1st Avenue and Pike Place, Downtown Seattle street life is non-existent. Just blocks and blocks of concrete walls. Maybe your planners should have required ground-floor retail like in Downtown Portland. We have restaurants, cafes, bars, stores on every block, keeping the streets alive.</div>
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5. TRANSIT</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: People are loving Link, our new light rail that’s way faster than your MAX. We may be late to the light rail game, but that allowed us to learn from your mistakes - like putting stations 400 feet apart. Our Downtown Transit Tunnel keeps trains and buses moving while our riders stay dry and warm. And most of our city bus fleet runs on overhead electric wires instead of belching brown smoke. The cherry on top? ORCA card. Just tap the card on the reader when you board any of our transit vehicles. Put more money on your card online or at Link stations.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: ORCA is cool, but the main reason you invented it is because you have like five different transit agencies! We have one; it's called TriMet (plus C-Tran in The 'Couv.) And while TriMet may have its problems, we have an easy-to-navigate system - simple routes, and Transit Tracker for your phone. We also have the friendliest bus drivers in America. They'll actually help you instead of giving you the third degree and making you feel like the worst person in the world. I don't usually ask for directions, but I was in Seattle and couldn't figure out your indecipherable tangle of bus routes.</div>
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6. WALKING/BIKING</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">Hawthorne Bridge, Portland. <i>Photo: Lisa Eirene</i></td></tr>
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Chief Seattle</b>: Seattle’s a great walking town, hills and all. It doesn’t have a dirty little secret like East Portland, where sidewalks are almost completely absent, streets don’t connect, and five-lane arterials kill or maim those who attempt to cross them. <br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Portland’s a great biking town. THE best biking town. More people bike to work, per capita, than any other American city. You should see the Hawthorne Bridge at 8:55am. We also pioneered bike lanes (including green ones), bike boulevards, bike boxes and bike corrals in America. It's also a heckuva lot easier to bike in Portland, since half of our city is flat. Is there any part of Seattle that’s flat? Water doesn’t count.</div>
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7. DRIVERS</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: In Seattle, people don’t drive like pansies, so traffic actually moves (at least until you get stuck in one of our admittedly epic traffic jams.) But at least you won’t be stuck at a 4-way stop “outnicing” somebody, or behind a boomer in a Volvo going 10 under the speed limit “for safety.”<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: About those traffic jams: I can't think of a time when I have NOT gotten stuck in traffic in Seattle. This includes 1:30pm on a Tuesday. What is this, L.A? And yes, we have nice drivers in Portland. People actually stop to let you cross the street instead of killing you.<br />
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8. LEAVING TOWN<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Not that you'd ever want to leave Seattle, but we're just two hours from Vancouver, BC – one of the most amazing cities in the world.<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Yeah, we can go there too. Portland's within a day’s drive of Canada, San Francisco, and Yellowstone. There are orange groves 400 miles south of us. And remember what I said about the ocean? Not that you'd ever want to leave Portland.<br />
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9. ECONOMY<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: I've been enjoying your namesake show, Portlandia. My favorite line? "It's where young people go to retire." That's rich! Here in Seattle we have real jobs. You can have a successful, rewarding career here in major industries like software, aviation and freight. There are plenty of other jobs too. Unemployment is down to 7.1% here. You're still up at 7.9% in Portland. I think it's funny how Obama makes fundraising stops in Seattle and California, but always skips Oregon because you guys have no money!<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Yeah well, you pay a price for your lame-o corporate success. Those prices include $14 omelettes, $4.50 gas and $10 cocktails. Oops - forgot to add the 9.5% sales tax. Dude, you have to shell out to live in Seattle. You're not California expensive, but damn close! I won't even get into housing. People rent entire houses in Portland for the same as a Seattle studio apartment.<br />
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10. DIVERSITY<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Seattle is way more ethnically and racially diverse than Portland, even though we’re both rather white by American standards. And our Asian districts are more Asian than yours.<br />
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Portland is the Atlanta of white people! Wait, am I proud of that?<br />
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11. COOL PEOPLE<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>portlandhipster.com</i></td></tr>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Man, your hipsters down there in Portland can get pretty annoying. Let me know when they stop wearing the white skinny jeans and maybe I'll come down for a visit. Oh, and I was drinking Tecate long before it was ironic.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: I'll take our hipsters any day over the douchey ballcap dude-bros and high-maintenance woo-girls I see around Downtown Seattle.<br />
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: They're from Bellevue.</div>
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12. MUSIC</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Hey, when was the last time a city changed the face of rock music? That would be when Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and others created a whole new musical paradigm in early 90s Seattle. A few decades before that we also had a guy named Jimi who was pretty good at guitar. But that's all history. Nowadays we have a huge, diverse music scene. And sorry, but we have better rock bands, with people that can actually play their instruments. Once again your hipsters are ruining things in Portland. Sallie Ford? Really? Finally, we get big concerts. Did you come up here for Radiohead a few weeks ago?</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Radiohead sold out in about five minutes. Regarding grunge: Settle down, Beavis - the 90s and grunge are over. Meanwhile, Portland is now an indie rock mecca along with Brooklyn and Austin. This includes indie bands that have become quite successful - The Decemberists, The Shins.</div>
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13. SPORTS</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: I'm getting stoked about the Seahawks. We just got Russell Wilson, Wisconsin's QB from last year. Mariners? We're back above 500, thanks to a four-game winning streak. And Ichiro Suzuki is getting people excited about baseball in this town. It's nice having NFL and MLB teams like a real American city. And while our Sonics bailed to Oklahoma City years ago, we've got a new basketball arena in the works.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: I see you're trying to get Portlanders excited about baseball, too. There's a Mariners billboard across from my perch on SW 5th Avenue. Rub it in our faces much? Well, at least we have the NBA. And while our Trailblazers may have been the Jailblazers, followed by the Frailblazers, and most recently the Failblazers, they're still OUR Trailblazers. Well actually they're Paul Allen's Trailblazers, just like you have Paul Allen's Seahawks. Let's face it - our only sports rivalry is Major League Soccer. I might add that Portland Timbers fans are the best in the league, even though our team is the now the worst in the West. Meh.</div>
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14. FOOD</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: Pike Place Market! World-class food destination. Nothing like it in Portland.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Food carts! Nothing like it in Seattle, because your city code doesn't allow them.</div>
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15. BEVERAGES</div>
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<b>Chief Seattle</b>: We are the birthplace of second-wave coffee. Behold, the very first Starbucks, where it all began! Beer’s pretty good here too.</div>
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<b>Portlandia</b>: Sorry, but we win the coffee AND beer divisions. We are the birthplace of third-wave coffee (Stumptown), and the rightful holders of the title Beervana, with more craft breweries than any other American city. We also have a world-class wine region a half hour southwest of Portland. Yours is 200 miles away in Walla Walla. Walla Walla Walla Walla...</div>
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<b>Steve Szigethy</b>: Alright, that's enough. I'm tired and I want to go to bed. I'm declaring a winner. The winner of the debate is: Portlandia. Why? Because I said so. And because she's kind of scary, up there with her trident and buff arms. According to Wikipedia, Portlandia would be 50 feet tall if she stood up. Good night.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5e/Portlandia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5e/Portlandia.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portlandia, holding down the fort. <i>Photo: Wikipedia</i></td></tr>
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</div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-38027336665061989042012-03-08T23:54:00.000-08:002012-03-09T10:27:28.265-08:00Apartments go boom!<br />
I think we can officially say we’re in the midst of an apartment boom.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/12/1206_Hollywood_Apts_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/12/1206_Hollywood_Apts_01.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Daily Journal of Commerce</i></td></tr>
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Of course, any free market boom should be approached with caution, especially ones involving real estate development (understatement of the decade!) Developers are often like gold-hungry 49ers, all rushing to the same place to do the same thing and make the same fortune, then overdoing it and leaving a wasteland. The 1990s/2000s real estate bubble - based largely on suburban sprawl - left us with not just an economic catastrophe, but also empty subdivisions filled with big houses that require lots of $4 gas to drive to.<br />
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Fortunately this time, instead of a sprawl and mortgage boom, we’re talking about a boom of infill rental apartments in dense, urban neighborhoods. While there’s still a risk of overbuilding, shoddy construction and rash bulldozing (old buildings instead of cornfields this time), we are at least experiencing a “smart growth” boom. It’s a boom that meets many urban and regional planning goals: infill development, efficient use of urban land, neighborhood revitalization, transit-oriented development, housing choice, and (hopefully) equity. And for the most part, the free market is providing this boom, without the help of public subsidies. How did we get to this unlikely stage?<br />
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On the supply side, nobody has built apartments for awhile. Before the recession, most developers weren’t interested in building them. They just wanted to make a killing selling single-family homes like they had for decades. Municipalities piled on, drooling over the potential property tax base of single-family developments, and sometimes engaging in exclusionary zoning against multi-family housing. Meanwhile, renters continued to vie for the same old assortment of century-old walk-ups, shared houses, and tired, mid-century garden apartments. Then the recession hit, and nothing was built at all, apartments or otherwise.<br />
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On the demand side, people are literally lining up for apartments now. Standing in those lines are people who have lost their homes to foreclosure, people who cannot afford or are not approved to buy homes in the first place (read: most people under 40), and a growing number of young people and retirees that favor city life over picket-fence suburbia and driving. Cities, while not for everyone, are far more attractive and amenity-rich than they were 20 years ago. They are also the economic hubs.<br />
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The result can be seen in cities like Portland, Oregon, which currently ties with Minneapolis in having the <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2012/02/24/realtors-commercial-outlook-strong.html" target="_blank">second lowest apartment vacancy rate</a> in the USA (2.5%), trailing only New York City (1.8%). That’s great for apartment building owners, who have been jacking rents and making more stringent lease-signing requirements. But it makes for a tough slog for apartment seekers, as <a href="http://wweek.com/portland/article-18305-renter%E2%80%99s_hel.html" target="_blank">several recent articles</a> have reported.<br />
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Pent-up demand and insufficient supply has finally reached a tipping point in Portland. The apartment boom has begun, and lately it seems there is a new building proposed every week. The apartment boom heavily favors Portland’s dense, older neighborhoods within two or three miles of downtown, rich with cool restaurants, bars, coffee shops, bookstores, parks, bike routes and frequent transit. Mid-rise, urban-style apartment buildings are popping up in bohemian Southeast Portland, in rapidly gentrifying North Portland, and in tried-and-true Northwest Portland, among other places.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/12/1207_hollywood_apartments_myhre_group_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="201" src="http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/12/1207_hollywood_apartments_myhre_group_02.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Hollywood Apartments. <i>Myhre Group Architects</i></td></tr>
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Ground has broken on the 47-unit, five-story Hollywood Apartments next to that district’s iconic movie theater on NE Sandy Boulevard. This project caused some worry over blocked sight lines to the theater facade, as well as its non-provision of parking (which is not required near frequent-service transit - in this case three MAX lines and two bus lines). Buckman Court is also underway, providing 71 apartments at the corner of SE Morrison and 20th. Northwest and the Pearl are continuing their roles as dense apartment enclaves with projects like the 177-unit Parker (NW 12th and Pettygrove) and 179-unit Savier Flats (NW 23rd and Savier).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://djcoregon.com/files/2012/03/0307_lloyd_blocks_rendering_gbd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="230" src="http://djcoregon.com/files/2012/03/0307_lloyd_blocks_rendering_gbd.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Lloyd Blocks. Wowzers!<i> GBD Architects</i></td></tr>
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But the most ambitious Portland apartment project, by leaps and bounds, is the Lloyd Blocks. On a superblock bounded by NE 7th, 9th, Multnomah and Holladay - now home to an office tower and three acres of parking - three additional towers of 22, 18 and 13 stories will rise, with 780 apartments, commercial space and underground parking. The Lloyd Blocks will be one of the largest apartment projects in Portland history, and will provide much needed life to the largely 9-to-5 Lloyd District.<br />
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I’ve made an <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212436456799357216161.0004bab0f541e634c034a&msa=0&ll=45.518737,-122.648964&spn=0.071205,0.161533" target="_blank">interactive Google map</a> of 20 new Portland apartment projects based on information gleaned from newspapers articles and friends “in the know.” I’ve included key details such as number of units and stories, and who is building them (some information is missing). I’ve drawn polygons that show each project’s areal extent, so you can see what it is replacing. I've also hyperlinked articles about each project. By my count, at least 2,188 apartment units are proposed or under construction in Portland.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQE8jh4w30JbQWQaJ6dDFBH4QDqF7mNdii7cWPQkbgmLePWrDE-oWxYfsX7Yu-smzn7P2STdDCM1xGOXDgkGDBFCyOpnNyVcTTJaXUzWgaP_TLOooV6bBDnSQq6vq0bnmtjutSA3Ry48IU/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQE8jh4w30JbQWQaJ6dDFBH4QDqF7mNdii7cWPQkbgmLePWrDE-oWxYfsX7Yu-smzn7P2STdDCM1xGOXDgkGDBFCyOpnNyVcTTJaXUzWgaP_TLOooV6bBDnSQq6vq0bnmtjutSA3Ry48IU/s400/Picture+1.png" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212436456799357216161.0004bab0f541e634c034a&msa=0&ll=45.518737,-122.648964&spn=0.071205,0.161533" target="_blank">Link to map</a></td></tr>
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I say, bring on the apartment boom, in Portland and elsewhere. Renters are facing a real crunch in what they can find and what they can afford. My only caveats would be the following:<br />
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First, let’s make sure these buildings are of the utmost quality, structurally and visually, so that they contribute rather than detract from the neighborhoods in which they rise. In Portland, the city’s rigorous land use, design and neighborhood engagement processes are helping us in this regard.<br />
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Second, I hope that developers can find ways to target vacant lots and parking lots for their projects, instead of demolishing historic buildings. This boom has already taken its toll on some beautiful, old buildings, some of which ironically sat next to empty lots that will remain empty. But I suppose that’s the way the cookie crumbles - developers purchase what’s for sale, not what’s not.<br />
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Lastly, I hope people can afford these apartments. Sure, any new construction will hold a premium over existing building stock. But if we’re looking at San Francisco-level rents just to live in a new building near downtown, we’ll end up with ghettos of designer jeans-clad well-to-doers in shiny buildings, while the rest of humanity dukes it out over old houses on Craigslist or settles for 1960s garden apartments. I’m glad we’re getting non-subsidized, market-rate apartments, I just hope that people like teachers and machine shop workers can afford to live in them.<br />
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Should we be worried about overbuilding? I don't think so. Unlike owner-occupied homes, apartments are flexible. No one can be “underwater” on their rent. Worst case scenario? We get some sparsely populated apartment buildings, the building owners drop rents to fill the units, and the city experiences a downward adjustment in rent prices. As long as people continue to move to cities like Portland (and they do), apartment developers and apartment dwellers should both come out ahead.Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-71153642799481011102012-02-25T02:07:00.000-08:002012-02-25T02:17:58.283-08:00The Portland Rain ConspiracyFor years I've been boasting to out-of-towners, "Portland seems damp, but we only get 37 inches of annual precipitation on average, which is less than most East Coast and Southern cities." For example, Philadelphia gets 42 inches, and most of Florida gets more than 50 inches. In Portland, the rain (and rare snow) is simply spread out over more days. This has been my story. But after a recent conversation and some digital digging, I am concerned that our rain data is suspect - or, at the very least, not representative of the Portland region, or even the city proper.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical March rainbow in Sellwood. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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The conversation was with my mother, who lives up the hill from me in Portland's Woodstock neighborhood. As we drove to dinner last night, the rain started getting heavier. I mentioned how we're actually a bit low on our February rain total (I am a weather geek, among other geek types). Mom said, "Well that's surprising, because it seems like I've been emptying the rain gauge every few days." I'm not sure how voluminous her rain gauge is, but most store a few inches of falling water.<br />
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Yes, sometimes as humans, we think or say we do things more often than we actually do, but I believe my mother is on to something. There have been many days over my past six years in Portland when it has rained BUCKETS at our house in Sellwood, but then I check the <a href="http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/pqr/" target="_blank">National Weather Service</a> (NWS) site the next day and find a rain total of, say, 0.04 inches. Is Portland's official, go-to rain gauge faulty? Is its location on NE 122 Avenue near the airport in some sort of rain shadow? Do Columbia Gorge winds blow the water out of the gauge? Or are my mother and I exaggerating about our city's famous rain?<br />
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I had no proof either way. Until now.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINjNAtM6lA5JjRzKlvyy9YOFJwdniMKn94XOz0vbaZ6lQYTHVurkLmY930hlHUIvCgvYqpb0a95OEcjGrPZGDw0iJMRzKPynN9SwkbudvuqgF3KDirfuN_9hYIG9q5WSM82M9ZgPsmgwA/s1600/Picture+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINjNAtM6lA5JjRzKlvyy9YOFJwdniMKn94XOz0vbaZ6lQYTHVurkLmY930hlHUIvCgvYqpb0a95OEcjGrPZGDw0iJMRzKPynN9SwkbudvuqgF3KDirfuN_9hYIG9q5WSM82M9ZgPsmgwA/s320/Picture+2.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HYDRA gauge locations. <i>USGS/Portland BES</i></td></tr>
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A brief web search led me to the <a href="http://or.water.usgs.gov/non-usgs/bes/" target="_blank">City of Portland HYDRA Rainfall Network</a>, a collection of 36 rain gauges throughout the City of Portland and slightly beyond. It's a partnership between the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services and the US Geological Survey. Precipitation data is updated and totaled hourly, including averages by district. The gauges are located primarily at institutions such as schools and fire stations.<br />
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To truly and academically test my thesis - that the NWS Portland rain gauge measures less precipitation than other gauges citywide - I would need to analyze many years of data at all 36 HYDRA gauges and at the NWS gauge. But for today's simpler, less scientific approach, I looked at what was readily available on both websites: the running precipitation totals for yesterday (2/24), February, and the water year (which started October 1). Here are those three precip totals for a few locations:<br />
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NWS Portland official gauge: 0.15, 1.98, 20.02<br />
Closest other gauge to NWS: 0.22, 2.55, 23.52<br />
NE PDX average of all gauges: 0.20, 2.49, 23.95<br />
Portland average of all gauges: 0.24, 2.59, 24.11<br />
Downtown Portland gauge: 0.27, 2.59, 24.57<br />
SE PDX average of all gauges: 0.27, 2.90, 25.83<br />
Sellwood gauge (my 'hood): 0.34, 3.29, 30.45<br />
Arleta gauge (Mom's 'hood): 0.25, 2.66, 23.94<br />
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As you can see, the NWS gauge is the driest of the bunch, and not by a small margin. The larger district of Northeast Portland also appears to be drier than Downtown, Southeast, or Portland as a whole. The gauge in my neighborhood has the highest totals of any of the 37 gauges. WOOT! The driest individual gauges, not shown above, are mostly in North Portland. The single driest, receiving a relatively scant 16.59" this water year, is on Sauvie Island. The West Hills appear to create a pronounced rain shadow.<br />
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But what's the deal with the gauge near, but not run by, the NWS? It's just a half mile east at NE 146th and Airport Way, but has collected three and a half more inches of precipitation since October 1. While I would tend to trust the trained scientists at the NWS over an unofficial gauge, this discrepancy lends more credence to my conspiracy theory.<br />
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So, while I need more data to back me up, I am going to go out on a soggy limb and say that Portland, on geographic average, gets several more inches of annual precipitation than what is measured at the NWS station near the airport. Most of us probably get more than 40 inches. Sure enough, digging deeper into the NWS site, Downtown averages 42.1 inches, five more inches than at the airport. That's like an additional month's worth of rain!<br />
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As for my house and my parents' house? I'll venture a guess and say that we get about....more than we would like.<br />
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<br />Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-1228824247563930432012-02-21T14:47:00.000-08:002012-02-21T14:47:48.278-08:00A whack at democracy in land use<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7H3ZEn31t4iLoLUDbIrnnvXoNRk-0Zf0wHGjViYHRTIQJgMeLneh4Vt-BxfmSt8rE2CKziD3GQWlwGl9hVYTLCuBTNeEbPlPvhPr1uXy-VGTLTcR7ZQGE3S2i4Mq5O0P6ZhA5IMPNtFiE/s1600/IMG_4215.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7H3ZEn31t4iLoLUDbIrnnvXoNRk-0Zf0wHGjViYHRTIQJgMeLneh4Vt-BxfmSt8rE2CKziD3GQWlwGl9hVYTLCuBTNeEbPlPvhPr1uXy-VGTLTcR7ZQGE3S2i4Mq5O0P6ZhA5IMPNtFiE/s320/IMG_4215.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Suburban and rural Troutdale, Oregon. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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Here's a problem that could use fixing, but is prompting legislative overreach. Apparently there are some places inside the Portland region's <a href="http://www.oregonmetro.gov/index.cfm/go/by.web/id=277" target="_blank">urban growth boundary</a> that developers are having a hard time developing. These are usually unincorporated areas adjacent to, but outside, city limits. When a developer asks a local city to annex his/her land, it must go to a public vote. To succeed, the annexation must receive a "yes" vote from a double majority - a majority of residents in the affected unincorporated area, and a majority of residents in the city doing the annexing. Even after this hurdle, the developer must figure out how to extend (and pay for) infrastructure like roads, water, sewer and electricity, while also paying numerous system development charges (SDCs) for services like emergency services, schools and recreation. It's a tough, expensive process, and sometimes developers ask cities for financial help in extending infrastructure or reducing fees.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Not surprisingly, many developers' efforts hit roadblocks under this system. The double majority rule often results in failed annexation votes, thanks to unincorporated residents who would rather keep their rural setting, lower taxes, and lack of public services. But even after successful annexations, calls for help in paving roads and burying sewer lines usually fall on the deaf ears of cash-strapped local governments. That brings us to the present, when a handful of developers are upset about their inability to develop land that is within the urban growth boundary and close to existing development and services. Again, a problem that could use fixing.<br />
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But a solution proposed this week by the Oregon House is yet another example of the land use pendulum swinging too far in one direction (past examples include <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Ballot_Measures_37_%282004%29_and_49_%282007%29" target="_blank">Measure 37</a>). Yesterday, the House approved <a href="http://www.leg.state.or.us/12reg/measures/hb4000.dir/hb4090.intro.html" target="_blank">House Bill 4090</a>, which <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-city/index.ssf/2012/02/house_approves_easing_limits_o.html" target="_blank">according to The Oregonian</a>, "strips cities and voters of their power to regulate growth and forces them to provide sewer and water service to unincorporated areas." Upon closer inspection of the actual bill, it appears that developers would still have to pay for the extension of services, and continue to pay SDCs. This is good, but I'm concerned about the following wording from section 2-3 of the bill:<br />
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<i>A service provider </i><b><i>may</i></b><i> </i>[emphasis mine]<i> charge to the owner all costs incurred to connect the lawfully established unit of land to the service facilities and to deliver the sanitary sewer or water services pursuant to this section.</i><br />
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In the world of legal language, "may" is non-binding, as opposed to "shall," which is binding. In this case, the more permissive "may" means that a sewer authority, for example, could ask taxpayers to pick up the tab for extending sewer lines, instead of charging the developer. That's my understanding, anyway.<br />
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I'm also leery of the other main provision of House Bill 4090. Amended section 4a-6 states:<br />
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<i>...the governing body of a district may declare the annexation approved by resolution or ordinance without submitting the annexation plan to the electors of the district or to the electors of the territory proposed to be annexed.</i><br />
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Here's the thing: I have no problem with scaling back the double majority rule where rural residents squash nearly every attempt to annex. But I do have a problem with allowing special districts (water or sewer authorities) to supersede the powers of city councils. Local citizens elect city councilors to make smart decisions about the future of their communities. Yes, most special district leaders are also elected, but their relationship with the public pales in comparison.<br />
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Instead of this bill, the House could have simply eliminated the double majority rule, making annexations and development within urban growth boundaries much easier. That apparently didn't go far enough, so now we're looking at taking away local control of land use, and potentially putting the public on the hook for paying for suburban development. Oddly, this also puts property rights groups like <a href="http://www.oia.org/" target="_blank">Oregonians in Action</a> in favor of reducing the power of voters and local elected officials. Interesting. We'll have to see what the Senate and Governor think of this. <br />
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<br />Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-27071020749962169452012-02-19T16:46:00.000-08:002012-02-19T16:46:36.675-08:00Transit-to-Parking Price RatioTriMet, the Portland region's primary transit provider, has been struggling to overcome budget shortfalls for several consecutive years. Just like at almost every other public agency in this nation, the Great Recession blew a hole in TriMet's revenue stream - in this case, the regional payroll tax. Among the agency's proposed solutions is raising fares from $2.10 to $2.50 for a two-zone trip. The proposal would also eliminate fare zones (including Portland's free rail zone), and institute a one-way-only rule (no more quick out-and-back trips). Meanwhile, Portland will continue to have among the cheapest downtown parking meter rates on the West Coast: $1.60/hour.<br />
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That got me thinking. How do other cities and regions compare in terms of transit and parking prices? Los Angeles has downtown parking rates as high as $4/hour, but a one-way transit ticket price of $1.50. Not what what you would expect from a famously car-oriented city. Seattle also has $4 downtown parking, but with $2.50 transit trips. Rocky Mountain cities have expectedly cheap downtown parking, as low a $1/hour. In Phoenix, both parking and transit are inexpensive.<br />
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Regions are rarely able to coordinate transit and parking prices, which are usually controlled by separate public agencies. But comparing the two provides an idea of the "price signals" a region sends to its residents, commuters and visitors, intentionally or not. For a person deciding whether to drive or take a bus or train downtown, prices often tip the scale one way or the other.<br />
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In the table below, I've collected transit and parking prices for 10 major western U.S. cities. It includes the price of a one-way, peak-hour transit ride within the region's principal city, and the on-street hourly parking rate in that city's downtown. Then I divided the transit price by the parking price to arrive at a "transit-to-parking price ratio." A higher value means transit is more expensive relative to parking. As a proponent of active transportation, clean air and equity, I would judge these higher scores as, well, bad. Take a look.<br />
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Borrowing the lingo of Stephen Colbert: Denver, Sacramento and San Jose all get a wag of the finger, while L.A. and San Francisco get a tip of the hat. Portland is in the middle, though the forthcoming fare increase will of course give the region a higher, and worse, score. What's it like for those of you east of the Rockies or elsewhere?Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-8694758238878010922012-02-16T23:59:00.000-08:002012-02-17T10:56:50.591-08:00My (Threatened) Car-Free Day Trip<br />
Last week, to celebrate one year of getting around fine without a car, I took a day trip. It was an unusual day trip for the United States of America - it involved trains, bike paths and hiking trails instead of cars and interstates. It featured transportation modes that more and more people are using in our urbanizing nation, but that are threatened by Congress. This week, the Republican-led House of Representatives nearly voted on a transportation bill that cut off Highway Trust Fund allocations for transit and bike/ped projects. This would have eliminated a critical funding stream for active transportation projects originally authorized by President Reagan. Fortunately, the bill was so bad, and had so many people from both parties against it, that it <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/15/politics/house-transportation-bill/index.html" target="_blank">never left committee</a>. But Congress may try again in a few weeks.<br />
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Threatening to kill active transportation is an overtly partisan move that would reverse decades of progress toward a more sustainable transportation system. It would bring back an era we were finally moving past - one of increased automobile use, dirtier air, spreading sprawl, and reduced low-income mobility. Yes, driving a car is still the norm in our nation. But we’ve come a long way in providing and using alternatives. People are biking, walking and using transit in record numbers as they eschew suburbia and high gas prices.<br />
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My car-free day trip from Portland, Oregon to Olympia, Washington and back, was a showcase of the smart investments our federal, state and local governments have made in non-highway infrastructure. It was a leisure trip, but it used facilities that are well suited - and commonly used - for commuting, business travel, daily errands and recreation. I am very fortunate to live in a region with these travel options, but equally concerned that they are under fire.<br />
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<b>The journey</b><br />
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I left home on my trusty Trek 7200 hybrid bicycle at 7am, pannier packed with water, snacks, maps and a change of clothes. I turned right onto my street, a <a href="http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=50518" target="_blank">neighborhood greenway</a> modified in 2009 to prioritize bicycle and pedestrian safety by slowing or diverting car traffic. At the end of my street, I turned right onto the <a href="http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?PropertyID=679&action=ViewPark" target="_blank">Springwater Corridor</a>, a paved, multi-use trail that leads downtown along the Willamette River. The trail was completed in 2005 with funding from a regional natural areas bond. I proceeded over the Hawthorne Bridge, whose sidewalks were widened in 1999 to accommodate bicyclists, then biked through <a href="http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/finder/index.cfm?PropertyID=156&action=ViewPark" target="_blank">Tom McCall Waterfront Park</a>, Portland’s famous reclamation of a mid-century freeway. I arrived at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Station_%28Portland,_Oregon%29" target="_blank">Union Station</a>, an 1896 building with major deferred maintenance and seismic issues that are now being addressed through a grant from the Federal Transit Administration.<br />
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This was my first time bringing a bike aboard Amtrak. The woman at the ticket counter explained the straight-forward process: Get a tag from the guy at the baggage counter, get your seat assignment at the gate with everyone else, then wheel your bike down to the baggage car, where you simply hand your bike up to the attendant. Easy peasy!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAshR_2iYZ7XqJHfYfZNZChTH2l5rXOJyP33zPIg0ljoeg1N1-sMIm9bupRprqmr4Yi6wIazlajkCsm502koTlqVZUNi2NmXEHRv2DuMDlqueHmSUJD5rq5TDmhgsBacDNMdCznHRLVFC/s1600/Amtrak-Cascades.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAshR_2iYZ7XqJHfYfZNZChTH2l5rXOJyP33zPIg0ljoeg1N1-sMIm9bupRprqmr4Yi6wIazlajkCsm502koTlqVZUNi2NmXEHRv2DuMDlqueHmSUJD5rq5TDmhgsBacDNMdCznHRLVFC/s320/Amtrak-Cascades.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amtrak Cascades train. <i>Photo: Cascadia Prospectus</i></td></tr>
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The #500 train left promptly at 8:30am. This is the first of five daily northbound trains that run from Portland to Seattle. The 2:50pm northbound continues to Vancouver, Canada. Five trains also return southbound daily. Three continue southward to Eugene; one to California. Rail service in the <a href="http://www.amtrakcascades.com/About.htm" target="_blank">Cascades corridor</a> is funded through a partnership between Amtrak and the state highway departments of Oregon and Washington. It’s no Northeast Corridor or Europe, but it’s more trains per day than most Amtrak routes in the western U.S., and highly successful. Current plans call for two additional round-trips between Portland and Seattle, federal budget willing.<br />
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My morning train journey offered a multitude of pleasantries. The ride was smooth, thanks to recent track improvements (including concrete railroad ties), and a <a href="http://www.talgoamerica.com/" target="_blank">TALGO</a> train set. These Spanish-made, US-assembled trains bank slightly during turns, allowing for higher speed and comfort. The view was not too shabby either, taking in 40 miles of the mighty Columbia River, followed by a patchwork of fields, forests and old railroad towns. For a brief stretch, the train was in the median of Interstate 5, where we outperformed cars and trucks struggling with nasty rain and road spray. When I wasn’t staring out the window, I was reading the newspaper, getting coffee down at the lounge car, or checking Facebook and e-mail on my phone (I could have used the train’s WiFi, had I brought a laptop).<br />
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Pulling into Olympia-Lacey station at 10:30am, I hopped off and walked quickly down to the baggage car where the attendant was waiting with my bike. This sure beats waiting for your bag at an airport baggage claim! (Cheaper too - $5 each way). I then pedaled into the rain. Two days prior, the forecast showed 60 and sunny, prompting this trip in the first place. I should know not to trust Pacific Northwest weather forecasts after six years living here.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48kUYlN0Uk06TcalUY1KdvELfwtk7TqBTyu3qVS5rjyWuEa9lnASFcRkiU9ng2qCS8ktJuOnNYP8eKcea6mPmlSyAysBe16ONgRhgpqlYKu8tAOjkImktGgqAQD1SHwebaiLkc3chDdP1/s1600/IMG_6857.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48kUYlN0Uk06TcalUY1KdvELfwtk7TqBTyu3qVS5rjyWuEa9lnASFcRkiU9ng2qCS8ktJuOnNYP8eKcea6mPmlSyAysBe16ONgRhgpqlYKu8tAOjkImktGgqAQD1SHwebaiLkc3chDdP1/s320/IMG_6857.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chehalis Western Trail. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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Olympia-Lacey station is rather isolated on the <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Amtrak+Station-OLW,+Lacey,+WA&sll=46.99126,-122.793846&sspn=0.138637,0.323067&hq=Amtrak+Station-OLW,&hnear=Lacey,+Thurston,+Washington&t=m&z=12" target="_blank">suburban fringe</a>. But just two miles from the station via bike-lane-equipped roads is the <a href="http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/parks/trails-chehalis-western.htm" target="_blank">Chehalis Western Trail</a>. Thurston County acquired this former logging railroad from Weyerhauser in the 1990s, using a state recreation grant to develop 22 miles of paved, multi-use pathway. I headed north, woods and small lakes giving way to subdivisions and malls as I approached Interstate 5. This was a good opportunity to stop for lunch, which I found at <a href="http://www.meconissubs.com/" target="_blank">Meconi’s Italian Subs</a> in Lacey. I also picked up a helpful Thurston County Bike Map at Lacey City Hall. Continuing northward, I sailed over busy I-5 and Martin Way, courtesy of two impressive bike/ped overcrossings. Such bridges are among the most expensive line items when developing trails. But Thurston County and Washington State clearly found the funds.<br />
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<b>Serenity now</b><br />
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Not far north, suburban sprawl gave way to green fields and quiet woods again. Cows and goats eyed me curiously, far outnumbering humans on this drizzly day. Finally, about 15 miles from the train station, I reached my prize: <a href="http://www.dnr.wa.gov/AboutDNR/ManagedLands/Pages/amp_na_woodard.aspx" target="_blank">Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area</a> on Puget Sound. Securing my bike and stepping into the peaceful woods, any troubles and weather-related complaining quickly faded away.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodard Bay NRCA. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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A one-mile trail leads to a peninsula jutting into the salty sound. The remnants of a railroad pier - once the business end of the Chehalis Western - now provide a perch for herons, cormorants and gulls. The water, likely busy with boaters in summer, was instead an undisturbed pane of glass on this February afternoon. Low tide revealed clams, barnacles, Dungeness crab remnants, and mysterious creatures spitting saltwater from beneath the sand. I suspect the latter were the region’s fabled <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoduck" target="_blank">geoducks</a> (pronounced <i>gooey-ducks</i>). The rain miraculously ceased, and I took this opportunity to sit on the stony beach for about a half hour in a zen-like state.<br />
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Kudos are again due to the State of Washington, which permanently preserved this 800-acre shoreline gem in 1987. If not for the occasional Sea-Tac bound jetliner or Fort Lewis military test explosion, it was hard to believe I was in the middle of a metro region 4 million strong. I left the beach and took the long way back to my locked bike, navigating a loop trail through mature second-growth forest.<br />
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<b>Inside time</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLa1ynwuNFqgxORIV8gWzvE2RXpvlsmA5xvnJ3BrAdvYRFSRcfu_kPQLJWU3twyvZtND1c9uMo9l5RZPFdruiwXEEemkG8xUKoi4oOl8Bf7gRYuAKfpwmAObCdRwF36Qg3MbDk_abnNRT/s1600/IMG_6904.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLa1ynwuNFqgxORIV8gWzvE2RXpvlsmA5xvnJ3BrAdvYRFSRcfu_kPQLJWU3twyvZtND1c9uMo9l5RZPFdruiwXEEemkG8xUKoi4oOl8Bf7gRYuAKfpwmAObCdRwF36Qg3MbDk_abnNRT/s320/IMG_6904.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">My bike in Olympia. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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For the sake of balance, it was now time for cultural offerings. I made my way south to Olympia, the state capitol, using the generous shoulder of Boston Harbor Road. The sky darkened; rain returned. Soggy and encrusted head-to-toe with gravel applied during last month’s record blizzard, I was ready for indoor pursuits. After some brief photo ops at Capitol Lake (which pleasantly reflects the namesake domed edifice) and at Sylvester Square (the city’s New England-style town green), I headed indoors. I found some old CDs at <a href="http://rainydayolympia.net/" target="_blank">Rainy Day Records</a>, a store dating to the groovy 70s. Then I sampled brews and demolished a decent Cuban sandwich at <a href="http://www.fishbrewing.com/brewpub/" target="_blank">Fish Tale Brew Pub</a>. Known for their organic ales, I was a bigger fan of their non-organic amber.<br />
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Before total darkness fell, I settled up and made my way back to the train station on a succession of roads with bike lanes. Rush hour traffic and the ubiquitous snowstorm gravel stripped any enjoyment from the last leg of my ride. But I was nevertheless grateful that in the modern era, most forward-thinking transportation departments provide bike lanes along arterial roads, heeding the call for “complete streets.” This was not the case growing up in the 1980s and 90s. I reached the station at 6pm, closing a 32-mile, seven-hour loop. The return train trip provided much needed chill time, enough to recharge for my final six miles from Union Station to home. True to Szigethy luck, Portland had been dry and mild all day.<br />
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<b>A car-free win (for now)</b><br />
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But weather be damned. The trip was a major success. I was able to travel 110 miles north of my house to the sylvan shores of Puget Sound and back, using a seamless network of multi-use paths, bike lanes and trains, all in a single day. Instead of white-knuckling it behind spray-spewing semis on the interstate, I sipped coffee and read the paper as fir trees whizzed by. Rather than getting leg cramps from hours in the driver's seat, I got leg cramps from biking 44 miles. I also emitted far less carbon than I would driving. Yes, driving is cheaper (if you happen to own a car), and offers greater schedule and geographic flexibility. But at $56 round rip, I found my train+bike voyage to be a great value.<br />
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Investing federal dollars in our nation’s active transportation system is a similarly great value. This is true in the most literal sense - rails and trails are almost always more cost efficient than new highways - and also true from environmental and social perspectives. However, just like new highways, active facilities require funding partnerships. Many of the facilities used on my trip - even ones funded mostly by state and local governments - could not exist without federal help. Let’s keep trains, buses, bike trails and sidewalks in our multi-modal transportation portfolio alongside cars and highways. In fact, let’s build more of the former, while maintaining and integrating the latter. I’d like to celebrate many more car-free anniversaries, and help others to do the same.Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-37165469531807261202012-02-15T13:51:00.000-08:002012-02-15T13:51:15.936-08:00Living in PortlandThere have been a number of these going around the interweb lately. So I made one about Portland...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqA4qkYEBYXs_7po7oMHFGRHOkwhu3MCv1V0stmpcrVPpn2TT8syL_DoTjfyFN1FeTtSrQFgHvnqygObgbmCIDABpUUJlCg4AujWB7bOYlWKxFwPi8KOkVDuDqSkuK9dfv91QRsi-Guwsr/s1600/Living_in_Portland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqA4qkYEBYXs_7po7oMHFGRHOkwhu3MCv1V0stmpcrVPpn2TT8syL_DoTjfyFN1FeTtSrQFgHvnqygObgbmCIDABpUUJlCg4AujWB7bOYlWKxFwPi8KOkVDuDqSkuK9dfv91QRsi-Guwsr/s640/Living_in_Portland.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-5626041790252175742012-02-13T17:46:00.000-08:002012-02-13T17:46:11.809-08:00Christie proposes municipal sharingWe here at CityRegionNationWorld don't often see eye-to-eye with Republicans on matters of urban and regional planning. But here's a sensible idea from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie: <a href="http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/02/in_caldwell_christie_calls_on.html" target="_blank">sharing the cost of services across municipal boundaries</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b5/Camden_County,_New_Jersy_Municipalities.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="281" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b5/Camden_County,_New_Jersy_Municipalities.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camden County alone has 37 municipalities. <i>Map: Wikipedia</i></td></tr>
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Like several other northeastern states, New Jersey is a "home rule" state, with the landscape sliced up into numerous boroughs, townships and cities (566 to be exact). With rare exception, each municipality manages its own fire department, police force, zoning laws, property tax rates and other provisions. This is incredibly inefficient, resulting in duplication of services that would be less costly at scale, poor land use planning (every town wants its own industrial park!), and high property taxes to pay for it all. But towns are rarely able to get over their own pride and provincialism to actually do something about this.<br />
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Regional planning and service provision can solve these inefficiencies, and many local governments have moved in this direction, to varying extents. Major cities like Miami, Indianapolis and Nashville have merged their city and county governments. Portland, Oregon has a regional government that handles big-picture land use, transportation and waste management issues. Pennsylvania and New Jersey both took an important first step in the early 2000's by providing funds for multi-municipal comprehensive plans.<br />
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<a href="http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/02/in_caldwell_christie_calls_on.html" target="_blank">Christie's plan</a> doesn't specifically mention land use planning and zoning. And, of course, Christie emphasizes the potential to reduce taxes, and peppers in his usual ire toward school districts. But sharing the cost of services across municipal boundaries is a no-brainer, and should be implemented with the support of both political parties.Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-38288684147521538032012-02-08T02:18:00.000-08:002012-02-08T12:10:05.101-08:00Dead U.S. Routes<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.routemarkers.com/usa/California/US_99.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://www.routemarkers.com/usa/California/US_99.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Photo: www.routemarkers.com</i></td></tr>
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Rent a 1950s vintage Chrysler with tail fins and meet me at the corner of US 99 and US 66.<br />
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Can’t find it on Google Maps? That’s because both roads have been lost to history for nearly 50 years. But in case you’re wondering, that defunct crossroads is now the <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Figueroa+St+%26+San+Fernando+Rd,+Los+Angeles,+CA&sll=45.465262,-122.655589&sspn=0.008909,0.020192&hnear=N+San+Fernando+Rd+%26+Figueroa+St,+Los+Angeles,+California+90065&t=h&z=16" target="_blank">intersection of Figueroa Street and San Fernando Road</a> just north of Downtown Los Angeles.<br />
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US routes - those numbered roads signed with distinctive black-and-white federal shields - were our primary long distance highways during the first half of the 20th century. The US Department of Agriculture and American Association of State Highway Officials dreamed up this nationwide system of routes in the mid 1920s. Most of the roads were already in place; the route numbers simply provided standardized, continuous route identities for cross-country navigation. North-south routes were given odd numbers that got higher as you moved west (opposite of today’s interstates); east-west routes had even numbers that increased as you moved south; shorter spur routes had three-digit numbers.<br />
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Many of the routes - built and maintained largely by state highway departments, not the federal government - still exist today. US 1 still runs from Fort Kent, ME to Key West, FL; US 30 from Atlantic City, NJ to Astoria, OR; and US 50 from Ocean City, MD to Sacramento, CA.<br />
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But in a fate scripted into many a motion picture (including Disney’s “Cars”), US routes relinquished their role as our nation’s primary through routes in the 1950s, courtesy of President Eisenhower’s interstate highway system. Some interstates were built on completely new alignments through the countryside, sparing from demise routes like US 20, 30, 41 and 50. But in many other cases, the most logical place to build an interstate was atop, or next to, a nicely established two-lane road connecting cities and towns. These latter freeways usually resulted in dead US routes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdJSa7fYKEKeQ-227v_I_TM3nBjUjNe_AKrIPR1bpuEjOnQkm6NjYirdGM_pGiABXYNiO_lsTbjtFWNZVSlEXn7w9wUmQVOLX4BjKoxZwEiF5kkrkVMLhEB2DUTDEH7UBP1_-DA1c04EoA/s1600/IMG_6490.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdJSa7fYKEKeQ-227v_I_TM3nBjUjNe_AKrIPR1bpuEjOnQkm6NjYirdGM_pGiABXYNiO_lsTbjtFWNZVSlEXn7w9wUmQVOLX4BjKoxZwEiF5kkrkVMLhEB2DUTDEH7UBP1_-DA1c04EoA/s320/IMG_6490.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Route 66 on Adams Street in Chicago. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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The most famous dead US route, woven into our nation’s cultural fabric, is Route 66. Once spanning nearly 2,500 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica, US 66 has been functionally replaced by Interstates 55, 44, 40 and 15. But the degree to which the actual asphalt of Route 66 has been physically removed varies from place to place. In many spots, the old route lives on as two-lane state highways or main streets through sleepy towns. Yet in other places, often in the open desert, the original route has been positionally usurped by the newer interstate. In a thoughtful act of historic preservation, most of the old route has been marked with brown “Historic Route 66” signs, so you can follow it without busting out the map archives at the library.<br />
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US 99 once ran through the west coast’s inner valleys from Canada to Mexico, passing through Seattle, Portland, Sacramento and Los Angeles. It has been mostly replaced by Interstate 5, but those portions that were not gobbled up are now signed as State Highway 99. This includes the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Aurora Avenue in Seattle, Highways 99E and 99W in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, and the Golden State Freeway in the Central Valley of California.<br />
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Other dead US routes include:<br />
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<li>US 32, which is now I-80 between Chicago and Council Bluffs, IA;</li>
<li>US 48, which is now I-68 between Hancock, MD and Morgantown, WV (a fairly recently dead US route); and</li>
<li>US 94, which was simply switched to US 41 between Naples and Miami, FL.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNZl6nz-Fgy-h9Z7TmgqT8BYcOh0DNE0AkNT22LKyr_eOf6GXT9timYoTJ0K3YTCKq3CldfzLSe-ILtWtzXHb3f-zL7pO5O9N792WY7wjhQ9-QZM2RMs2dOR4V44ym-2drKmVgzqEOYu1G/s1600/US666.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNZl6nz-Fgy-h9Z7TmgqT8BYcOh0DNE0AkNT22LKyr_eOf6GXT9timYoTJ0K3YTCKq3CldfzLSe-ILtWtzXHb3f-zL7pO5O9N792WY7wjhQ9-QZM2RMs2dOR4V44ym-2drKmVgzqEOYu1G/s320/US666.png" style="cursor: move;" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><i>Photo: What's Up, Chuck?</i></td></tr>
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A handful of US routes are only partially dead. They are dismembered, if you will. US 40, prominent in my South Jersey youth, once stretched all the way to Oakland, CA, but now <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Silver+Creek+Rd+%26+US+40,+Park+City,+UT&ll=40.73134,-111.497412&spn=0.009626,0.020192&sll=40.732527,-111.498077&sspn=0.009626,0.020192&hnear=Silver+Creek+Jct+%26+U.S.+40,+Park+City,+Utah+84098&t=m&z=16" target="_blank">ends in Utah</a>. That decommissioned western stretch is now Interstate 80. US 10, which you can drive today between Fargo, ND and Mantiwoc, WI on Lake Michigan, used to go all the way to frickin’ Seattle. Most of that route is now Interstates 94 and 90.<br />
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Then there’s my favorite dead US route: 666. YEAH! [Flashes devil horns]. But this highway to hell was not replaced by an interstate. Far from it. It was renumbered by the state highway departments of Utah, Colorado and New Mexico, in response to superstitious claims about unusually high accident and fatality rates. (It apparently wasn’t the miles of uninterrupted dark desert that was killing people). Today, that route is unremarkable US 491, from Gallup, NM to Monticello, UT. I’m glad I got to see Route 666 on a family vacation to the Four Corners back in the 90’s, when it was still devilish.<br />
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If you really want to geek out on the details of dead US routes, check out <a href="http://www.us-highways.com/">us-highways.com</a>, or look up individual routes on Wikipedia. Many of them would make great road trips, 50s Chrysler or otherwise.Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-67186662366160042702012-02-06T22:39:00.000-08:002012-02-06T22:39:13.827-08:00NYC Energy Use by Tax Lot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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New Yorkers can now compare their building's energy use with other properties across the five boroughs using <a href="http://modi.mech.columbia.edu/nycenergy/" target="_blank">an interactive map</a>. Bianca Howard, a PhD student in mechanical engineering at Columbia University, created the map using publicly available utility data. The interactive map shows data at the tax parcel level, as well as block level, depending on how far you zoom in. Data is provided for not just electricity, but also heating, cooling and hot water heating. Electricity use is reported in kilowatt hours; gas and fuel oil use, in therms. For most properties, occupants expend the most energy on heat.<br />
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This is a remarkable set of data, especially for a city that once gave up on metering water. A logical next step, and one recommended by several who commented on Howard's site, would be to normalize this data by building floor area. In theory, this would reveal which buildings are more efficient, either by massing, weatherproofing or a combination of both. As is, the data shows a strong correlation with building size and height - Midtown skyscrapers at the high end, outer borough townhomes at the low end.<br />
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It would be great to see this data for other cities. Thanks to Jessi for sharing via <a href="http://gizmodo.com/" target="_blank">Gizmodo</a>.<br />
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Link: <a href="http://modi.mech.columbia.edu/nycenergy/">http://modi.mech.columbia.edu/nycenergy/</a><br />
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Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-89342294496337782352012-01-31T01:01:00.000-08:002012-01-31T01:02:46.614-08:00Is Indianapolis still lame?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monument Circle. <i>Photo: author</i></td></tr>
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As the national media turns its attention to Indianapolis in the run-up to Superbowl XLVI, I thought it would be fun to re-examine a city that holds an important place in my life. A city where my Nana still lives, in a two-story suburban ranch that she bought with her husband in 1967. A city I visited before I learned to walk, then later frequented as a Hoosier for eight years in high school and college. A city where I attended my first concert without parents (Rush at Market Square Arena!), played a drum kit in front of thousands (IU basketball at the Fieldhouse!), and attempted to woo women (ice skating at Pan Am Plaza!)<br />
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Despite these fond memories, Indy is a city that, once I turned 17 or so, <i>I found to be kind of lame</i>. But many rationally-minded, fun-loving friends and family members continue to live in the Circle City. Perhaps things are less lame now. Or maybe urban lameness is of little concern when you can earn a steady paycheck and raise a family in one of the most affordable cities in America. Perhaps a little bit of both. And so I ask the good people of Indy: You may be hosting the Superbowl this weekend, but is Indianapolis still lame?<br />
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Don’t get me wrong: Indy has its merits. It has a fairly lively (if small) downtown, plentiful manufacturing and health care jobs, an amazingly low <a href="http://www.hometoindy.com/blog/indianapolis-home-sales-3rd-quarter-2011/" target="_blank">median home sales price</a> of $123,682 (in 2011), an ever-expanding network of bike lanes and trails, and many of the necessary cultural trappings of a large American city: museums, theatre, music, and plenty of sports. People are friendly, many schools are excellent, and the weather is no worse than anywhere else the Midwest.<br />
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But as a young adult, I developed a mild loathing, or at least an ambivalence, toward Naptown. Seeking urban adventure on college weekends, I tired of Indy’s minimal offerings and instead trekked to the surrounding major cities of Cincinnati, Louisville, St Louis and Chicago. Looking for jobs after graduating from Indiana University, I quickly fled to the east coast. Did my familiarity breed contempt, or was I truly living near India-no-place? It’s hard for me to say objectively.<br />
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What follows are six of my primary pet peeves about Indy, based on 30 years of observations. Some may be ten years out of date; others may still ring true. And fortunately, some of these problems can be solved.<br />
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<b>(1) Lame geography</b><br />
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Most cities were initially established at some confluence of natural features that aided commerce and development, and simultaneously blessed them with memorable settings. New York City is where the Hudson River meets the sea. San Francisco has the largest protected harbor on the west coast. Three rivers converge in Pittsburgh. Chicago is at the southern end of Lake Michigan. Even land-locked Denver sits at the foot of the Front Range near the source of the Platte River.<br />
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Indianapolis, meanwhile, sits in the middle of a vast plain with an unnavigable river running through it. This is not an impediment to commerce now that we have interstates, airports and railroads. But Indy’s location is unusual in that it was chosen for no other reason than its geographic centrality in the state of Indiana. Convenient, yes. But it doesn’t make for a memorable, visually stimulating setting. Residents of Indianapolis, like those of Tulsa, Dallas and other cities of the plains, must therefore generate their own forms of stimulation in the built and cultural environment. No one is moving to Indianapolis for mountain views or beach access. <br />
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<b>(2) Between the ages of 14 and 21? Sucks to be you.</b><br />
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Every summer growing up, my parents would drop me and my sister off at our grandmother’s house in Northeast Indianapolis for a two-week stay. We called it Camp Nana, and we loved it. Indianapolis offered much for kids in the 1980’s: the Children’s Museum, the Zoo (which had just moved to its current, larger location), and miles of quiet suburban streets to ride bikes, throw frisbees and launch water balloons.<br />
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But when I actually moved to the region as a teenager, those kid activities had become - you guessed it - <i>lame</i>. When my parents let me start driving downtown at age 17, there was little to do except go to Circle Center Mall, eat at the food court, and maybe catch a movie. Conditions did not improve at age 18, 19 or 20. Some states, like neighboring Kentucky and Ohio, had “21 to drink, 18 to party” laws, where you could at least hang out at bars but just drink soda. Puritan Indiana was not one of those states, so most nightlife was off limits. The coolest concerts were at 21-and-over venues like T<a href="http://thevogue.com/" target="_blank">he Vogue</a>. Union Station hosted a great series of all-ages shows, but these were short lived. There was nowhere else to hang out. Coffee shops or foodie places hadn’t really caught on yet (and maybe still haven’t), and there were no all-ages venues to speak of.<br />
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Sometimes we just drove around. One Saturday night, two high school buds and I drove about 100 miles just to figure out where a spotlight was coming from. Lo and behold, it was emanating from a huge country music dance hall where you had to be 21 to enter. <br />
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<b>(3) Have a car or stay home</b>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW3rzdu2sPo4REg8IXcb_Ygo3_e7ixHOfIgOwmmBYhf6TaE-bVYqo235yDFqnYXxLMFy51-BdOUYJRcEKe4V9zZTjl5IFFti16g-K5n7aChfCFke9QCPnSiog1gyrles9STu17Cjx8QNHY/s1600/465_I70.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW3rzdu2sPo4REg8IXcb_Ygo3_e7ixHOfIgOwmmBYhf6TaE-bVYqo235yDFqnYXxLMFy51-BdOUYJRcEKe4V9zZTjl5IFFti16g-K5n7aChfCFke9QCPnSiog1gyrles9STu17Cjx8QNHY/s320/465_I70.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I-465 & I-70. <i>Photo: Janssen & Spaans Engineering</i></td></tr>
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Like the Indianapolis 500, getting around Indy is a driving ritual. I’ve always known this. But my last visit to Indy in 2010 entailed even more driving than I expected. I arrived at the new airport, which is several miles further out than the old one. I met friends at restaurants in strip malls, driving from one large parking lot to another, navigating miles of four- or six-lane roads. The journey downtown was longer than I remembered, perhaps because there are eight numbered streets to a mile, compared to Portland’s twenty. Freeways had been widened by several lanes since my last visit, or were in process. And using transit was completely off the table. Indy is a car city. You drive to work. You drive to the grocery store. You drive your kids to school. You drive to bars to drink!<br />
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Indy does have a bus system called <a href="http://www.indygo.net/" target="_blank">IndyGo</a>, but no one I know uses it. A quick glance at the website shows a modest network of 15 daily bus routes, plus another 15 weekday-only routes. Most of the routes are clustered between 38th and Washington Streets, where most people of lower means reside. This is a charitable policy, but the lack of routes in wealthier neighborhoods is certainly not going to attract any new riders. Then there’s the lousy frequencies. The bus route on College Avenue (which I would assume to be among the busiest) has 30-minute headways at best, and the last bus leaves downtown at 9:20pm. Hardly an option for a night on the town, or even a play or Colts game.<br />
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Fledgling groups of rail enthusiasts periodically try to stir <a href="http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2010/02/10/major-transportation-plan-for-indianapolis-could-link-region-with-light-and-commuter-rail/" target="_blank">interest in light rail</a>, including a line from Fishers to Downtown. While there has been official support for rail transit by the nine-county <a href="http://www.indympo.org/Pages/home.aspx" target="_blank">Indianapolis MPO</a>, support at the city/county level has been virtually non-existent. This must be pure politics. Indy may sprawl, but it has sufficient density for rail transit to work. Minneapolis, Phoenix, Atlanta and Houston all have rail transit systems in addition to their freeways and subdivisions. Indy just has the <a href="http://iuhealth.org/methodist/for-patients/people-mover/" target="_blank">People Toaster</a>.<br />
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One exception to Indy’s car-centric tendencies must be acknowledged: the ever-increasing accommodation of bicycle travel. Expanding upon a first-generation backbone of multi-use trails such as the <a href="http://www.indy.gov/eGov/City/DPR/Greenways/Pages/Monon%20Trail.aspx" target="_blank">Monon Rail-Trail</a> and <a href="http://www.indy.gov/eGov/City/DPR/Greenways/Pages/White%20River%20Trail.aspx" target="_blank">White River Greenway</a>, the city/county has striped miles of on-street bike lanes, designated a system of signed, numbered bike routes, and recently completed an impressive two-way cycle track and walkway known as the <a href="http://www.indyculturaltrail.org/" target="_blank">Indianapolis Cultural Trail</a>. Grassroots bicycling culture also seems to be up-and-coming. A <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/266714806702645/" target="_blank">tweed bike ride</a> was planned during my visit (Wear your best 19th century garb while pedaling around town!). I also saw considerably more bicyclists than I did ten years ago. Indy is on its way to becoming a great cycling city - at least when it’s not zero degrees with a foot of snow on the ground. <br />
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<b>(4) Where are the neighborhood hubs?</b><br />
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It has been my experience that most Indy people eat, drink, shop and hang out at suburban shopping centers. The two main exceptions are <a href="http://indydt.com/" target="_blank">Downtown</a> (including Massachusetts Avenue) and <a href="http://www.discoverbroadripplevillage.com/" target="_blank">Broad Ripple</a>. Growing up, I never thought this was weird (I’m from New Jersey, after all). That is, until I visited other nearby cities of similar size.<br />
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I was completely blown away the first time I explored Cincinnati. In addition to an admirable downtown, Cincy has dozens of cool neighborhood commercial districts, hubs, villages, or whatever you want to call them. Mount Adams, Clifton Heights, University Village, Hyde Park, Mount Lookout, and other hubs are chock full of locally-owned restaurants, taverns and shops housed in historic, multi-story buildings. Down the Ohio River in Louisville, I fell in love with the Bardstown Road corridor in high school, with its record stores, bistros and coffee shops. There was absolutely nothing like it in Indy at the time - not in Broad Ripple, not on Massachusetts Avenue - nowhere. I’m not convinced there is today, either.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKTtTBplO83HPLlJVNJjto_bCpje6tfu0M8d1xGgI5fHwELo3laCECJZHPz1Sy72ZC43XiXoFPxNVnsYHM5q7yqJX7JXXUu9LmiydDu3Ikoq07m42GIl08LeH1i0989wvjoaMZrsTF3cw8/s1600/Picture+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKTtTBplO83HPLlJVNJjto_bCpje6tfu0M8d1xGgI5fHwELo3laCECJZHPz1Sy72ZC43XiXoFPxNVnsYHM5q7yqJX7JXXUu9LmiydDu3Ikoq07m42GIl08LeH1i0989wvjoaMZrsTF3cw8/s320/Picture+1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E. 10th St. <i>Photo: Google Maps</i></td></tr>
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What happened to neighborhood hubs in Indy? True, it is a younger city than Cincinnati or Louisville, and smaller than Chicago, but these are poor excuses. Indy had bustling early 20th century neighborhoods centered along streetcar lines just like every other American city. But Indy has mostly failed to capitalize on them in the 21st century. East 10th Street is a good (bad) example. Once host to a streetcar line, the street is lined with the type of century-old brick buildings that would incite instant hipster gentrification in Portland or Austin. But in Indy, these buildings are empty and boarded up. Has unchecked suburban sprawl eliminated any incentive to revitalize inner neighborhoods? <br />
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<b>(5) The downtown donut</b><br />
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Visualize Downtown Indianapolis as a square with 5,000-foot sides (which it is), divided into 100 blocks of equal size (10 blocks by 10 blocks), and bounded by North, South, East and West streets. Now visualize the inner 16 blocks (4 blocks by 4 blocks, bounded by New York Street, Maryland Street, Delaware Avenue and Capitol Avenue). This is where most of Downtown Indy’s office space and tall buildings are located.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parking galore in the downtown donut. <i>Map: Google Maps</i></td></tr>
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Now imagine the remaining 84 outer blocks - a square donut, if you will. A large proportion of this area (I estimate about half) is occupied by surface parking lots. There are notable exceptions, including the State Capitol, Conseco Fieldhouse and the War Memorial. But most of what remains is asphalt used for nothing more than parking cars. Beyond the square donut of parking, land uses intensify again, including IUPUI, the Lockerbie Square neighborhood, and Lucas Oil Stadium.<br />
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Indy is not alone in having a downtown donut of underutilized blocks, but that doesn’t make it okay. These acres of parking are a waste of valuable urban real estate, an eyesore, a source of water pollution and hot air, and a magnet for crime. In most American downtowns, it is economically feasible to build underground or structured parking, especially with public-private partnerships. But it appears that the city/county government and property owners have chosen to leave these lots be, caving to a desire for tons of cheap parking. Land in the region is not constrained enough for anyone to care.<br />
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A better-planned downtown would have no such donut, and would instead strive to fill these empty blocks with millions of square feet of office space, retail, entertainment, institutions, residences and public amenities. Parking would be provided in underground pay garages, while parking demand is reduced through investments in transit, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. This is the approach employed in cities with more constrained land bases, such as Portland, Seattle and Boston. Just because Indy has plenty of horizontal space doesn’t mean it should be wasted.<br />
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<b>(6) A divided city</b><br />
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Finally, I am troubled by the complicated, sensitive issue of racial segregation and inequity. Every large American city has a history of racial struggles, discrimination and segregation. But it seems Indianapolis remains remarkably segregated, with upper-middle class white neighborhoods on the far north side, poor black neighborhoods in the near north side, and blue-collar white neighborhoods on the south side.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI9BQv7nMkpU6e9ukFDPGPBzhOY5cAbumn46gKBj_NNR4mJVFsHfzFvWKcvMLJ1OMCQ1g7eWZYOsTXPjrFE_9qwIdXaJQqUADFIk4BlI-Po5uZwpE5ohQDIfpWrDd8p5nL9JkGLxLt3yKm/s1600/Picture+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI9BQv7nMkpU6e9ukFDPGPBzhOY5cAbumn46gKBj_NNR4mJVFsHfzFvWKcvMLJ1OMCQ1g7eWZYOsTXPjrFE_9qwIdXaJQqUADFIk4BlI-Po5uZwpE5ohQDIfpWrDd8p5nL9JkGLxLt3yKm/s320/Picture+3.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Racial/ethnic majorities: White in green, Black in blue,<br />
Hispanic in yellow. <i>Map: New York Times.</i></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-segregated-cities-in-america-2011-3#" target="_blank">A study</a> of 2010 census data by by Brown University professor John Logan and Florida State University professor Brian Stults ranks Indy as the 11th most segregated city in America (The top dishonor goes to Detroit). Most census tracts in Indy are either at least 80% white or at least 80% black. The neighborhoods near Keystone and 30th are more than 90% black (one tract is 96% black), while the neighborhoods near Broad Ripple and Butler University are 90% white.<br />
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There is nothing wrong with neighborhoods with a strong, proud heritage of any particular race or ethnicity. I just worry that segregated neighborhoods perpetuate ingrained inequalities from earlier eras - inequalities in schools, public safety, job opportunities and amenities. I also believe that diversity enriches the human experience, and that living in a neighborhood with 95% of any one type of person can be stifling.<br />
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But what can be done? IPS’s experiment with busing in the 1980’s was ultimately a failure, and didn’t address the core problem of residential segregation. Gentrification and displacement are certainly not in everybody’s best interest. Hopefully the city/county has the resolve and intelligence to pursue targeted projects and programs so that people have, at the very least, economic opportunities and livable surroundings, regardless of their neighborhood or skin color.<br />
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<b>A call for de-lame-ification</b><br />
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Alright, that was more than enough complaining for one sitting. Great people of Indianapolis: I challenge you to solve these and other problems, and to end any remaining lameness in your city. I look forward to seeing the results on my next visit. In the meantime, enjoy The Big Game. I hear there’s a <a href="http://www.indianapolissuperbowl.com/super-bowl-village/" target="_blank">zipline at the Superbowl Village</a>. That is definitely not lame!Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-2572803681812015462012-01-27T23:42:00.000-08:002012-01-27T23:42:02.420-08:00Got Alleys?<br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alleys are underrated. Along with much of urbanity, alleys fell out of favor in the post-war era, becoming associated with phrases like, “I wouldn’t want to run into that guy in a dark alley.” But in the late 20th century, as we began returning to cities and urban design, we rediscovered why we built them in the first place. New Urbanist town planners have been particularly keen on reintroducing alleys into the development vernacular. Peter Calthorpe writes:</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In areas where walking is to be encouraged, streets lined with garages are undesirable. Alleys provide an opportunity to put the garage in the rear, allowing the more “social” aspects of the home to front the street. Streets lined with porches, entries and living spaces are safer because of this visual surveillance.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">But how did we get to this point, when alleys are still sort of taboo and must be defended? Why did alleys pop up in the first place? And why do some cities have alleys and others don’t? The answer is, of course, history.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>The Pre-Alley Period</b></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Elfreth's Alley: not an alley. </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Photo: C. Ridgeway</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alleys are a North American invention. Medieval cities in Europe and elsewhere in the Old World have narrow streets and passageways that the non-planner-geek may deem as alleys, but most are not. They are simply narrow streets, and buildings have front entrances facing them. The oldest sections of early North American cities are similarly devoid of alleys. So-called Elfreth’s Alley in Philadelphia, the oldest residential street in the US, is not actually an alley. Its homes face the street, which just happens to be a very skinny street. Nor will you find alleys in the oldest parts of New York, Boston or Quebec City - just more narrow streets. Most people living in 17th and 18th century towns walked for their daily business. Few townspeople were wealthy enough to own horses and carriages, let alone outbuildings behind their homes to store them. Alleys were simply not needed.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>The Earliest Alleys</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alleys began to emerge in the late 18th century, often as intentional components of planned, platted towns or neighborhoods. The 1767 plan for Emmaus, PA (written in the German spoken by its Moravian settlers) states that, “there is to be between every 4 lots an alley 12 ft. in width.” Pierre L’Enfant’s 1791 plan for Washington, DC also included alleys between the gridded and radial streets of our capitol.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">But the golden age of the alley came later, in the 19th century, and especially west of the Appalachians. What changed? Based on my limited research, I believe two main factors were at play: more deliberate town planning, and the proliferation of carriage houses.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>The Wild But Orderly West</b> </span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Unlike during the Colonial period - when towns developed haphazardly around ports and trading posts, with streets following Native trails and cow paths - the settlement of the American and Canadian West was more deliberate. In the US, Thomas Jefferson established the Public Land Survey System (PLSS) in 1787, dividing land into orderly squares of townships and sections, and making them available to settlers. Canada established a similar, but much later, version called the Dominion Land Survey (DLS) in 1871.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chicago: a city of alleys. <i>Photo: leopardo.com</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Those in the business of establishing towns (often industrial enterprises or railroad companies) were usually required to draft and record plat plans of those towns. As we can see today in the Midwest and West, most civil engineers chose grid-based town layouts that were easy to survey, resulted in sensible rectangular lots, and nested well within the larger squares of the PLSS or DLS. On a finer grain, engineers determined the width and spacing of streets, and often bisected blocks with alleys 10 to 20 feet wide. You can see the result in almost any Midwestern town, from tiny burgs like Moline, Kansas, to bustling Chicago, arguably the “alleyest” city in America. Canada followed suit, platting neighborhoods with laneways (the Canuck term for alleys) from Toronto to Vancouver. But who would use these alleys?</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Historic preservation author Theodore Corbett traces alleys to the increased ownership of horses and carriages in 19th century America. This was largely due to rising wealth and increased travel demand in a rapidly expanding country. Rather than storing horses and carriages in barns at the edge of town, it made increasing sense to store them closer to home in carriage houses. But in a reflection of 19th century mores and aesthetics, carriage houses (with their messy horses) were placed out of sight, behind the primary house, and facing an alley. As the Encyclopedia of Chicago put it, “In middle-class areas, the street represented the respectable front, while the alley saw the servants and suppliers do the dirty work.” Many carriage houses also had apartments, or were converted to residences altogether, to meet the rising demand for affordable worker housing during the Industrial Revolution.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then came the automobile, itself also well-suited for carriage house storage. Except then we started calling them garages. As automobiles gained affordability and popularity in the early 20th century, so did garages. But homebuilders and developers resisted the urge to place garages front-and-center on residential properties. They continued to place them behind houses, if not facing an alley, then at least set back considerably from the front lot line (most old Portland neighborhoods have the latter arrangement.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>The Demise of Alleys</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alleys fell out of favor after World War II, virtually disappearing from new development. A double-edged sword of auto-oriented subdivisions and urban decay drastically reduced both the perceived need and desirability of alleys. A booming middle class bought new cars and new houses in sprawling suburbs. Unlike the olden days, home garages were built to be convenient, not aesthetically pleasing. They were placed in the front of the house for easy street access - sometimes closer to the street than the home’s front door. Alleys were therefore obsolete, and worse, increasingly associated with the filth and squalor of decaying inner cities. We would not see alleys again until the New Urbanism movement of the 1980s and 90s. Even today they remain on the fringe of contemporary development practices. And that’s a shame! </span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>A Case for Alleys</b></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accessory dwelling unit over alley-facing garage,<br />Lincoln City, OR. </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Photo: author</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I tend to agree with Peter Calthorpe and other New Urbanists. Alleys, by separating out the utilitarian aspects of modern living (garages, trash collection, electric and cable wiring), bring the dignified, lived-in portions of our homes to the forefront. The benefits go beyond just aesthetics and “eyes on the street.” Alleys also eliminate the need for driveways, which opens up more on-street parking for visitors, and lessens the number of car-pedestrian conflicts on sidewalks. Alleys allow house fronts to be graced with porches and patios instead of blank garage doors, promoting social interaction and neighborliness (if that’s your thing). Finally, alley-facing garages can accommodate accessory dwelling units on the second floor, a non-intrusive way of increasing residential density in single-family neighborhoods.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Of course, if we didn’t have garages, we wouldn’t need alleys or driveways in the first place. But even as we become more urban as a population, the average, middle-class American or Canadian family has stuff - cars, bicycles, kayaks, lawnmowers, power tools - for which we demand storage. If we insist on having garages, why not place them along alleys in the back, instead of cluttering the public viewshed along our neighborhood streets. </span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><i>Bonus: Check out my <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=212436456799357216161.0004b6f050376b693b26d&msa=0" target="_blank">Google map of Portland alleys</a>. Portland is mostly sans alleys, but a handful of early 20th century neighborhoods do have them, including Ladd’s Addition, Foster-Powell and Boise.</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>Sources</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Calthorpe, Peter. The Next American Metropolis: Ecology, Community, and the American Dream. Princeton Architectural Press, 1993.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Conzen, Michael P. Alleys. The Encyclopedia of Chicago. Chicago Historical Society, 2005.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Corbett, Theodore. The Alley: A Backstreet History of New York’s Communities. New York Folklore Society, 2002.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Murtagh, William J. Moravian Architecture and Town Planning. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1998.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">National Atlas: The Public Land Survey System. US Department of the Interior, 2012.</span></span></div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-17978754022280695322012-01-25T13:04:00.000-08:002012-01-25T13:04:56.756-08:00Plant Hardiness Zones Updated<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The USDA has released an <a href="http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/?loc=interstitialskip#" target="_blank">updated plant hardiness zone map</a>, based on climate data from the past 30 years. The map, based on average minimum winter temperatures, is used by gardeners and growers to determine which plants will thrive at a given location. It was last updated in 1990. In addition to better representing our current climate, the new zones are also more precise, accounting for subtle elevation changes, urban heat islands and effects from bodies of water. Not surprisingly, warmer zones are creeping northward.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Lemon & orange grove on Route 46 near Cambria, CA. </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Photo: author</span></i></td></tr>
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Interesting microclimates show up if you view the individual state maps (also a new feature). Urban heat islands push some metro areas into the next warmest zone, including Charleston, SC and Philadelphia. The Great Lakes have a counterintuitive warming effect in Ohio, making Cleveland better for growing things than Columbus. Probably the most dramatic contrast is the transect from California's Central Valley to the Sierra Nevada to the east, representing most of the hardiness zones of the Lower 48.<br />
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I'm amazed by how warm the Pacific Northwest is, though the January camelia blooms visible outside my window attest to our mild winters. Portland and Seattle are in the same hardiness zone as the Florida Panhandle. Perhaps I should try citrus farming.<br />
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Thanks to Zone 6b residents Bryan Cope and Drew Sonntag for sharing this news.<br />
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Link: <a href="http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/?loc=interstitialskip#">http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/?loc=interstitialskip#</a><br />Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8592661028488951223.post-90117111114488891882012-01-18T00:27:00.000-08:002012-01-18T00:27:24.160-08:00Downtown Groceries<br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At roughly the turn of the millennium, people began returning in earnest to live in American city centers, after 50 years of urban flight (and urban blight). Young adults and baby boomers have been particularly attracted to the amenities, lifestyle and lower-maintenance dwellings that city centers have to offer. Living downtown means being steps from great restaurants, nightlife, public plazas, and cultural offerings like museums and concerts. Developers responded in the last real estate boom, augmenting downtown skylines with shiny condo towers. But one staple of modern living has been slow to join the downtown migration: the full-service grocery store.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Until recently, most downtown pioneers had to trek to the suburbs to shop at an acceptable, full-service grocery store, interspersed with emergency visits to the nearest "bodega." Many are still forced to do this. It comes down to a simple population equation that large grocers have used for decades. During the suburbanization of the mid and late 20th century, people moved to the suburbs en masse, then grocery stores followed them a few years later. Now, large grocers are similarly waiting for a critical mass in urban neighborhoods before building new stores there. Most large grocers use fairly rigid demographic formulas to determine where and when to build. In addition to total population counts, they also examine socio-economic indicators like median family income and household size. These corporate formulas often determine whether you’ll see a Whole Foods, Safeway, Aldi, or nothing at all (a.k.a. “food desert”) in your downtown.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So how are American downtowns doing in the grocery department? If there are grocery stores, do they sell fresh, healthy food? If so, is it affordable? Open at reasonable hours? Clean? Anecdotally, it’s a mixed bag (pun not initially intended).</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Portland is doing quite well, with two Safeways and a Whole Foods in the city center. While many dub the latter “Whole Paycheck,” few would refute its range of healthy, high quality offerings. Whole Foods seems to be the bellwether of a revitalizing, repopulating (and some would say gentrifying) downtown, and is often a ground-floor anchor in full-block mixed-use redevelopments. Philadelphia has one on South Street. Chicago has one near the Magnificent Mile. There are seven of them on the island of Manhattan, including one three blocks north of the 9/11 Memorial. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Safeway also sells plenty of wholesome food to downtown dwellers, and without the sticker shock. Other mid-level grocers stepping up to the urban plate include Marsh, which renovated an art-deco building in downtown Indianapolis, and Publix, which built an exhaustingly ornate store to fit downtown design guidelines in Fort Myers, Florida.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">But my pal Pasqual tells me that reliable groceries are hard to find in downtown Denver. A Google search shows a suburban-style Safeway one mile east in a transitional neighborhood, and a small natural grocery in LoDo, but no centrally-located, full-service grocery store. Pickins are even slimmer in downtown Phoenix, Houston and Atlanta, where downtown residential development is similarly scant.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Small cities have even greater challenges attracting or maintaining downtown grocers. It’s not that people don’t live in the centers of small cities like Fort Wayne, Indiana or Springfield, Missouri. It’s that the big grocery chains would prefer to build anew on suburban greenfield sites using boilerplate designs that include ample parking, rather than customize a store in a tight urban neighborhood. And the markets in these small cities are not hot enough to build creative mixed-use developments like the Pearl District Safeway or the South Street Whole Foods. In some cases, classism may be at work. I can say from experience there are no full-service grocery stores in the centers of neighboring cities Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton, Pennsylvania, even though these are the most densely populated portions of the Lehigh Valley. The corporate formulas must not favor neighborhoods with poor people.</span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlQo-YBbXehIUGw_ZRDFRpXbLd_ost5j6iPr9U7jh9YkFfq61GFQJatO9IU2xY1QNNGl8wM4Fn8IpwAiAD81-m3oTMcHSYnjLS19fbpJCXiG64mqCjKK8i2yRWO2nTeVqERhf7X4sSK0h/s1600/Picture+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlQo-YBbXehIUGw_ZRDFRpXbLd_ost5j6iPr9U7jh9YkFfq61GFQJatO9IU2xY1QNNGl8wM4Fn8IpwAiAD81-m3oTMcHSYnjLS19fbpJCXiG64mqCjKK8i2yRWO2nTeVqERhf7X4sSK0h/s640/Picture+3.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lehigh Valley, PA full-service grocery stores, including Weis (red), Valley Farm Market (pink), Giant (yellow), Fresh Market (green), Target (aqua), Walmart (blue), Wegmans (purple). Major city centers shown with question marks. Notice they are at least 2 miles from grocery stores.</span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Some would argue that a large, full-service, chain grocery is not the only, nor the best, solution to having healthy, affordable food at your downtown doorstep. After all, in most world cities, grocery shopping is a gathering act. Parisians stay fit not just by eating healthy food, but also by walking between the various small specialty markets (boulangeries, fromageries, etc.) where they buy it. Grocery shopping in Asia and Africa is often a trip to a central market with hundreds of family vendors. A handful of American cities have something similar - Seattle and Baltimore included. But in most of the United States, we are accustomed to “going to the store.” And not just any store, but a known, reliable, full-service store that we trust.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Can you get decent groceries in your downtown?</span></span></span></div>Steve Szigethyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08540967496415323589noreply@blogger.com1