Welcome to the Blog Community BOB:Miami, the reshaping of our city is a momentous and often arduous subject to follow. Another voice on some of the most important happenings in our community is definitely welcomed by Transit Miami…

Commuter trains in Kendall? The tri-rail of the South can and should be a reality, if you ask me. But, gathering support for such an easy solution to the congestion in southern Dade may prove to be more challenging than just retrofitting some old cargo tracks for passenger DMUs. A potential firefight will likely evolve, as residents living along the corridor fight to keep the tracks in their backyards as underutilized as possible to benefit their pocketbooks.

As this saga begins to unfold, a reoccurring question keeps arising: At what point does community involvement in planning become a limiting factor for the benefits said project can deliver to the community? Or in laymen terms, how much community involvement is too much? We’ve seen it countless times; Baylink, West Corridor meetings in Sweetwater, Miami streetcar, etc. The list goes on and on. Countless projects cease to provide benefits to a majority of the population for the sake of pleasing a few. Who will finally step up and lead transportation initiatives in the right direction? MDT has proven to be ineffective in pushing projects into the community (evidence: Baylink, which was despised initially by Miami Beach residents, although this project would have likely improved the county’s transit system the greatest economically and in passenger figures.) Local politicians are too feeble to take a politically incorrect stance which could hurt their reelection bids (Metrorail, west corridor, Transit Oriented Development in the Grove and Pinecrest.)

Going back to what seems like the impending argument against a southern extension of tri-rail; why should homeowners along the railroad tracks have the right to deny a greater portion of the population an easier logical route for public transit? The tracks were likely there before anyone moved into the area, heck, the FEC corridor has existed as longer than any municipalities have, did it not occur that these tracks might be used once again? Will property values decrease? Well, perhaps, but probably not as much as if we continue to build westward, without accounting for public transit needs.

The problems lie in one of my main underlying causes: lack of vision. MDT doesn’t know where we’re headed. City planning is inexistent. Politicians could care less. Development runs rampant. Chaos ensues. There isn’t a uniform plan on how to redevelop the county. There isn’t a plan to reduce congestion. And there certainly isn’t a plan to control our county’s growth, just a mobilized and politically connected group of developers, eager to continue adding to the mess which initially placed single family developments alongside a rail corridor…

Today, The Miami Herald chronicles the daily life of Luis Lopez Flores, a Peruvian Immigrant in Miami who relies on public transportation to get from his north-Miami Beach residence to class in downtown, work in western Dade, and back home again. It’s a touching story about the struggles this man has to endure on a daily basis just to get around town. His cross-county trips often take upwards of one and half hours, with many bus transfers, walks through seedy neighborhoods, and a great deal of patience when relying on public transit in Miami-Dade county. The story highlights not only the personal struggles of this hardworking individual, but also the inefficiency of the Miami-Dade transit system. It’s well worth the read…

Image From Iseeantwan’s Flickr…

”Some people got angry and just walked back to the station…”

Hi Gabriel,

I work for Edelman and do online public relations for Shell, and I recently came across your post “Snazzy Gas” at the Transit Miami blog. I applaud your interest in testing a variety of fuels for better gas mileage – it’s certainly a worthwhile experiment.

I’m just writing to clarify a point made by one of your readers in a comment. Dave remarked about gas stations essentially offering all consumers the same product. I understand where Dave’s thinking comes from, but the reality is that all gasoline is not the same.

Here are the basics on “why”: Gasoline that comes out of the fuel dispenser at a service station is composed of two primary components – the base fuel and the additive. While the base fuel may be similar between two or more brands, the additive – in Shell’s case, a proprietary formula — may be different for each brand.

While all gasolines contain minimum levels of detergents as required by government standards, several companies – like Shell – use additives that feature higher levels of cleaning agents which help prevent harmful deposits from forming on critical engine parts. (More info at Shell’s website: www.shell.com/us/vpower)

Also, if you’d like to know more about high detergency, better quality fuels, check out Top Tier Detergent Gasolines: http://www.toptiergas.com/

At any rate, I hope that information is helpful. Feel free to let me know if you have any more questions!

Best,
Erin

I’ve always found come election time that a crucial question is often overlooked when examining which potential candidate to vote for:

What is your position on urbanization and urban growth? Are you for either of them, if so which ones or both and why?

In Miami more than anywhere else, this question is necessary to fully understand a candidate’s position on growth, the environment, and development. The answer I’ve most commonly received to this question is silence with hint of bewilderment upon the candidate’s face with perhaps a nervous twitch or mannerism. Most then say they didn’t know there was difference between the two before giving me a run-of-the-mill response which could have easily answered a question about their plan to solve global poverty or aids, whatever.

I guess to answer the question; we must first define the two terms.

Urbanization: This is the process of converting rural or underutilized land outside the general city limits into developed property. Urbanization is an increased extent of urban area. The negative connotations which are drawn up when we think of urbanization is due to the poor land use we have become familiar with when growth occurs to sustain the population growth. Um, Sprawl.

Urban Growth: Is the process of finding new uses for existing urbanized land. Urban growth has come to be associated with new the new urbanism movement to re-use our land more effectively and efficiently with greater density and functions. Urban growth is about improving our surroundings to minimize our impact on the environment while redeveloping urbanized space.

A candidate which is pro urbanization is thus far more likely to turn to moving the UDB westward as a method of sustaining the population growth of our area. An urban growth candidate is more likely to suggest denser housing solutions in the population centers, linked by public transit. Next time you have the chance to meet a possible political candidate, ask them what they believe in, it may be the difference between additional housing in South Dade rather than on underutilized land elsewhere…

• A Miami-Dade Transit project alongside Metrorail at the Douglas Rd. Station fell apart recently due to a failed agreement between the agency and the developer. Instead, the transportation agency is now looking to sell the off land, rather than open up the 5 acre parcel for new transit oriented development bids from other developers. The plan to sell the land is a shortsighted and a terrible decision by the transportation agency. The agency is clearly failing to see the big picture here, even admitting that a sale would allow a developer to construct on the land without including easements for buses or parking for Metrorail riders. The long-term benefits of retaining the parcel and leasing it out for development (much like the dadeland complexes) would maximize the potential earnings of the MDT owned land and usage of public transit facilities. Re-zoning the land which is considered a special transit zone, would likely significantly decrease the potential for a mixed use, high density development which would contain affordable housing and office space. Once again, we all lose when our local agencies lack a clear vision…
• Cirque Du Soleil has officially rescinded their bid to transform the Jackie-Gleason Theater into their latest human acrobatic circus. I always had mixed feelings about the plan, fearing that the circus was wrongfully seeking too much public money for their private venture. The contact breakout clauses they were also seeking were quite worrisome. However, I did see the potential ability for the venue to become a tourist attraction, something our area is in desperate need of to keep our tourism industry churning…MVB has an intersting idea…
• Broward County Officials have unveiled a spending plan for the possible transit tax money which could soon be flowing into the county’s transit agency. Aside from bus enhancements, though, the plan lacks a clear outline of any possible rail lines. It appears that BCT officials do not have a clear sense of what they wish to accomplish with their county’s tax either…
• Rebecca Carter of Greener Miami recently attended the Re-Energize America event; an event designed to increase awareness and educate citizens on the benefits of green policy and green technology in the United States. Mayor Diaz stressed the importance of conserving our natural resources in the city and talked about a possible adaptation of Miami 21 to include ecologically friendly regulations. And, as Alesh pointed out, not a single building in Miami can be considered green. Absolutely pathetic…
• Richard of Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space has an interesting article on the general failure of the pedestrian mall in the United States. Why have they failed? Because we don’t know how to build our cities properly; a successful pedestrian mall shouldn’t be a commercial enterprise, rather, a phenomenon which occurs on its own due to regular pedestrian traffic. You can relate it to the strip shopping center in today’s world which caters so well to vehicular traffic…
• You may notice a slight change in the format starting tomorrow…yes, on a Saturday…as I begin an attempt to post on weekends (I was encouraged by Rick to do so quite some time ago.) However, I plan on avoiding transit/planning issues over the weekend, choosing to go offbeat with other stories which often catch my interest…Suggestions are welcomed…
• As always, if you have comment, question, or idea feel free to send me a digital telegram (MoveMiami@gmail.com) Keep up the excellent discussions…