Archive for the 'Urban Planning' Category

The Week in Review…

Published
by
Tony Garcia
on June 20, 2008
in Bruno Barreiro, Carlos Alvarez, Commission, Transit, Tri-Rail, Uncategorized, Urban Planning and Urban Transit
. 0 Comments

Lots went on this week in transit and I for one am exhausted. I know we have been silent these past few weeks on what has been happening, and speaking for myself, I didn’t have anything new to add to the discussion that I had not already said before. MDT is having problems, ridership is up, and the people in charge are asleep at the wheel. Does that sum it up? Not to be frivolous, but if we don’t laugh about this we’ll go crazy.

There are no quick fixes. We are fast approaching a time when people realize that not having a transit system in place is the same as not having adequate sewers or electricity. We are living up to our image as a Banana Republic, and unfortunately some of those so-called Banana Republic’s down south are much better off transit-wise than we are.

This morning on NPR Houston Mayor Bill White talked about the challenges facing his city. In light of the Mayor’s Conference going on today, I thought it appropriate to show how another car-centered modern city is dealing with not having adequate mass transit:

“We need to reorder the way we live. … Mass transit is critical. More people are using mass transit in our community, it’s up sharply this year. We’re going to be the most aggressive builder of light rail lines of any community in the United States in the next three years. …. We don’t have to encourage people, they get it. There’s a tremendous demand for people who want ot give up that car, or go from two cars to one, and live near that transit line. … We really don’t have to channel what consumers want (as far as density), but we do have tools such as where we put our infrastructure …. Some communities that have had zoning are trying to dismantle it because it segregates (uses) … We’ve had large changes in behavior. No question about it, we’ll be bigger, we’ll be denser. There’s a new attitude cropping up every day when somebody fills up their tank.”
This is from this morning. Mind you loyal readers, Houston is not a bastion of urban living, but to hear their mayor say these things gives me hope. Our leadership needs to take their cue from Mayor White, or any of the other US cities that have renewed their commitment to transit by investing in new lines (Charlotte, Denver, Atlanta..etc)
Our leaders are to blame for this debacle. No question. The Commission has repeatedly made bad choices. This week they finally came to their senses (and took some Transit Miami advice) by restoring some independance and credibility to the People’s Trust. This is a good first step.
Lets review what else those crazy commishes said these past few weeks:
Chairman Bruno said that he wants to repeal the half cent tax. Are you crazy? Why are you even talking about repealing the half cent tax when it is helping fund our system. Just because you “prognosticated” (his word) that the half cent would not be enough to deliver on the promises, doesn’t mean that you should toss the baby with the bathwater.
Commissioner Souto played silly politics with the changes in bus routes. Thanks to Larry L. for researching how much those routes were costing us. It is that sort of cost/benefit analysis that will lead to a functional system. Commissioner Souto: you are just like the other posturers on the Commission: you talk the big talk, but when it comes time to it you don’t care about transit at all. Your choices reveal that much and more (like when you voted against refurbishing our metro cars ten years ago only to have it cost three times as much now).
Commissioner Jordan, I believe you have your constituents interests at heart. Unfortunately, where good planning and budgeting has been replaced with stopgap measures and half hearted attempts at compromise, your constituents are the ones who suffer. Our friends at “Eye on Miami” recently posted a letter you wrote about the UDB controversy. Your vote for moving the UDB shows how as a commissioner you have supported the faulty planning that has put us in this situation. I for one don’t think that the Orange Line North is a good idea. That line misses most pockets of density we have in Dade County. Next time there is a UDB vote think about the density you should be supporting along corridors like 27th Avenue, rather than expanding the limit of county services.
Remaining Commissioners: wake up! When are you going to take a positive position. I applaud Chairman Bruno for at least making a suggestion, however unpopular. I don’t think that another half cent would be bad, but the Commission’s credibility is shot right now.
My biggest disappointment has been Mayor Alvarez’s total absence from this discussion. Where is the strong mayor that you lobbied so intensely for? I know you inherited a big problem, but you convinced me and a lot of fellow citizens that you were the man for the job. Where are you now?
Listen up: we need transit. Multiple lines need to be built at the same time. The only way this is going to happen is if we float a bond dedicated to building these lines. This will be unpopular, but someone needs to take the lead…
PS. Looks like Tri-Rail is here for another year! Thank You Palm Beach for not killing our only success story. Woo hoo! More on this later…

The week in transit

Published
by
Tony Garcia
on May 29, 2008
in Barbara Jordan, Bruno Barreiro, CITT, MDX, Metromover, Miami Commission, Miami Dade, Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade Transit, PTP, Tri-Rail, Trolley, US Department of Transportation, Urban Planning and Urban Transit
. 14 Comments

A lot happened this week behind the scenes and between the lines. Here is a review:

Kudos to this editorial today from El Nuevo Herald columnist Daniel Shoer Roth. I think he did an excellent job in highlighting how mismanaged our transit system is. Accountability goes out the window when ten different departments and municipalities are ‘responsible’ for certain aspects of mass transit. I’m always talking about how our system is ‘mismanaged’ but that really isn’t the case at all. It’s a question of priorities, and transit has not historically been one of them.

Our planning priorities were on full display this past weekend in an insert produced by the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) that the Herald included in its Sunday edition. The insert describes work done to date and future projects. If you are not familiar with the MPO, it is a County run organization that is charged with coordinating the various transportation projects around Miami-Dade, as required by Federal Department of Transportation rules. Their mandate is described on their website is:

“…to have a continuing, cooperative and comprehensive transportation planning process that results in plans and programs that consider all transportation modes and support metropolitan community development and social goals. These plans and programs shall lead to the development and operation of an integrated, intermodal transportation system that facilitates the efficient, economic movement of people and goods.” (emphasis added)

Many worthy goals, but unfortunately their focus is more on expressway and road building projects than on balancing roads with mass transit. My favorite part of the insert is titled “Miami-Dade: Urban Travel Trends” which utilizes graphs, bright colors, and a lot of traffic engineer lingo (vehicle miles traveled, peak period speeds, etc), with only a brief mention of transit under a graph called ‘Transit Mode Share’. The text accompanying the graph states, “the countywide transit mode share in 2005 was approximately 2.5%” It goes on to say that share will grow, “albeit modestly.” Ok. I find it disillusioning that the organization supposedly responsible for coordinating our transit system is not very optimistic about the future growth of MDT.

Truth be told, after this week’s political farce concerning tranist fares and another half cent tax, I might tend to agree with the MPO. Our future transit does not look so good because the people responsible are alseep at the wheel. Commisioners Bruno and Barbs: wake up!! You have have been reaching in the dark these past few weeks trying to placate your constituents. I know this issue gets heated and personal. Let me be clear: this is not a personal attack. It makes it difficult for those of us who are transit advocates and who supported the first tax increase to justify anything you ask for now because of how the money has been squandered. Surely you can understand that. Next week I am going to work on a series of posts on how the People’s Transportation Tax has been spent to bring to light how that opportunity has been, and continues to be, botched.
If you really care about transit, and Commissioner Jordan I think you care about getting the Orange Line built, here are a few recommendations that can serve as confidence building measures that might make any fare or tax increase palatable:

  • Make the Citizens Independent Transportation Trust the sole entity responsible for deciding what happens to that money. Give it back its teeth, and allow it to do its job.
  • Charge veterans and the elderly. We can’t give away transit that doesn’t exist yet. Until MDT gets its house in order, they should be charged, albeit at a reduced rate that should be revisited when MDT’s finances get better. MDT needs income, and the Trust shouldn’t be responsible for giving it an allowance every month.
  • Charge for the Metromover. Same reasons as above.
  • Have MDT work with the Trust. Recent reports from Miami Today describe how the Trust is having a tough time getting cooperation from MDT with regard to budget issues. How is the Trust supposed to operate if it doesn’t know how much the system costs to maintain?? This is silly.

Note to Mayor Carlos Alvarez: the strong mayor powers you wanted came with responsibilities, ie. get MDT organized. How can they run the business of Miami-Dade Transit without a budget. Helloo?? Not to put all the blame on you though, as you’ve only really been in charge for a short while.

  • Tie the 20% Municipal Transportation Plan funding to transit specifically, not transportation which has become synonymous with roads and expressways. A majority of payments to municipalities have been spent on roads, resurfacing, and other road related infrastructure. The PTP was marketed primarily as a transit plan. Spend money on rail, buses, and the infrastructure related to these much needed systems. Our roads are in fine shape. That way projects like the Coral Gables Trolley continue to get funding, while other money is free to be spent on, oh, I don’t know, maybe a few bus shelters (around International Mall maybe)?
  • Increase fares to be consistent with our how efficient our system is. Don’t over do it. We want to pay for our transit, but we want to get something in return.

You need to rebuild our confidence in your ability to provide us with a functional and growing transit system. Very soon public perception of transit in this community is going to turn from being a nonessential ’social good’ to an indispensable and basic part of the infrastructure of the city. When that happens, when people start to feel like they have no choice but to get in their cars at $8.00 a gallon, watch out Commissioners and company. The mob will be ruthless, and the storming of the Bastille will seem like a trip to Disneyworld in comparison to your worth in the public eye.

Celebration of Disconnectedness

Published
by
Sean Bossinger
on March 11, 2008
in Celebration, EPCOT, Transit and Urban Planning
. 3 Comments
On the Tomorrowland Transit Authority this past week, I passed a model of Walt Disney’s original plan for an Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT). I got to thinking: “I wonder how many people passing this model on a daily basis know that the Walt Disney Company actually tried their own hand at an experimental community, albeit on a smaller scale?”
Celebration sits on roughly 5,000 acres at the southern end of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the same parcel of land on which the Walt Disney World resort is built. While billed as small-town americana, Celebration is actually considered a census-designated place (CDP): It is an unincorporated master-planned community with slightly under 10,000 residents, as of 2004 American Community Survey data.

Walk through the streets of Celebration and you’ll enjoy a very clean, crisp atmosphere. Everything is in its place, all of the shops and homes are freshly painted, lawns are manicured, and yes, those apartments above the shops are real apartments. There’s a small “downtown” core of shops, restaurants, a movie theater, schools… inhabitants of the community are encouraged to use their NEVs (Neighborhood Electric Vehicles… think, golf carts) to get around town. Just about everything has been thought of.

Forget, though, about affordable housing in this “mixed” community: two bedroom, two bathroom condo-style homes go for $400,000. The nearest mainline transit links are the route 55 and 56 Lynx buses that run on US 192, approximately two miles to the north, too far to be walked on a regular basis. These are quite possibly the fundamental explanations for why there are no people milling about the center of the community.

While the Walt Disney World company wasn’t trying to recreate Walt Disney’s vision of EPCOT with the founding of Celebration, they were definitely reaching back to try to recapture the small-town feeling of pre-1950s America. While they made a valiant effort, like so many of these new, master-planned communities, they’ve missed their mark. Without a connection to some sort of mainline transit, and without affordable housing, the Walt Disney Company excluded a huge portion of America that wants to live this quintessentially American dream: living, working, and playing all within walking distance of one’s home.

–Photo courtesy of Picasa Web Photos

Thursday Quote: Density

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on January 24, 2008
in Andres Duany, Density, Thursday Quote and Urban Planning
. 0 Comments
“Higher density housing offers an inferior lifestyle only when it is without a community as its setting.”

- Andres Duany

Mid-Week News and Commentary

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on January 17, 2008
in Bayfront, Congestion, FDOT, FIU, Kendall, MLS, Manny Diaz, Metrorail, Norman Braman, Orange Bowl, Palmetto Bay, Parsons/Odebrecht, Port Tunnel, Sprawl, Streetcar and Urban Planning
. 7 Comments
It somehow always seems that when Transit/Development news flares up, so do events in our personal lives. In any case, here are some of the top news stories this week, some of which we’ll get around to commenting on:

Local:

  • The next phase of the Metrorail extension hasn’t even broken ground and already the cost overruns have begun. This time Parson’s is looking for an additional $13 million in “Consultant fees.” I’m not specifically implicating that Parsons has something to do with this, but, I find it intriguing that nearly every project they’ve worked on locally (Miami Intermodal Center, MIA North Terminal, MIA South Terminal, PAC, Boston’s Big Dig, etc.) has come in way over budget. Is there something we don’t know, or is it really that easy to bilk the county out of money once you’re hired to do contracting/engineering/management work? I guess choosing the French construction giant Bouygues Travaux Publics, wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
  • Top issues for Kendall this year? Forget Cityhood, how about congestion, lots of it. It’s only getting worse too as years pass and opportunities for real transit come and go (Tri-Rail Kendall link anyone?) If the Kendall community fears Tri-Rail trains traveling down an existing ROW behind their houses or an “unsightly” elevated rail down Kendall drive is going to lower their property values, just wait and see the nose dive congestion will cause. At least the recent efforts have paused (momentarily) foolish FDOT hopes of expanding Killian to 6 lanes west of 137th Avenue. Perhaps Kendall residents are beginning to realize that the car isn’t a viable solution…
  • Like him or not, Manny Diaz has a Vision. We’ll dig into this much more in depth soon…
  • I’m liking the looks of a final panel report on the UDB. Key part of this would require 3/4 of commissioners to move the line for projects and would bring in an outside firm to redraw the line.
  • Live Nation is set to bring yet more events to Bayfront Park. Can’t a Park just be a Park? I’m not arguing against the Museums, those are neccessary, but why does Bayfront need so many attractions to make it successful? I think the park would induce more local use if there was less cement and far more shade trees, just a thought…
  • The Federal DOT has given MDT a grant to purchase 16 hybrid express buses for the new HOT lane project on I-95. The buses will travel from downtown Miami to Ft. Lauderdale. Now can we please modernize the system and implement farecards (and new machines) that are transferable on all 3 local agencies?
  • Don’t ride Transit, Buy a BMW…No seriously, Norman Braman wants you to buy a BMW and skip out on urban life…Oh, more on this soon…However, please follow this link for some laughable signs of hypocrisy…
  • Gasp! This first paragraph says it all: “The [Palmetto Bay] Village Council approved a special permit allowing a new commercial development to put all of its parking spaces on the street at a zoning hearing Monday.” Note: A special permit. I know this is a young, incorporated bedroom community and all, but seriously, can we get some logical planning oversight around there? (In Case you missed it, we’re glad to see the use of on street parking in this and other bedroom communities…This shouldn’t be a special instance, but, rather the norm….)
  • Watering rules in effect now till forever. Green lawns aren’t a necessity folks…
National:
  • Cape Cod wind farm moves one crucial step closer to disturbing a bunch of rich folks’ “pristine” views…
  • Northern Virginia (and Atlanta) is getting closer to funding a new streetcar. Not enough BMW dealers in the area I guess…

Metro Monday: Vancouver’s Canada Line

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on January 14, 2008
in Automated People Mover, Canada, Canada Line, Rapid Transit, Skyway, Urban Growth, Urban Planning and Vancouver
. 2 Comments

“At a length of nearly 19 km, the Canada Line will be an automated rapid transit rail service connecting Downtown Vancouver with central Richmond and the Vancouver International Airport — linking growing residential, business, health care, educational and other centres in the region — and adding transit capacity equivalent to 10 major road lanes. The Canada Line will connect with existing rapid transit lines at Waterfront Station and major east-west transit services, creating an enhanced transit network to serve the region in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The line is expected to carry 100,000 passengers per day at launch and 142,000 passengers by 2021. Travel times southbound from downtown Vancouver will be 25 minutes to Richmond Centre and 26 minutes to the airport terminus. Northbound, trains will leave Richmond City Centre and YVR every six minutes heading to Vancouver. The departures will be coordinated to allow for a train every three minutes on the main line in Vancouver.”

Mecca Farms = Mega Sprawl?

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on January 4, 2008
in Automobile Dependence, FAU, Land Use, Mecca Farms, Oil, Palm Beach, Scripps, Sprawl, Urban Development Boundary and Urban Planning
. 5 Comments

Remember the debacle which erupted in Palm Beach when attempting to identify a location for the massive Scripps Institute? Mecca Farms and Boca Raton were all suggested as alternative sites for the massive Bioresearch center, however in the end, a location in Jupiter near FAU’s campus was selected. In the end, here is why the Mecca Farms site fell apart:

The plan came to a halt two years later when a federal judge sided with environmentalists and ruled that the project’s potential environmental impacts hadn’t been adequately studied. Under deadline pressure, commissioners moved the Scripps Florida headquarters to a smaller, urban site at Florida Atlantic University’s MacArthur campus in Jupiter.

Somehow, the voice of reason prevails over absurd westward development, even if it was for a monumental institution; this project had absolutely no reason to pave over thousands of acres of farmland. Palm Beach County paid $60 million for the Mecca Farms complex and is now trying to figure out what to do with the rural designated land. Considering the reasons why the institution was blocked from building here, their “ideas” may surprise you:

More than four years after the county bought the 1,919-acre property with a sprawling Scripps Florida science campus in mind, commissioners are taking steps to usher in a new reality: suburban home development.

Suburban home development? How is this environmentally friendly? Well, it isn’t but they have some ideas which are actually worse:

County administrators want to use about 100 acres for a landfill, set aside land for water marshes and environmental improvements and package the rest for home builders.

Palm Beach County has the unique opportunity to conserve thousands of acres as farmland, able of producing enough goods to satisfy the needs of much of the South Florida area. This is a pristine opportunity to make our region sustainable, by actually producing food locally and Palm Beach County commissioners are looking to throw it away on yet another ridiculous sprawled out single family home compound. With oil recently reaching $100 a barrel, I am shocked to see still autocentric development mindset…

Metro Monday: Vienna’s Streetcars

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on December 24, 2007
in Austria, Braman, Miami 21, Strassenbahn, Streetcar, Tram, Urban Planning, Vienna and complete streets
. 5 Comments

A Giant Leap in the Right Direction

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on December 19, 2007
in Commission, Manny Diaz, Marlins, Marlins Stadium, Miami, Miami-Dade County, Orange Bowl, Port Tunnel, Port of Miami, Resolution, Streetcar and Urban Planning
. 5 Comments
I attended today’s county commission meeting to voice my support for many of the projects, particularly the port of Miami Tunnel and the Streetcar. I sat through all 10 hours of testimony and discussion, at times observing our commissioners running around in circles. Hours of discourse could have likely been saved had all the elected members realized from the very beginning that today’s resolution did not guarantee any of these projects but merely paved a path for all of them to return to the commission for approval at a later point in time. The only time sensitive resolution fully moving forward after today’s vote was the Port of Miami Tunnel, already previously approved by the County. Below is a copy of the speech I presented to the commission:
My name is Gabriel J. Lopez-Bernal; I am a transportation engineer, urban planning student, and local sustainable planning advocate from transitmiami.com. I am here today to voice my unconditional support for the plan sitting before you; a plan that will revolutionize the city of Miami and will make urban life a real possibility for more county residents.

Miami Streetcar
The Miami streetcar will serve a vital role in the future development of our city. It will serve as an economic catalyst for the entire county by guaranteeing mobility where it is needed most; our downtown core. Contrary to the suburban sprawl most of this commission voted in favor of a few weeks prior, the streetcar will allow the county and city to continue growing in an ecologically and financially sustainable manner for years to come. I cannot begin to quantify the economic benefits our entire community will experience through this measure. Most importantly, the streetcar provides the means with which to construct some truly affordable housing, located within easy reach and facilitating life not governed by the economic constraint of owning a vehicle for personal independence.

Port Tunnel
The benefits the port of Miami tunnel will provide are twofold: providing direct easy access to and from our second largest economic engine and perhaps more importantly, ridding our newly emerging downtown urban center of the traffic, smog, and noise pollution produced by these vehicles daily. The reduction of these nuisances in our city center will foster a hospitable urban environment.

An unprecedented resolution sits before you today aimed at simultaneously solving some of the transit, infrastructure, and societal needs of this community. As is the case with most plans of this size, it isn’t without its share of flaws; however, the economic and intangible benefits these upgrades will produce should be enough to outweigh any of your reservations. I ask that the commission take the necessary steps today to propel Miami into a new, sustainable future.

Po’D Answer: Las Vegas, Sprawlvada!

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on December 12, 2007
in Flickr, Las Vegas, Miami, Parks, Pic o' the Day, Sprawl, Suburbia and Urban Planning
. 1 Comment
I’m assuming everyone would have figured out what city was featured in yesterday’s Pic o’ the Day had I placed this picture up instead:I’m surprised nobody could realize that was Duck Creek Park sitting right smack in the middle of all those housing sectors. The point of the Pic o’ the Day was to illustrate just how drab and boring our suburban lives in suburbia have become. As rd commented in the previous post:
“I still believe it’s somewhere in Miami visible by plane. I’ve seen Miami out of a plane before and it looks just like that photo.”

I’ve seen it too and it’s revolting. I can guarantee you (and I will) that I can find pictures of thousands of suburbs across the country that all look like they could be here in our own backyard. Kendall, most of Broward, South Dade, nearly all of Palm Beach, etc. is quickly becoming a mass of featureless suburban plight. Cookie cutter houses, laid out on arbitrarily curvy streets which connect to a few major connector roads, all of which are littered with drive-thru everythings and strip shopping centers. There is no sense of place or community because this isn’t a place (or a community!) just a soulless blob stretching out radially from every former nucleic city center…

To be continued…

Pic o’ the Day: Neighborhood Edition, Part 2

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on December 11, 2007
in Bedroom Communities, Livable Neighborhoods, Parks, Pic o' the Day, Pictures Flickr, Planning, Sprawl and Urban Planning
. 15 Comments
Last week’s Pic o’ the day featured a very memorable, walkable, and livable neighborhood in Philadelphia. Today’s picture is just the opposite, exemplifying much of the construction occurring all across the American landscape. Try and see if you can figure out where this blandness is located. The point of this photograph is to illustrate the lack of creativity associated with urban sprawl. Developers are creating homogeneous housing areas which completely lack a sense of space or community. The available public space is poorly distributed, houses are sectioned off in quadrants inaccessible to pedestrians, and the whole neighborhood suffers from the lack of any memorable structures. I’d be surprised if anyone can guess where this place is…

Transitography 42: Boston’s Back Bay

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on December 3, 2007
in Boston, Design District, Livable Neighborhoods, Miami 21, Pedestrians, Urban Design and Urban Planning
. 3 Comments
One of the best examples of how to create a vibrant, pedestrian accessible, and dense neighborhood is in Boston along the Back Bay. The dense row houses, some of which have been converted into mixed use structures (along Newbury street, Commonwealth Avenue, and Boylston) create a dense yet comfortable living environment. Public park space is amply provided along the Charles River Esplanade, Commonwealth Avenue, and the city’s central park (the Boston Common and Public Gardens) which anchors the eastern portion of this quaint neighborhood. Boston’s Back bay embodies many of the principles envisioned in Miami 21, including stepped structural height increases, reduced setbacks, on street parking, and canopy/park space requirements. Miami’s design district would be ideal for similar development and the Miami streetcar, like the green line which runs adjacent to the Back Bay, would only further bolster the livability of this neighborhood.

The Sprawl Gameplan: You Idle West, I’ll Ride the Rails East

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on November 29, 2007
in Joe Martinez, Katy Sorenson, Kendall, Lowes, Miami, Public Transit, Sprawl, Sustainability, UDB, Urban Growth and Urban Planning
. 7 Comments

Alrighty folks, I think I’ve started to crack the Miami-Dade County Commission’s playbook for planning and it’s not pretty; looks like the Dolphin’s offense, running in 20 different directions and effectively getting us nowhere. The best choreographed transportation network couldn’t support the kind of cross county movement commuters will likely be doing once 600,000 square foot office compounds are completed on the western fringes of the county (keep in mind the recently approved Kendall project is one of many, others are “planned” further north along the turnpike around Doral.) It appears that our makeshift planners on the commission (in addition to believing that bridges over avenues in sprawl ridden neighborhoods will alleviate traffic congestion) are deciding to essentially sandwich residential development between two opposite commercial “hubs”, one vertical and on the coast, the other sprawled out and mosquito ridden over former wetlands in the west.

It’s interesting to see such a dramatic commercial development juxtaposition occur within such a confined region. While the equivalent of 3 600,000 square foot, LEED certified office skyscrapers (Met 2, 600 Brickell, and 1450 Brickell) rise in our transit accessible downtown core, our commissioners believe it is sound planning to offset them with at least 1 sprawling complex.


West Kendall Baptist Hospital plans…

What irks me most is the marketing ploy to promote the Kendall complex as a commercial center. Central to who exactly when it’s located on Kendall and 167th is beyond me, but I’m assuming that pretty soon the commute from Naples will be quicker than from within some other parts of the county.

Martinez fought for the plan — arguing that developer David Brown promised to build a long-sought road connecting Kendall Drive to a nearby residential complex. It was a job, Martinez said, that the county couldn’t complete.

Sorenson took exception: “Should we make policy decisions based on what developers are going to do for us? Seems to me we ought to be making the policy.”

Forget what is in the best interests of Citizens let’s fight for developer’s rights to exploit our land, water, and natural resources to make a quick buck!

West Kendall “Center” will likely resemble this aerial from a complex in Birmingham. You can spot the telltale signs of sprawl easily. 1) Squat, warehouse-like buildings covering near acres of land each. 2) Enough surrounding surface parking to accommodate the one day of the year where parking might become an issue. 3) Like a tree, all branches of the sprawl connect to one main arterial road, forcing all visitors to the “mixed use” development to enter and exit through this one opening. 4) A highway nearby (bottom right) to accommodate the hordes of vehicles coming off from the already clogged arterials roads. 5) Trees are confined to medians not sidewalks because the sidewalks (if they exist) won’t be used anyway.

Obviously, Lowes is a good fit for the Sprawl environment with its massive horizontal structure and acres of parking…

The Lowe’s vote commanded the most attention. Twice since 2003 representatives of the home improvement giant have tried to convince commissioners to let them build outside the UDB; both times they were denied.

Tuesday they cracked through — even as dozens of people lined up to speak against the plan to build on 52 acres at Southwest Eighth Street and 137th Avenue.

Said Julie Hill: “Further sprawl will exacerbate climate change in South Florida.”

Added John Wade: “We should have a water recycling program working before there’s any attempt to move the UDB.”

But Humberto Sanchez, who lives about 25 blocks from the proposed Lowe’s site, told the story of a recent shopping venture to buy light bulbs. “It took me an incredible amount of time to buy light bulbs at Home Depot.”

Oh Boohoo…

Interesting side note: you would not believe how difficult it is to find pictures of Sprawl and suburban office complexes despite how common they are in the American Landscape. Just further proof that we keep building places that aren’t photographic, let alone even livable. Finding a decent picture of a Lowes parking lot was just as difficult because as common as they are, who the heck would want to photograph one?

MVB’s Thoughts…

Transitography 41: Freiburg Straßenbahn

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on November 28, 2007
in Freiburg, Germany, Public Transit, Small Town, Streetcar, Tram, Urban Planning and Urban Transit
. 1 Comment

Stadtbahn im Schnee, originally uploaded by Fußgänger.

The Freiburg Straßenbahn line 4 running in an early October snowfall in southern Germany.

Freiburg, a town of just over 200,000 boasts 4 tram lines and over 21 bus routes, far more than most cities it size…Check out the map of the routes…

Who says small towns can’t have public transit? You certainly can’t if they aren’t first navigable to pedestrians, the original form of personal transportation. Freiburg also boasts an extensive pedestrian zone in the city core and compact urban design that places most public structures in easy reach.

Let’s go for a Walk

Published
by
Gabriel Lopez-Bernal
on November 20, 2007
in Density, Health, Metropolitan Miami, Miami, Pedestrians, Sprawl, Urban Parks, Urban Planning, Walk Score and Walking
. 8 Comments
Too often our society seems to overlook one of our most important modes of transportation- our own two legs. A new website, Walk Score, aims to change our dependence back to our own legs for personal mobility and seeks to help homebuyers find homes with many destinations within walking distance.

The premise is simple, you enter an address and the system characterizes the neighborhood on a 0-100 scale based on how many destinations are within a reasonable (less than 1 mile) walking distance. Essentially any ranking below 25 is is impossible to walk around while scores above 90 signify dense easily accessible neighborhoods. The website takes schools, restaurants, grocery stores, shops, parks, and libraries among other items into consideration when calculating the neighborhoods walk score.

Walk score allows people to quickly find homes in areas where car ownership let alone full dependence on a vehicle is not a requirement. In playing around with the program for a little while you’ll quickly see the disparity between automobile based/designed sprawl areas and true urban neighborhoods. The importance of walking to destinations daily cannot be emphasized enough from a planning perspective or as new research shows as a matter of your health.

President Bush’s Crawford Ranch somehow attained the dubious zero rating. Let us know how your neighborhood compares…