Retrofitting Suburban Neighborhoods into Walkable Communities

This is a great article from The Wall Street Journal about the retrofit of existing suburban neighborhoods into walkable, mixed-use development. Here is my summary:

Many individuals who moved to the suburbs in search of privacy, elbow room, and/or affordability have since aged. Now elderly, these individuals are beginning to realize that these suburbs are a tough place to grow old with the burden of maintaining yards and driving everywhere for anything. Many are now realizing that this privacy has now become isolation. According to studies however, the majority of these older adults don’t want to leave; they want to age in place. Many suburban cities are pursuing to fix these problems by retrofitting existing suburban neighborhoods into more livable, “lifelong communities.” The idea is to retrofit the single-family neighborhoods with more housing options (such as row houses, condominiums, and town homes) and more walking destinations such as shopping, restaurants, services, and other amenities. It is essentially the spawn of New Urbanism. In order to accomplish these retrofits, a host of various planning and design disciplines is required to address things such as zoning codes and transportation networks.

One example of a suburban retrofit is in Lakewood, CO which converted a collapsing shopping mall into a mixed-use neighborhood where people could live, work, and play. Other cities such as Fayetteville, GA, a suburb of Atlanta, are currently looking at opportunities for retrofitting their suburban neighborhoods. In fact, Atlanta’s suburbs are leading this idea of suburban retrofits with the help of planning and architectural firm Duany Plater-Zyberk. Their design of the Fayetteville retrofit includes greenway paths, a shuttle bus to shopping and health services, and improved links among neighborhoods. According to an Atlanta developer, the challenge is getting all of the many stakeholders involved to collaborate and work together. Financing is another major concern. However, according to Duany, the recession has actually forced planners, builders, and developers to consider alternatives to conventional suburban developments.

This article reminds me of my grandparents, now 88 and 78, who live on 3 acres in a suburban neighborhood. They previously owned 5 acres but sold the lot next door because my grandfather could no longer maintain it. He is no longer able to drive and my grandmother is beginning to slow down as well.

Highlands Plantation "features exterior design similar to the look of the Cotton District"

I selected Highlands Plantation as one of my community studies for our second project. I'm sure most of you are familiar with this conventional, clustered, cookie-cutter neighborhood. While doing my research, I stumbled across Garden Homes of Highlands Plantation website. According to their site, the garden homes in Highlands are "built motivated by traditional core values of quality, featuring exterior design similar to the look of the 'Cotton District', a historical downtown area of Starkville." I'm not so sure about that, but I could be biased since I am a resident of the Cotton District - a mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented, historic neighborhood.

Highlands Plantation













VERSUS

The Cotton District

Consumers could see a 40% price increase on energy-related bills

According to a recent article in MyBusiness, a new legislative plan could hike energy prices by up to 40 percent to individuals and businesses. This new energy policy plan would place hidden taxes on energy-related utility costs. Congress’ proposal, a cap and trade system, would require businesses which emit greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide) to purchase governmental credits to offset their emissions. Under this system, businesses who stay below their specified level can sell their remaining credits to other businesses, thus allowing them to pollute more. (Sounds like a great plan to me.. sarcasm). Even businesses which emit minimal levels of greenhouse gases would experience price increases through their utility bills; since utility providers emit a significant amount of greenhouse gases, the price increase would be passed along to businesses and consumers. The government sees it as a win-win situation: environmentalists get regulation of emissions and politicians get tax money. (Notice they say "regulation" and not "reduction." Someone needs to get their priorities straight).

So where does the additional tax money go? Congress wants to use the additional revenues to fund the new government-provided healthcare program. President Obama is obviously in favor of the plan admitting that “under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.” How much, an estimated $1300 average annual increase to families’ energy-related bills.

One small business owner, Douglass Henry, suggests a better solution would be for the government to offer credits and grants to businesses for installing energy-efficient equipment. He thinks small businesses could greatly benefit from it, and it would promote conservation of our natural resources. (Sounds more logical to me).

According to a figure in the article, Mississippi ranks as “medium” in its level of vulnerability to an energy tax.

Congress for New Urbanism Video

I found a video on CNU's website that is promoting new urbanism. It kind of reminds me of Taze's "ticky tacky" video. Pretty cool video. May be a good "introduction to new urbanism" video for a class lecture to the undergrads.

Sprint's Misleading Advertisement

I stumbled across a full one page ad for Sprint (see right and click to enlarge) on the back of August 2009 Builder magazine that I thought was somewhat misleading. Their punch line: "You're linking cities, people, and life - and keeping order in a precarious world of beams, cables, concrete, and steel." Linking cities (sprawl), I can see that. Linking people (auto-dependency), I see that too. Linking life....? Maybe its just me, but the fish and the bear (assuming both are forms of life) aren't exactly being linked. In fact, they are leaving the picture.. literally. Did Sprint miss the whole "green", "ecological", "environmentally-friendly" movement occuring in the world?

Needless to say, the world of beams, cables, concrete, and steel is so precarious. Oh, and Nextel's got you covered "even if you're atop a crane and your crew is across the river." I could be mistaken, but I'm pretty sure your crew member across the river is "push-to-talking" you atop the bridge tower. I'm not sure why you'd be atop a crane anyways! OSHA!

Maybe I'm being too critical. Sorry Sprint!

The sense of smell

An article in the Boston Globe covered an exhibition held at the Harvard Graduate School of Design titled "Ecological Urbanism" (I stumbled across this while doing research for Taze's project). One seemingly popular exhibit, known as "Talking Nose", included a display of 200 samples of air from 200 neighborhoods in Mexico City. Each bottle was labeled with responses from individuals who smelled the samples and reported their findings. The artist, Sissel Tolaas, conducted the experiment to point out how the sense of smell is traditionally disregarded from our "sensory experience" in life. When it is regarded, its typically a negative sensory of something "smelling bad." Responses to the bottled smells included: "Rusty, sweet and old" and "pleasant, aromatic, light, perfume, flowers, vanilla." When's the last time you experienced a place with simply your nose? I can't recall.




Image Source: The Boston Globe

Two Lakes or Not Two Lakes

A recent article in the Clarion-Ledger covers the story of the decade old "Two Lakes" project being proposed for Jackson, MS. The project is being proposed to prevent a devastating flood like that of the Easter Flood of 1979 from flooding Jackson residences and businesses again. There are basically three parties involved: the Corps of Engineers (who control the land and have the final say), the Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District (the project board or "mediator"), and private developers (pushing an economic lake development).

The Corps and the developers have different views. The Corps is proposing a levee-only system, while the private developers are envisioning new commercial/residential development, parks, puplic space, and lake development (see below). The plan sounds great, but can Jackson support this type of development? Its downtown area is by no means thriving with is current vacant, run-down buildings.

Source: twolakesms.com



Alternatively, the Corps has concluded that a levee-only plan is the most feasible solution (an engineered solution to say the least), but states that any type of lake development would create adverse impacts to the environment (yes, building in the flood plain would do that).

I don't know whose side to take, but the questions I raise are: If the ultimate goal with the project is flood control, what will be the base water level in the lake? Will the lake have capacity to withstand flood waters? Will the development look like a mud flat half of the year?