tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19286221846076319102024-03-05T08:50:21.991-08:00Where Do We Go from Here?Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.comBlogger752125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-20737318150314695832018-01-25T09:03:00.000-08:002018-01-25T09:03:05.976-08:00Social Networks: Explaining My Ten <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/AVvXsEgQHVnVT6k17JjgO0IbZWJ2ZTg4dNdq_Cxab-hIbou0Y0mPXunUAij04UtXJazsb8tgc5cWkEQr4ffM57qNT2KRoENmbMbbjdzig9ZEiKqIIWsb1UC3RsWTMNduVGhiZ2KVhcsIgmhJJVM/s1600/160627011+Aqus+Cafe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQHVnVT6k17JjgO0IbZWJ2ZTg4dNdq_Cxab-hIbou0Y0mPXunUAij04UtXJazsb8tgc5cWkEQr4ffM57qNT2KRoENmbMbbjdzig9ZEiKqIIWsb1UC3RsWTMNduVGhiZ2KVhcsIgmhJJVM/s320/160627011+Aqus+Cafe.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
Aqus Café, the social network hub</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Today, I’ll digress
from walkable urbanism to social networks.
But, as I believe one of the primary benefits of well-executed walkable
urbanism will be more robust social networks, I haven’t gone too far afield.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also, with apologies
to my non-Petaluma readers, the specifics of this post are Petaluma-centric. Feel free to skip ahead at the list of
names. I hope the more general
conversation will still make the post worth your time.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
A few nights
ago, the Petaluma Arts Center opened a new exhibition. “Power of Ten: Scaling Up” was inspired by <a href="http://www.eamesoffice.com/the-work/powers-of-ten/">“Powers of Ten”</a>, a
1977 film by Charles and Ray Eames that explored the dimensions of our world. The filmmakers scaled an image, in factors of
ten, starting with a small picnic and then going up to a large chunk of the
universe and down to a single atom.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In addition
to honoring the film, the new exhibit also examines other perspectives on powers
of ten.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
One of those
perspectives was social networks, how one key connector can influence ten other
people who have their own ten connections, expanding into a network that
changes the world.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma photographer
Douglas Gayeton was asked to construct a photograph demonstrating a Petaluma social
network based on the power of ten. John
Crowley, one of the owners of the Aqus Cafe where Petaluma Urban Chat was founded
and an active participant in many local groups, was selected as the center of a
social network. It was a fine choice.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
John picked
his ten connections. I was honored to be
one of them. The ten of us then selected
our own ten connections. The resulting
photograph, from a session at Aqus with Crowley and his list of ten supplemented
by descriptions of the members in the expanding network, is now on display at
the exhibition.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I tell this
story because picking my ten connections was a difficult task. I could have simply picked the ten people who
have been most active in my community activities, such as election efforts, Urban
Chat, and the Urban Chat forum series, Know Before You Grow. But that simple approach felt unsatisfying.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Instead, I
struck upon an alternative plan. In
addition to picking a few stars from our jointly pursued activities, I also selected
folks to serve as examples of groups of people who, even if I don’t often work
shoulder-to-shoulder with them, I respect and take inspiration from.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Among those groups:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>I wanted to
acknowledge those whose lives could have allowed them to live anywhere in the
world, but who chose to settle in Petaluma and to make a difference in our
shared community.</li>
<li>I wanted to
recognize people whose careers have given them a temporary stop in Petaluma and
who, despite the expectation that they'll someday move on, have chosen to participate
with enthusiasm and insight during their time here.</li>
<li>I wanted to
thank those who, because of age or disability, can no longer take part with
full vigor in the community, but who choose to remain active and vocal from
their keyboards and their writing desks.</li>
<li>I wanted to
recognize those who’ve had a difficult life, but have persevered and are now
repaying their community for the helping hands they were offered.</li>
<li>I wanted to
appreciate those who forsook the easier and more comfortable life path to
pursue a passion for community good.</li>
<li>And I wanted
to thank those who are always willing to lend a hand, often quietly and
unobtrusively, to assist their community and its members in any way needed.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<o:p> </o:p>Each of
these struck me as a group well worthy of recognition, so I chose an example or
two from each for my list.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even though this
approach felt right to me, I’m still uncomfortable when I think of people who I
couldn’t fit into my ten, many of whom are likely readers here. I can only assure you that at one point I had
a list of fifty, on which you were certainly included, before I began the painful
pruning.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So there are
no surprises if you visit the exhibit, I’ll share my ten. In
random order, they are:</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Sheila Baker</li>
<li>David
Freedman</li>
<li>Dan Lyke</li>
<li>Ned Orrett</li>
<li>Panama
Bartholomy</li>
<li>Kevin
McDonnell</li>
<li>Don Curry</li>
<li>Ann Wurr</li>
<li>Hannah Beausang</li>
<li>Barry Bussewitz</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<o:p> </o:p>Feel free to
quibble with my selection process. You’ll
probably make good points. But I'll still
stand by my decisions.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I hope you
visit the exhibit which will run through March 24. Petaluma Arts Center, 230 Lakeville Street, next
to the SMART station.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Dave Alden is a Registered Civil Engineer. A
University of California graduate, he has worked on energy and land-use
projects in California, Oregon, and Washington. He was also the president of a
minor league baseball team for two seasons. He lives on the west side of
Petaluma with his wife and two dogs. He can also be followed on Facebook,
LinkedIn, and Twitter.</i></div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-80916311184626651542018-01-22T09:16:00.000-08:002018-01-22T09:16:17.093-08:00Can We at Least Try to Connect the Dots?<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/AVvXsEjVyBpdodlrJ5XI-csXJFabQwE5pCKEwRGq8bDTjuu6m5nyCTsDRkt0eWzWT6yvGgKkiusdFzShydycVxeinVp0g-O-QHDp_x7JYVrLap-jy1AMoYIynXSCKbwjVOGvhzNdoxS3s9sE5Gc/s1600/160611A017+Detroit+Bike+Share.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVyBpdodlrJ5XI-csXJFabQwE5pCKEwRGq8bDTjuu6m5nyCTsDRkt0eWzWT6yvGgKkiusdFzShydycVxeinVp0g-O-QHDp_x7JYVrLap-jy1AMoYIynXSCKbwjVOGvhzNdoxS3s9sE5Gc/s320/160611A017+Detroit+Bike+Share.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bike share station in Detroit</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I have a
short tale today, to be followed by administrative notes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This story
has been rattling around inside my head since before my long break from this
space. I hope putting it into words
will set it free.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
More than a
year ago, a proposed apartment project came before the city council of a North
Bay community. It was a tolerably acceptable
project. Slightly fewer than a hundred
new apartments in a market that needed new housing even before the wildfires. A site that, although beyond walkable range
for most daily needs, was surrounded by developed parcels.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It didn’t check
off many of the walkable urbanism boxes, but it was perhaps best that could be
done with a non-urban site.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But there
was still controversy, a dispute over a proposed condition of approval. The site adjoined a major route of the city’s bicycle
master plan. City staff and several city
committees had proposed that the applicant construct a 2,000-foot segment of bicycle
path near the project. Although of
limited usefulness immediately, the segment would eventually connect residential,
recreational, shopping, and transit opportunities, including a since-opened
downtown train station</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The applicant
was asking for the condition to be removed, arguing that the cost of the path
segment would undermine project finances, perhaps enough that the project couldn’t
be built. As the land had been vacant
for fifteen years, possibly demonstrating the tenuous finances of the site, the
argument might have been valid. Nonetheless,
I sided with those who argued that the bicycle path segment was a reasonable
and appropriate condition.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
(I’ve written
before that land-use entitlement can be akin to a poker game. Cities and the public can't know if a
developer is serious about the potential of a project finances falling apart or
if he’s bluffing. Similarly, a developer
is looking for tells in a city’s approach to conditions of approval.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On the night
of the council meeting, after a number of folks had spoken in favor of the bicycle
path, a prominent member of the community took her place at the podium.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I hadn't
heard her speak previously to the Council on any land-use issue, so was unaware
what to expect. I was immediately
impressed. She talked about how cities of the future must thrive by providing settings
in which millennials can live physically active lifestyles, with easy access to
work and to gathering places without a need for cars. As she described it, if young talented people
are attracted to the lifestyle of a community, businesses will follow with the
hope of hiring them.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It was an
argument directly out of the creative class theories of Richard Florida. I was pleased that the ideas were being put
forth in a public setting.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And then the
speaker got to her conclusion. As the goal of the city was to attract these
vibrant people by providing places for active living, it was unreasonable to
ask a developer to put in a bike path for fear that the project funding would
collapse and the city wouldn't have housing for the new arrivals.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Huh?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The conclusion
was fully inconsistent with her earlier arguments. The city must provide a setting for
physically active lives therefore it should approve housing without bicycle
paths?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Today, more
than a year later, I remain flummoxed by how a successful individual can provide
public testimony with such complete illogic.
It grieves me to think that logical thinking is no longer a condition of
public debate.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The council
had no such qualms, voting 4-3 to remove the condition. Oh well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Onto
administrative details:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I
rebooted this blog, I didn't have a particular publication schedule in mind. I decided not to tie myself to the Monday-Wednesday-Friday
routine of my earlier efforts, but instead to write when the spirit moved me. However, I now find that I’ve gone two weeks
since my last post. That’s not acceptable. I’ll work to be more frequent than I've begun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As I’ll be aperiodic
in my publication schedule, I remain willing to send emails to anyone who would
like to know when I post something new.
If you want to be added to my list, email me at the address below.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Talking of email
lists, there are two other lists that may be of interest to those in or near my
town of Petaluma. First, I write weekly emails
on the day-to-day activities of Petaluma Urban Chat, such as upcoming Council
meetings of interest, Urban Chat gatherings, and other community events. Also, Know Before You Grow has an email list
to be kept abreast of their forums on local land-use planning. To be
added to either or both lists, you can again email me at the address below.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)<u><o:p></o:p></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Dave Alden is a Registered Civil Engineer. A
University of California graduate, he has worked on energy and land-use
projects in California, Oregon, and Washington. He was also the president of a
minor league baseball team for two seasons. He lives on the west side of
Petaluma with his wife and two dogs. He can also be followed on Facebook, LinkedIn,
and Twitter.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-10756171616599371042018-01-06T15:58:00.001-08:002018-01-06T15:58:26.105-08:00Rebooting with Passion <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtKWLh0d9hZQ8bjJjIiWJEG_bvVJmaxBtBCNK25k4EOWptVq9j9oxNgkZKM_FRbwNW3XcN8ubDRnKyoilYj81_Bpjduv7GEUHKwsFAUK1jMP7i-MZPlqiTOFL6qM5IXHUvmswdp5awQ0/s1600/170824003+Former+Fire+Station.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtKWLh0d9hZQ8bjJjIiWJEG_bvVJmaxBtBCNK25k4EOWptVq9j9oxNgkZKM_FRbwNW3XcN8ubDRnKyoilYj81_Bpjduv7GEUHKwsFAUK1jMP7i-MZPlqiTOFL6qM5IXHUvmswdp5awQ0/s320/170824003+Former+Fire+Station.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walkable downtown of Hagerstown, Maryland</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I'm back.
After not having published in this space for more than a year, I’ve returned to
blogging.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve missed
the readers here, but it’s been a mostly good year regardless. I’ve used the break to regenerate from five
years of blogging. (This is my 744th blog
post. I may yet justify my hubris when I
began numbering my posts at 0001.) I’ve recuperated
from my role in the local 2016 city council race and taken the repercussions that
came from that effort.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I went
through a frustratingly short stint as the land-use columnist for the local
paper. I’ve helped take Petaluma Urban Chat
in new directions. And I’ve tried the
impossible task of adjusting to the new realities in the nation's capital.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But I've
never forgotten the feeling of accomplishment and connection that came from writing
in this space. Few days have passed without
me thinking of a topic I wanted to cover here.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My lack of
output has never been a lack of interest, but only an overly full to-do list
and a lack of time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the New
Year, with the newspaper writing role terminated, I needed an outlet and so
here I am. And it may not be
coincidental that this post will be published on Epiphany.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I don't have
a particular subject about which to write today. Instead, I’ll muse on where I want this blog
to go and what new perspectives I’ll bring to the task.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
To begin, most
readers in Petaluma know that I've been involved in organizing a forum series, Know
Before You Grow, that's gotten off to a good start, with an average attendance
in the neighborhood of 75 for our first three events. (For those not in Petaluma, I’ll write often
about Know Before You Grow, filing in the backstory and perhaps encouraging you
to emulate the effort in your town.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
To give
structure to the forum series, the organizing team had to fix upon on a concise
description of our mission. We settled
upon four “community values”: </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Housing for
all</li>
<li>Mobility
options</li>
<li>Climate
action</li>
<li>Sustainable
municipal finances</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Every forum
focuses on how land use, through either policies or proposed projects, can meet
or fail to meet those values.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Today isn’t
the day to delve into the implications of those four values. But I believe strongly in the values and will
always put them in the forefront of my thinking as I write. All by themselves, settling on them made 2017
a good year. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But I can’t
mention 2017 without noting the national dysfunction of the past year. This won’t be a forum to discourse in general
on the changes in the nation and in the capitol. There are many others filling that role
better than I can. But I’ll touch often on
how walkable urbanism, and the too frequent lack of it, may have played a role
in the outcome of the November 2016 election and how the election results are
in turn playing a role in future of walkable urbanism. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Sometime
over the past year was a Twitter exchange that captured my thinking on the
point. As a reminder, Brent Toderian was
the Vancouver Planning Director during the run-up to the 2010 Winter
Olympics. He has since left that post
and is now a well-respected international urban planning consultant who tweets
often about how national politics can affect local matters.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In response
to the tweets, Hudson Bronson tweeted to Toderian, “Respectfully, wish you
would stop tweeting about American politics so often. Your city planning tweets are why I follow
you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In response,
Kurtis Pozsgay<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span> tweeted back “Get out of here with this nonsense. Planning and politics are intertwined.” and The Tysons Corner<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span> added “Pretty
tough to make good cities when feds try to rob cities of competitive advantage
by giving money away to anywhere but cities.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
That pretty
well sums it up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, those
are my twin goals for this reboot, always writing from the perspective of the
four Know Before You Grow goals and being constantly aware of the connection
between local land use and the politics of Sacramento and Washington, D.C.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I don’t know
the exact paths I’ll follow in pursuing those goals, but I’m looking forward to
finding out. And I’m glad you’re along
for the ride.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)<u><o:p></o:p></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Dave Alden is a Registered Civil Engineer. A
University of California graduate, he has worked on energy and land-use
projects in California, Oregon, and Washington. He was also the president of a
minor league baseball team for two seasons. He lives on the west side of
Petaluma with his wife and two dogs. The blog that he writes can be found at </i><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/"><i><span style="color: red;">Where Do We Go from Here</span></i></a><i>. He can also be followed on Facebook,
LinkedIn, and Twitter.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-91039195420805572022016-12-19T09:58:00.000-08:002016-12-19T10:22:36.029-08:00Continuing the Road Diet Conversation <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/AVvXsEh_2v_Orjy8BZNAeU4mxwNN6AZDT1uRF5sI9jmYcrh6cF1qqVvFuEgDMUyhvzXqoNO349KsyrZy7oL4VFxRSd4sd0gvLHuTG_8AnKaPd69Sqo2IqZPPQ5x4eQ-0V_sIkQs9HNSYd8hm8Ek/s1600/160627001+Petaluma+Boulevard+South+Traffic.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2v_Orjy8BZNAeU4mxwNN6AZDT1uRF5sI9jmYcrh6cF1qqVvFuEgDMUyhvzXqoNO349KsyrZy7oL4VFxRSd4sd0gvLHuTG_8AnKaPd69Sqo2IqZPPQ5x4eQ-0V_sIkQs9HNSYd8hm8Ek/s320/160627001+Petaluma+Boulevard+South+Traffic.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Current configuration of Petaluma Boulevard South</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
With help
from a guest writer, I’ve recently written twice about a proposed road diet on
a major arterial in my town. First, I
wrote about the <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/12/im-back-and-i-want-to-talk-about-road.html"><span style="color: red;">history of road diets</span></a>, both in my town and
elsewhere in the country, and then professional planner Bjorn Griepenburg wrote
about how a four-lane to three-lane road diet <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/12/another-perspective-on-road-diets.html"><span style="color: red;">reduces conflict points</span></a> between drivers,
bicyclists, and pedestrians, yielding a road that is safer with little or no
loss of traffic capacity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The posts,
and an upcoming City Council hearing on whether to submit a grant application
for a road diet on Petaluma Boulevard South, triggered active conversations. Not everyone agreed with the proposed road
diet, but the discussions have generally been respectful exchanges of facts,
suggestions, and opinions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
However, I was traveling much of last week, so
missed the opportunity to participate in the discussions. Others did a fine job of explaining and
defending the road diet concept, but there were a few points I wish I could
have added to the discourse.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So I identified
a few particular comments on Facebook and Nextdoor that caught my eye, copied
them below, and will provide the follow-on that I was unavailable to do last
week. I haven’t noted the authors of the
comments. Indeed, I’ve already forgotten
who most of them were. But I have
touched up their grammar at a few spots.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qFWexNBgPIbr_rCyjobGn26zytEueTsEAuX0KjaMtAUFuzOlBCPncTS5nUwppUBPH12uhGT8JELj_-2Vie8XEh7CYhgBHHceTZpBs_SYU_ePp0FqKiim4z0gt3vJfTSh3RYYDtt1_lo/s1600/141207A002+Petaluma+Boulevard+at+B+Street.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qFWexNBgPIbr_rCyjobGn26zytEueTsEAuX0KjaMtAUFuzOlBCPncTS5nUwppUBPH12uhGT8JELj_-2Vie8XEh7CYhgBHHceTZpBs_SYU_ePp0FqKiim4z0gt3vJfTSh3RYYDtt1_lo/s320/141207A002+Petaluma+Boulevard+at+B+Street.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petaluma Boulevard North after road diet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Regarding
the previously completed road diet on Petaluma Boulevard North through downtown
and extending further north:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“Visit Petaluma Boulevard North between
Payran and D Street any afternoon and you are likely to find long backups
extending all the way from E. Washington Street to D Street or a block or so
south of D Street.”</i> The author is likely correct, but there are at
least three reasons why the observation doesn’t argue against road diets.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
First, there
was always been some level of congestion on Petaluma Boulevard North. We don’t have good measures of what the
congestion was before the road diet, so can’t necessarily say that it’s worse
now. And recollections to make a point
are often based on selective memory so are untrustworthy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Second,
traffic in general is again climbing as the recession retreats into the
rearview mirror. Even if we had perfect
data from before the downtown road diet, the data would have been at the depths
of the recession and can’t be compared to the congestion today, well into the
recovery.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Third, the
length of a queue at a red light is inversely proportional to the number of
lanes. A 200-foot single-lane queue
today may look worse than a 100-foot queue in the past, but if the shorter
backup was in two lanes, the number of cars would be the same. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“A road eliminates any excess capacity from the
system.”</i> This is an excellent point in
some settings, although it may have limited applicability to Petaluma Boulevard
South.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Let’s take
the example of a well-configured four-lane road that might have a daily traffic
capacity of 30,000 trips. If the current
traffic load is 18,000 trips, conversion to a three-lane configuration, usually
considered to have a traffic capacity of 20,000 trips, wouldn’t increase near-term
congestion, but would eliminate the capacity of road to accept more trips as
conditions change.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But Petaluma
Boulevard South isn’t a well-configured four-lane road. I don’t have an engineering estimate, but
with the constricted lanes and with cars stopped for left turns blocking following
vehicles, its current capacity may not be much more than 20,000 trips. So there may be little or no excess capacity
being eliminated.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Plus, a
well-designed road diet can move some trips from driving to biking or walking,
reducing the number of trips that must be accommodated.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“If you are going to squeeze two lanes away
and turn a major road into a two-lane road, then put in nice bike paths on both
sides.”</i> Most would agree with the sentiment
in the abstract, but reality often doesn’t conform to the abstract.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Much of
Petaluma Boulevard, both North and South, has a 52-foot curb-to-curb
width. Widening the street isn’t an
option because of existing buildings, a desire to retain friendly sidewalks,
and the unavailability of grant money for the much greater expense of widening.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So the
designers are stuck with the 52 feet.
After allocations are made for parking, without which merchants and
shoppers would riot, and the three lanes needed for a road diet to function, there
just isn’t room for bike lanes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
City engineers aren’t anti-biking; they just
don’t have enough street width to accommodate every desirable street element. Sometimes the best they can do is to make a
street a little bit safer for bicyclists.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<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/AVvXsEgOcIXOo-GrTlZUSVzkD2nfWkypjYiKwm3pIeXtpJbM0-FL0IgX_YfZyrca-CA0iYOx2kut1RC_j9uOecHs7pk39sEx_jSnmF5xC765vOE-hSo3hipvmrTRvKknHcZ1aleQrTvRqsz59fg/s1600/141207A005+Buildings+along+Petaluma+Boulevard.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcIXOo-GrTlZUSVzkD2nfWkypjYiKwm3pIeXtpJbM0-FL0IgX_YfZyrca-CA0iYOx2kut1RC_j9uOecHs7pk39sEx_jSnmF5xC765vOE-hSo3hipvmrTRvKknHcZ1aleQrTvRqsz59fg/s320/141207A005+Buildings+along+Petaluma+Boulevard.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petaluma Boulevard North with center pocket</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>"The two-car wide parking lane in the middle
is too wide. If they are going to do a
road diet, do it, but use the extra space for bike lanes.”</i> This is another way of lobbying for bike
lanes. However, the center pocket, generally used by delivery
trucks is only 14 feet wide, two feet wider
than most travel lanes, but far short of “two-car wide”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And the
center pocket is absolutely needed for deliveries. Some argue that all deliveries should be done
from the alleys that parallel Petaluma Boulevard North through downtown, but
not all retail spaces extend all the way to the alley. Also, UPS and FedEx won’t use alleys where
they might end up stuck behind a truck doing a large delivery.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
At least
some trucks must do deliveries from the Boulevard side and the road
configuration therefore needs to accommodate those trucks without blocking
other users of the street. The center
turn pocket is essential.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“Driving practices need to change before
road diets can work.”</i> I once worked
with an engineer who, when someone argued that the users of a proposed project
needed to change their behavior so the concept could work, who look deeply
thoughtful and then ask, “So, our goal is to change human nature and then design
the project?” She was of course correct
and her slyly expressed realism forced others to remember that we can only deal
with human beings as they are and as they behave. They may reengineer themselves over time, but
we can’t manage or accelerate that change.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Driving is
one of those behaviors that we can’t change easily, if at all. We have to accept driving Behaviors as they now
are and to design roadways to accommodate that reality. Luckily, road diets have often been shown to
work with drivers as they now drive.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Turning attention
to comments that were directed at the proposed road diet on Petaluma Boulevard
South:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“Bike lanes need to be included.”</i> To the extent that the road widths permit, I
agree. And there are road segments where
bike lanes seem a real possibility. The
final decisions won’t be made until after the grant is hopefully approved and
design is underway, but I hope that some bike lanes will be included. But to insist on bike lanes everywhere puts
the unattainable perfect above the achievable. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“Without bike lanes, it is a waste of money.
Just lower the speed limit.”</i> I’m a huge proponent of lower speed limits
and have often written about Twenty is Plenty.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But I’ve
also written that we can’t <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2015/12/looking-more-closely-for-coded-messages.html"><span style="color: red;">lower speed limits arbitrarily</span></a></span>. Speed limits are set by how drivers perceive
safe speeds, so to lower a speed limit, we must change how drivers perceive a street. It’s a goal I hope can be accomplished
through the road diet, and I’ve already begun lobbying for a design standard
that would help, but under state law the city isn’t allowed to just post a new
speed limit. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>“Safer for bikes and pedestrians = good; including
bike lanes = Great! <hopeful>.”</i> This was my favorite comment and captures my
position exactly. Even where a perfect
solution is precluded by existing constraints, incremental improvements are
still desirable and essential.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Schedule
reminder: The road diet hearing will be this evening, Monday, December 19, 7:00
pm, in the City Council Chambers at 11 English Street. Regardless of how you feel on the subject, try
to attend with an open mind. New and
pertinent information will certainly be offered.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-36026081200768976172016-12-12T08:07:00.000-08:002016-12-12T08:07:13.616-08:00Another Perspective on Road Diets <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/AVvXsEh7rkUB7Lc0_Hkaf2XFxqM5x2ZF6I0gA5VaZ0NPD-XNbkSw4d1VaMWhb1CbqMYnY-jh6avIexxSrE2y0NKfHt460z7a7XYsF84lcPm012VdENyxi6f8V6a4wg6R-moeJ5OGU5yqBjZZhRM/s1600/161212+FHA+Figure+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7rkUB7Lc0_Hkaf2XFxqM5x2ZF6I0gA5VaZ0NPD-XNbkSw4d1VaMWhb1CbqMYnY-jh6avIexxSrE2y0NKfHt460z7a7XYsF84lcPm012VdENyxi6f8V6a4wg6R-moeJ5OGU5yqBjZZhRM/s320/161212+FHA+Figure+4.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px; text-align: left;">Mid-Block Conflict Points for<br />Four-Lane Undivided Roadway<br />versus Three-Lane</strong></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
A few posts
back, I <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/12/im-back-and-i-want-to-talk-about-road.html"><span style="color: red;">wrote</span></a> about a road diet that’s being proposed for
an arterial into my town, a well-traveled route into the heart of downtown used
by both residents and visitors. While
not without its negatives, I think the proposal is reasonable, although other don’t
agree. Today, a friend is going to take
over this space to write about the traffic engineering behind road diets,
engineering that applies directly to the Petaluma Boulevard South proposal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Bjorn
Griepenburg is a Petaluma native, recently returned to his hometown after an
academic career that included stops at UC Santa Barbara and the University of
Oregon, concluding with a Masters in Community and Regional Planning. After a year with Muni in San Francisco, he’s
recently become the Policy Director for the Marin County Bike Coalition.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Here’s
Bjorn:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Correcting Misconceptions about the Road
Diet<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma
Boulevard South does not work well for anybody. In its current configuration, it has four
travel lanes and two parking lanes—about 60 feet worth of lanes—crammed into a
52 foot space. It’s not uncommon to see
cars parked on sidewalks or driving between the two travel lanes due to the
constrained space. The pavement is in
deplorable condition. Most importantly,
it’s an uninviting and unsafe corridor for people traveling by foot and bike.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Luckily,
there exists a well-established solution to all of these problems: the road
diet. Road diets have become the silver
bullet of transportation engineering across the country, correcting four-lane
roads like Petaluma Boulevard by eliminating a through lane in each direction
and replacing them with a bi-directional center turn lane--improving safety for
all users, and doing so with negligible impacts on traffic.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
With the
number of travel lanes dropping from four to three, a common question raised by
skeptics follows some form of the following: how <i>doesn’t </i>dropping a lane lead to increased congestion? I’ll do my best to explain why and how,
calling out benefits of the reconfiguration along the way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>The Problem with Four Lanes – and the Case
for Three<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma
Boulevard South’s four lanes don’t benefit anyone, drivers included. Studies of road diets suggest that corridors
with average daily traffic (ADT)—the number of vehicles that traverse a
corridor in a given weekday—of 20,000 or below are strong candidates for road
diets.<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"> </span> (<a href="http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/road_diets/info_guide/ch3.cfm#s335">http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/road_diets/info_guide/ch3.cfm#s335</a>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
That’s
because there simply isn’t enough traffic to necessitate having multiple lanes
in both directions. Petaluma Boulevard South falls far below this threshold,
even under future build-out scenarios.<span style="color: red;"> </span>Even if
you head to the Boulevard in its peak hours, you’d be hard-pressed to find the
corridor congested with cars clogging up both lanes in either direction.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qS0G4g8CT72zAhnCI6kDYgdYPZW2W3Tuapka262MHhXf4tWAeBMVQXDpvUd31khCdbMT1ZKRspGoptjFyL9fnfEISBlw91C5MlqJSGAmNOjZdF_YCjcakSaIa41fD4YQLt-EUt-KFFU/s1600/161212+FHA+Figure+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qS0G4g8CT72zAhnCI6kDYgdYPZW2W3Tuapka262MHhXf4tWAeBMVQXDpvUd31khCdbMT1ZKRspGoptjFyL9fnfEISBlw91C5MlqJSGAmNOjZdF_YCjcakSaIa41fD4YQLt-EUt-KFFU/s320/161212+FHA+Figure+5.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px; text-align: left;">Crossing and Through Traffic<br />Conflict Points at Intersections<br />for a Four-Lane Undivided Roadway<br />versus Three-Lane</strong></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
One of the
instances in which you will see cars backed up in a single lane on Petaluma
Boulevard South is when a vehicle signals for a left turn and must wait for
oncoming traffic to clear. At those
times, the cars behind will either queue up behind the left-turning vehicle or
pass on the right. The road diet creates a designated space for left-turning
vehicles, preventing these backups and the dangerous weaving patterns that they
often induce. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL8POzjWdfJSm2qtrFgxAUXF71WkfM9jSzYws6oLW72rR4wevnMbVhFMY2fbSP9t-d6FtkUR4aeE8p94RDcOhjVQnMohoMIuH2SSsV_TMgyQVzFUT6aTYc4GwxjybS_Jw1ebv3yt_b4ds/s1600/161212+FHA+Figure+6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL8POzjWdfJSm2qtrFgxAUXF71WkfM9jSzYws6oLW72rR4wevnMbVhFMY2fbSP9t-d6FtkUR4aeE8p94RDcOhjVQnMohoMIuH2SSsV_TMgyQVzFUT6aTYc4GwxjybS_Jw1ebv3yt_b4ds/s320/161212+FHA+Figure+6.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px; text-align: left;">Major-Street Left-Turn Sight Distance<br />for Four-Lane Undivided Roadway versus<br />Three-Lane</strong></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also, as
anyone who has turned left off of the Boulevard or crossed it by foot, bicycle,
or vehicle can attest, the presence of two lanes in each direction can
dangerously obstruct sightlines. In my
daily crossings of the Boulevard at G Street, a far-too-common occurrence
involves a driver in the nearest lane stopping to allow me to cross, only to
have a car speed by them in the second lane, unaware of my presence in the
crosswalk. In the three-lane configuration, those crossing or turning left off
of the Boulevard only have to worry about one car in each direction,
dramatically improving sightlines. The Federal Highway Administration illustrations
above </div>
and to the right highlight these and other conflict points reduced by the
conversion.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
With each
conflict point removed, the chances of a completely preventable tragedy are
reduced. Studies have found crash reduction rates ranging from 20 to 50 percent
along corridors similar to Petaluma Boulevard South after implementation of a
“4-to-3” road diet. (<a href="http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/road_diets/info_guide/app_a.cfm">http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/road_diets/info_guide/app_a.cfm</a>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even if the
road diet had negative traffic impacts—<i>and
it doesn’t</i>—it would be absolutely ridiculous to argue against a project
that makes a corridor safer for people walking, bicycling, AND driving. It’s
time to start honoring our commitment to public safety through road design. In
the case of the road diet on Petaluma Boulevard South, it’s a no-brainer. – Bjorn</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My recent
post on road diets triggered extensive comment chains on both Facebook and
Nextdoor, a conversation in which Bjorn participated. I didn’t have the opportunity to join the
discussions, but will use my next post to respond to a few of the comments.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-51099389565290742222016-12-12T00:19:00.000-08:002016-12-12T00:19:16.100-08:00Pointing the Ghost Ship Finger in the Right Direction <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/AVvXsEihqhrLBGk-TFHXi8sw3moDkXtBp7cJ29C94QN3xBBJytYk7JHS1bhcCycs7sHavS6OlM3wTYnDPPshzPBvOpuCUaZjIAq3asneW3Xw0iG315g2CCwcO_VnQUgi1E-aLik1Prg4RI79uGo/s1600/1301404B002+Buildng+on+International+Avenue.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihqhrLBGk-TFHXi8sw3moDkXtBp7cJ29C94QN3xBBJytYk7JHS1bhcCycs7sHavS6OlM3wTYnDPPshzPBvOpuCUaZjIAq3asneW3Xw0iG315g2CCwcO_VnQUgi1E-aLik1Prg4RI79uGo/s320/1301404B002+Buildng+on+International+Avenue.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Building on International Boulevard near the Ghost Ship</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I'm usually not
one to talk back to the television during news broadcasts. I may arch an occasional eyebrow if I find the
understanding deficient on a key point, but that’s usually my limit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
However,
there are exceptions. One recently occurred
during the reporting on the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/05/us/oakland-fire-ghost-ship-warehouse.html?_r=0"><span style="color: red;">Ghost Ship fire</span></a></span>. For those who don't live in California, or
have been in a monastery for the past week, a warehouse that had been illegally
converted into residential space near the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland burned
a week ago at the loss of 36 lives. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
During a
news broadcast a couple of days after the fire, an Oakland City Councilmember
took advantage of his 15 minutes of fame to describe the tragedy as a failure
of the code enforcement role of the Oakland Fire Department.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
His comments
missed the fundamental point. And I expressed my thinking in strong words,
interrupting my wife's viewing of the broadcast.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The problem
is ultimately much deeper than whether the nine Fire Marshals of the Oakland Fire
Department should have somehow inspected 20,000 commercial properties every year.
Instead the two root level issues are
that we don't provide enough funds to many civic functions such that there can
be any reasonable chance of complying with the multiplicity of laws and that we
don’t have a commitment to provide housing for all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our cities are
severely deprived of funds, a situation that has been inescapably and
inexorably getting worse since the 1978 passage of Proposition 13. We know this to be true, the civic balance
sheets show it clearly, and yet we don’t accept responsibility for the
shortfalls.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
There have
been letters in the Bay Area papers arguing that excuses of inadequate
resources or staffing aren’t appropriate responses to a loss of human life in
the Ghost Ship. Poppycock. We can’t ask public employees to perform
their duties at impossible speeds so our tax bills can be a little lower, especially
when none of us work at superhuman rates at our jobs. Municipal services have reasonable costs and
we must be <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://grist.org/cities/the-ghost-ship-fire-is-a-reminder-we-have-to-make-our-cities-work-for-everyone/"><span style="color: red;">prepared to pay them</span></a></span>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And with
regard to the availability of housing, as long as we allow housing to be the product
of a free market and a patchwork of subsidies, public and private, there will
be people who fall through the cracks and needs the low rents of places like
the Ghost Ship to avoid living on the street.
This is particularly true in a region that has a <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2016/12/06/blame_the_bay_area_housing_crisis_for_the_ghost_ship_fire.html"><span style="color: red;">chronic housing shortage</span></a></span>. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, what are
the connections between these two issues and the walkable urbanism which is the
primary topic of this blog? Walkable
urbanism is a less expensive way of building cities, freeing up funds for other
civic obligations such as fire inspections.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And walkable
urban settings are the least expensive places to add new housing. Walkable urban place won’t solve housing
shortages just by existing, but they make it easier to solve the shortages if
we choose to do so.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Walkable urbanism
is the answer to many questions. And the
Ghost Ship fire illustrates exactly that if only we will listen and not blabber
about simplistic and unhelpful answers such as the failures of overwhelmed fire
marshals.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My next post
will return to the proposed road diet in my town.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-47108749285748795282016-12-09T21:47:00.000-08:002016-12-09T21:47:00.494-08:00Where I’ve Been, What I’ve Been Doing, and Where I’m Going <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirOCUVapihkrAK0bW50Lh7iqS8PZDagI-W4qiOOmn5td6BOpG5vxszF75uhW2h6Dz6WPjN6OJde2t4FelW3xPGk-i5XnXU_2vZ9Cr0x5OT_4uHCHVuQUTy73PGL_zO7NAV2pRmE0V3TAc/s1600/130223001+Western+and+Kentucky+Streets.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirOCUVapihkrAK0bW50Lh7iqS8PZDagI-W4qiOOmn5td6BOpG5vxszF75uhW2h6Dz6WPjN6OJde2t4FelW3xPGk-i5XnXU_2vZ9Cr0x5OT_4uHCHVuQUTy73PGL_zO7NAV2pRmE0V3TAc/s320/130223001+Western+and+Kentucky+Streets.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
With my last
post, I returned to the world of blogging after a three month absence. I promised to explain in this post how I came
to step away, although I suspect long-time readers sensed my impending hiatus.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
After many
years of hitting my goal of a new post every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I
began struggling during the month of August.
Sometimes my posts weren’t published until the late evening or early
morning hours. Sometimes they were a day or two late. I found it increasingly difficult to set
aside the time and concentration to finish a post.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Eventually,
near the end of August, I missed a deadline, couldn’t get back to complete the
post, and abruptly found myself an ex-blogger.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’d be easy
to point at the obvious reasons for my absence from this space. Continually increasing obligations in my
personal life. An overwillingness to say
“yes” to opportunities to be involved in civic life, resulting in too many
obligations. A need to recharge whatever
batteries I have that allowed me to blog as long as I did.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But, as I
see it, the real reason is more subtle. It
pertains to local politics and my role in a recent race.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve written
before (<a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/07/an-urbanist-learns-about-electoral.html"><span style="color: red;">here</span></a> and <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/07/an-urbanist-learns-about-electoral_6.html"><span style="color: red;">here</span></a>) about my involvement in the early stages of
a political campaign. As recounted in
those posts, I helped found a committee tasked with finding a candidate to
contest a now-completed City Council race. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Since I last
wrote on the subject, we found a candidate.
He was the best possible candidate.
Indeed, he was the candidate for whom I had hoped when I first suggested
the committee. I was thrilled with our initial
prospects.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As the
campaign got underway, the candidate asked me to serve as his campaign
treasurer. I also slipped into a role as
a campaign strategist, helping to craft positions, editing materials written by
the candidate and others, and contributing some of my own words.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But it wasn’t the time I spent on the dollars
of campaign finance or the words of campaign rhetoric that broke the camel’s
back. It was the challenge of keeping
the voices straight.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve known
the candidate for more than a decade. In
that time, we’ve had many opportunities to converse about land use
theories. I’ve educated him and he’s
educated me to the point where our beliefs are largely aligned. But they’re not completely aligned. We differ on some points of emphasis, on some
social issues, and on our perceptions of the positions taken by others in the community. We’re fine allies, but we’re not the same
person.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And that
near, but not complete, alignment creates a challenge, especially with the written
word. It was important that I get the
candidate’s voice right when I when I was working on his campaign. It was equally important to find my own voice
when I returned to this soapbox. And I
found it increasingly difficult to find both voices with their subtle
differences and to keep them distinct.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
If this blog
had been about something completely divorced from local politics and land-use
theory, perhaps the reduced role of the screwball in baseball or the myriad uses
of earthworm castings, I could probably have continued with the blog. But that wasn’t my reality and the challenge
of keeping two nearly-aligned voices well-defined became more than I could accommodate
in my schedule. So I took a hiatus.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But the
campaign is now over. I’ve taken another
month to catch my breath and to rediscover my own voice. And I’m ready to resume this blog.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But things
will be different than they were before.
Even with the campaign complete, my plate of civic involvement remains well-filled. My goal will remain three posts per week, but
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday will now only guidelines. I’ll still count Tuesday, Saturday, and
Sunday as a win. (Indeed, this post is
two days later than I hoped.) And I’ll
try, once again, to write some posts with fewer words, a promise I’ve often made
to myself only to fail equally often.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Before I
close, I suspect there is one other question about which many are
wondering. Did the candidate win? To my chagrin, no, he didn’t. We mounted a solid effort, raised more funds
than any other candidate, made many new friends and supporters, and ran a
campaign of respect and quiet good sense.
But we ultimately failed to overcome the power of incumbency and the
status quo, falling short by about two percent.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Despite the
failure, lessons were learned, many of which will be shared here in the coming weeks
and months, and enthusiasm was created for a long-term commitment. Planning for the 2018 election has already
begun. The same candidate may or may not
run, but the group we founded will put at least one candidate into the
field. And next time, we won’t lose.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, I’m back
to blogging. I’ve missed chatting with
you, apologize for my absence, and look forward to rebuilding our connection.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, it will be about the recent tragic fire in Oakland.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-9052162503899305262016-12-05T17:55:00.004-08:002016-12-06T14:19:57.610-08:00I’m Back and I Want to Talk About a Road Diet <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/AVvXsEimUjNfgUrMpANhYMm0uc2xSgqDVwbi5Dig5zyFBY20D7FBex6PmEjkI5KEVv4gofDuq68QaAlF060wG97Sn1fBCB6NQIEaQEg-kJIMIRLUjuSFweIuWyCo5Isg44tiWFfGm8O8ZhKPd50/s1600/160627006+Petaluma+Boulevard+South+Traffic.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimUjNfgUrMpANhYMm0uc2xSgqDVwbi5Dig5zyFBY20D7FBex6PmEjkI5KEVv4gofDuq68QaAlF060wG97Sn1fBCB6NQIEaQEg-kJIMIRLUjuSFweIuWyCo5Isg44tiWFfGm8O8ZhKPd50/s320/160627006+Petaluma+Boulevard+South+Traffic.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petaluma Boulevard South<br />
(note truck using both 10-foot lanes)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Let me start
by apologizing for my long absence from this soapbox. It wasn't a planned absence, although in
retrospect it does feel as if it were inevitable. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In my next
post, I’ll talk about the reasons for my temporary disappearance after nearly
five years of thrice weekly posts. But today
I have a subject of more immediate importance.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2013/10/putting-automobile-in-its-place.html"><span style="color: red;">previously written</span></a> about road diets, modifications
to existing streets to readjust the balance between cars, bicyclists, and
pedestrians.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The most
common version of a road diet, one that has been implemented in communities
across the country, converts two lanes of traffic in each direction into single
travel lanes, a center turn lane, and, depending on the geometry of the
existing street, added accommodation for bicycles, pedestrians, parking, and/or
street beautification. As long as the
traffic doesn’t exceed 20,000 daily trips, these “four-to-three” road diets
have been found to have little to no impact on traffic capacity.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Wikipedia
provides a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_diet"><span style="color: red;">summary</span></a> of road diets in the U.S., although the
list of completed projects is deficient.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In Petaluma where
I live, a road diet was implemented a few years back on Petaluma Boulevard
through the heart of downtown and continuing a little further north. As I described in the post linked above, the project
was controversial. There was significant
opposition before construction and many were willing to decry the road diet as
a failure immediately after completion.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The debate
has largely died away, although occasional pockets of obstreperousness remain. But by most objective and subjective
measures, the downtown road diet has been a success. Traffic counts are higher now than they were
before the road diet, showing that capacity wasn’t harmed. Traffic accidents are reduced. Pedestrians generally report a more
comfortable experience. And bicyclists,
although still bemoaning the lack of bike lanes which weren’t possible because
of the narrowness of the road, admit that the riding experience is better than
before. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Encouraged by
that success and motivated by the availability of grant funds that can repave
deteriorating streets as a part of implementing road diets, city staff has been
alert to the possibility of more road diets.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
They
identified South Petaluma Boulevard as a suitable project. The work would begin at the southern end of the
previous road diet and continue another mile south. Indeed, they found that it was the road
section in Petaluma that best fit the criteria for a newly announced grant
program. With staff having identified the
opportunity, a City Council hearing is scheduled for December 19 to consider giving
direction to city staff to apply for the grant.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As a
long-time user and observer of Petaluma Boulevard South, I’m pleased with the progress. The street needs a change. The roadway segment nearest to downtown has four
10-foot travel lanes and two six-foot parking lanes. Although there are places where 10-foot lanes
can work, and may even be desirable, four 10-foot lanes bracketed by narrow parking
isn’t one of those places. And six-foot
parking lanes, compared to more common widths of seven or eight feet, often
induce drivers to park with two wheel s on the curb, diminishing the pedestrian
experience.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Adding in
the aging and heavily patched pavement, the street is an uncomfortable drive
for motorists. It’s even worse for
bicyclists and pedestrians, especially for walkers trying to cross the
boulevard from the residential neighborhoods south of the boulevard to the
restaurants and riverside parks to the north.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also,
Petaluma Boulevard South is the designated multi-use path (MUP) for the SMART
train that is coming soon to the North Bay.
The MUP, which was essential to voter approval of SMART, is the route by
which bicyclists are directed to reach SMART stations or to tour the North
Bay. It’s an embarrassment to both SMART
and Petaluma to have the MUP aligned along a road that is so unwelcoming to
bikes.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Despite the
logic for the Petaluma Boulevard South road diet, some opposition nonetheless
arose, offering many of the same arguments that were used against the downtown
road diet, largely focusing around traffic capacity. And there were indications that some
Councilmembers might pay heed to the opposition.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Anticipating
this resistance, a group, to which I belong, came together to argue for the
road diet. We’re currently walking
door-to-door in the neighborhoods that are most likely to be benefited by the
road diet, educating the residents about the benefits of the road diet and
asking for their support.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This is
where the readers come in, at least those readers who remain here after my
three- month sabbatical. If you live in
or near Petaluma and believe a road diet on Petaluma Boulevard South might be a
great idea, I have three suggestions for you.<br />
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">1) </span>You can attend a question-and-answer session at
the Aqus Café, 2nd and H Streets in Petaluma at 5:00pm on Wednesday, December
7.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Thus far, city staff hasn’t committed
to participate, but others can hopefully answer any questions you might have.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: -24px;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: -24px;">2) If a road diet still sounds like a good idea, you can visit flutterby.net/roaddiet/ to share your opinion with whichever Councilmembers you select.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: -24px;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: -24px;">3) </span><span style="font-family: Symbol; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Lastly, you can attend the Council meeting on
Monday, December 19 to express your views.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Or at least to show a common purpose with those who will be attending to
support the road diet.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This isn’t
the last time I’ll write about road diets between now and the Council
hearing. In particular, I’ll let a friend,
professional planner, and bicycling advocate use this space next week to more fully
explain road diets.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But this
introduction will hopefully suffice for now.
And if it triggered any questions, let me know. I’ll be happy to answer as best I can.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, it will be to explain a little about where I’ve been for the last three
months.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-47352949884935989302016-08-28T10:19:00.001-07:002016-08-28T10:19:47.298-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of August 28 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6lbmLsPzeCMOYRaS2hGZpnBU97eylL-r8SLTPxSAr2M2zQCjU_3um6MPBETCZYCPfjpVriV6JBywJDgps3FeKt92IzPsSgDFAhz9_SVKGOlk6sSw1t93c3rKOXOVuuLnUQQCBNfbYzf8/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6lbmLsPzeCMOYRaS2hGZpnBU97eylL-r8SLTPxSAr2M2zQCjU_3um6MPBETCZYCPfjpVriV6JBywJDgps3FeKt92IzPsSgDFAhz9_SVKGOlk6sSw1t93c3rKOXOVuuLnUQQCBNfbYzf8/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Last week, I
wrote that the number of public meetings with urbanist overtones seemed to be
increasing as Labor Day approached. I
may have reached that conclusion too soon, with next week coming up nearly
dry. But perhaps fifth weeks of months are
always deficient on meetings that are scheduled on a monthly basis. And there are still a couple of meetings by which
to get involved, along with some longer term opportunities on the horizon.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings this Week<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Cotati
Design Review Committee</u>, Monday, August 29, 4:30pm, Cotati City Hall, 201
West Sierra Avenue – With much of the surrounding land already occupied by
medium-density single family homes and industrial land uses, Cotati will have little
opportunity for transit-oriented development around the its new station on SMART
rail line. The Cotati Station Lofts and
Apartments, about 1,000 feet away, will be the only TOD, at least in the near
term. (My first foray into home
ownership, four decades ago, was a condo about 2,000 feet from a BART station. I rarely used my car from Monday through
Friday, so 1,000 feet isn’t far at all.)</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Much of the
project is already constructed, but some details are still being finalized, including
consideration at this week’s Cotati Design Review Committee meeting. The <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://cotaticityca.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=14&ID=1456&Inline=True"><span style="color: red;">agenda</span></a></span> is sketchy on details, but it might be
interesting meeting for some to attend.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Windsor
City Council and Planning Commission</u>, Thursday, September 1, 6:00pm,
Windsor Civic Center Council Chambers, 9291 Old Redwood Highway, Building 400 –
As I first noted last week, the Windsor City Council and Planning Commission are
conducting joint sessions to continue their consideration of the draft 2040 General
Plan. This week, they’ll focus on the transportation
and mobility elements. In the one
meeting I attended, I found the discussion high-level and engaging, so
encourage others to partake.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
City Council</u>, Monday, September 12, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – The Petaluma Planning Commission recently rejected the site design for
the proposed Marina Apartments on Lakeville Highway east of Highway 101. The reasons cited were concerns over building
massing and architecture, but disappointments were also expressed about the
recent Council decision to relieve the applicant of a requirement to build a
segment of multi-use path.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The
applicant appealed the Planning Commission rejection. The appeal will be heard by the City Council
on September 12. Although the primary
focus will be the design of the building, it’s likely that the multi-use path
will also be a subject of public comment.
Legally, the City Council could re-impose the multi-use path condition,
although it’s unlikely barring a public outcry in support of the path. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
City Council</u>, Monday, September 19, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – Petaluma staff will return to the Council for approval to submit a
grant application for street improvements.
To best conform to the standards of the granting agency, staff initially
proposed a road diet for Petaluma Boulevard South. The Council, in asking that the item be
removed from the Council agenda back in June, asked staff to look at other
possible street projects as possible subjects for the grant application.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet reportedly remains the preferred project for City
staff, setting up a potentially interesting discussion when the matter returns
to the Council agenda.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve been
working with a group of citizens who are passionate supporters of the Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet and have been working toward ensuring that the road
diet returns to the Council with a strong public endorsement. If you wish to help with the effort, please
email me. There is a role for additional
helping hands.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Joe
Minicozzi Digs into the Municipal Finances of Urbanism</u>, Week of September 26
(note date change), Multiple locations - Many readers attended three evening of
talks by Chuck Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 this past
January in Santa Rosa. The two spoke
about the theory of why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the
theory. Plans are being firmed up for a
return visit by Minicozzi about a month from now.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Meetings
will be held in Santa Rosa and Windsor, with the possibility of a further meeting
elsewhere in Sonoma County. Details will
be noted here as soon as available.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I encourage
everyone to block out as much time as possible for Monday, September 26 through
Wednesday, September 28, both to listen to Minicozzi and to build relationships
with other North Bay urbanists.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Rail~Volution</u>,
October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use
of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay
will surely be discussed, as will the increasing density around BART stations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Lots of
opportunities to get involved. Please
grab at least one and hopefully more.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, I won’t write. Instead, I’ll turn
this space over to an urban planner trained in bicycle transportation who will
write about road diets and bicycles. I
had the same expectation a week ago, but I’ve been assured that it’ll work out this
time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-17630254231997842132016-08-25T10:13:00.000-07:002016-08-25T10:24:46.912-07:00Free-Range Kids: Part 1, Framing the Discussion <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/AVvXsEiktKEtg68Ap3kBjc9Nd80vDoMiDRRO95X7wv02DzkTX-znEoZrlzJpccLYJH35pZ06UGwIOsTcCDsoCZoVSVKNI-8Zl1CeJ9a5INcqaHpaRXs6pLuvRo9nF70giUziD82JpV7P7SnK8iw/s1600/090523029+Red+Wagon.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/AVvXsEiktKEtg68Ap3kBjc9Nd80vDoMiDRRO95X7wv02DzkTX-znEoZrlzJpccLYJH35pZ06UGwIOsTcCDsoCZoVSVKNI-8Zl1CeJ9a5INcqaHpaRXs6pLuvRo9nF70giUziD82JpV7P7SnK8iw/s320/090523029+Red+Wagon.JPG" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children at play in Spokane</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In my last
post, I argued that warnings to be alert to children on back-to-school day were
<span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/08/stay-alert-for-youthful-users-of-street.html"><span style="color: red;">three months too late</span></a> </span>because more children
are on the street during the summer.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But in the
course of making that argument, I acknowledged that, regardless of the season,
there are fewer children on the street than when I was young. (Yeah, that probably makes me a curmudgeon,
but sometimes even curmudgeons are accurate about the shortfalls of the modern
world.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This reduction
in the numbering of roaming children is often described as the loss of
“free-range kids”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Over the
years of attending urbanist conferences, I’ve heard several people tell similar
stories of the multi-generational loss of childhood autonomy. If I recall correctly, one of the speakers
was Sarah Susanka of <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2013/10/urbanism-needs-not-so-big-and-vice-versa.html"><span style="color: red;">“Not So Big House”</span></a></span> fame. However, being unable at the moment to put my
fingers on the exact details of Susanka’s or others’ stories, I’ll offer a
composite of the stories I’ve heard.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When the
speaker’s great-grandfather was a child, he was allowed to bicycle six miles,
with sandwiches in a knapsack, to spend a day fishing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The pond
became off-limits to the next generation, but the speaker’s grandfather was
still allowed to pedal into the township a couple of miles away to gather with friends.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The speaker’s
father could only venture along the length of the road where the family lived. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And the
speaker wasn’t allowed to leave the frontyard without parental
supervision. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I suspect
that many readers can trace similarly reducing circles in their family
histories.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In my case,
my father would often tell the story of wandering his small hometown all day,
playing with childhood friends and making his own lunch, while his mother ran
the downtown soda fountain. (In his
later years, he also came to realize that the entire community had been
watching over him. Whenever he
misbehaved, the story would be quickly relayed to his mother at the soda
fountain, with judgment rendered before he could return with his side of the
story. He didn’t get away with much, but
he felt protected.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I didn’t have
quite that much freedom as a child, but wasn’t far behind. I often rode my bike to visit friends, even
if it meant crossing a busy street. And
I recall being given a few dollars at age ten to bike three-quarters of a mile to
buy a missing ingredient for dinner, an errand that also included buying a few
baseball cards from a vending machine in front of the store.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Having no
children, the story ends with me except to the extent I can observe the world around
me. And I can report never seeing a
ten-year-old child ride up on a bicycle to buy groceries at the store in my
neighborhood. (Nor are baseball cards still
sold in vending machines.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The loss of free-range childhoods matters to
urbanists because, along with children who never leave the house, an antithesis
of free-range children is children who are driven everywhere. Two major elements of urbanism are the sufficient
closeness of the various needs of life such that walking and bicycling are the superior
transportation options and streets that are balanced between drivers,
pedestrians, and bicyclists such that the latter two feel safe. Having Mom back an SUV out of a three-car
garage to drive Junior to a play date a block and a half away works against
both of those elements.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Furthermore,
the lost of free-range childhoods should matter to all of us because childhood
freedom to explore, whether ideas or surroundings, seems to <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201209/children-s-freedom-has-declined-so-has-their-creativity"><span style="color: red;">correlate with greater creativity</span></a> in
adulthood. With creativity being perhaps
the most valuable commodity that U.S. offers to the global economy, anything
that lessens creativity should be a cause for alarm.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, if
free-range kids are good on multiple levels, why have they become scarce? Several reasons can be given, starting with increased
attractions at home such as video games, better televisions, and the internet
and <span style="color: red;"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-missing-children/2013/05/10/efee398c-b8b4-11e2-aa9e-a02b765ff0ea_story.html?utm_term=.87b6ad8e713d"><span style="color: red;">over-estimated</span></a></span> stranger danger.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But the reason
I want to note today is enforcement of cultural norms. Many citizens
are willing to call authorities if they believe children are being given more
freedom than appropriate, making parents timid in their parenting decisions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Let me give
another example from my own life. From
kindergarten through third grade, I attended an elementary school a half-mile from
my home. The walk was along a
moderately-used local street. A guard-assisted
crossing of a collector street was also required. There was little sidewalk, so most of the
walk was on paved and unpaved shoulders.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My parents thought
it was fine if I walked to school, but not on my own, at least for first
grade. So they set me up with a nearby
third-grade girl. The two of us walked together
along the shoulder, a six-year-old and an eight-year-old, as cars drove past
us. (And yes, there was a certain thrill
in showing up for first grade in the company of an older woman.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My parents
weren’t pushing the envelope and I don’t recall anyone ever questioning their
judgment. It was how things were in 1959.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’s very
different today. A Washington, D.C.
couple who believe in free-range kids have been <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.citylab.com/crime/2015/04/the-murky-law-on-free-range-kids/390795/?utm_source=nl_daily_link2_041715"><span style="color: red;">investigated multiple times</span></a></span> by the police
and child services for allowed their ten-year-old and six-year-old to explore
their neighborhood by themselves, including a recent incident during which the
children were held in the back of a police cruiser for three hours. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As the writer
of the linked article in CityLab correctly notes, specific circumstances matter
greatly. Allowing a six-year-old to walk
by himself to play in a neighborhood park with friends is very different than sending
the same child for a quart of milk at a convenience store that has been robbed
three times in recent weeks.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But our
default has too become excessive caution and that mindset undermines our
children and our cities.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It needn’t
be this way. The culture in Japan
expects children to venture out on their own at a <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.citylab.com/commute/2015/09/why-are-little-kids-in-japan-so-independent/407590/?utm_source=nl__link6_092915"><span style="color: red;">much younger age</span></a></span>. There is even a television show that films two-
and three-year-olds heading out to complete their first family errands.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even if the
U.S. can’t fully emulate the Japanese model, we should at least ponder it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This is a
rich topic to which I’ll return as soon as possible. But my next post will be another summary of
upcoming opportunities to publicly espouse urbanism and that post will be
followed by a discussion of road diets. Lots
of good stuff coming up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-6126690938026859232016-08-22T11:25:00.001-07:002016-08-22T11:34:07.654-07:00Stay Alert for Youthful Users of the Street All Year Long <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/AVvXsEg4Yi21eITBDK3aFI94H1YxJrYXViLwZwcpdQ3lTen5huKTHMDdsf7RCpAmJhTj9TClPpt6uNh2yYgYstUAHFdh_XygnfhKtOoG4GG1lLI63g2WrYWjMk85uNkU2HvB64XP3O7D1EGycto/s1600/090822009+Harmar+Elementary+School.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/AVvXsEg4Yi21eITBDK3aFI94H1YxJrYXViLwZwcpdQ3lTen5huKTHMDdsf7RCpAmJhTj9TClPpt6uNh2yYgYstUAHFdh_XygnfhKtOoG4GG1lLI63g2WrYWjMk85uNkU2HvB64XP3O7D1EGycto/s320/090822009+Harmar+Elementary+School.JPG" width="211" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harmar Elementary School<br />
in Harmer, Ohio</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I promised a
guest writer today, an expert on road diets.
Unfortunately, he’s still hard at work on his post, so you’re instead stuck
with me. The road diet post, or hopefully
two, will run next week.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But it’s
okay that today’s authorship reverted to me because I have a topic about which
I want to vent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Most schools
in my town reopened last week. And, as
seems to happen every year, many wrote warnings to drivers about being aware of
children on their way to school.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Obviously, I’ll
fully in support of not running over students.
But isn’t the warning mistimed?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I can’t speak
to everyone’s youth, but let me share a fairly typical day from the summer
between my sixth and seventh grade school years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
After a slow
start to the day, usually cereal while watching morning reruns of “The Andy
Griffith Show” and “The Dick Van Dyke Show”, I’d join a group of boys near the
north end of my block for games played in the street and involving bat and
ball. We never had enough bodies for a
full game of baseball, plus we had a grouchy neighbor who complained if we got
too noisy, but we have a variety of alternatives with which to entertain ourselves
until the early afternoon.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As the day
got warmer, I’d often ride my bicycle to the nearby pool club, where I’d spend an
hour or two hanging out and getting wet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the
evening, after dinner, I’d sometimes join a different group of youths on the south
end of my block for more street play, often a variant of softball that wasn’t high
level, but was enough to keep me outside until the streetlights came on.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, compare
that to my routine when school resumed.
Walk sleepily and sullenly to the corner to await a school bus. Reverse in the afternoon, perhaps with less
sleepiness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Wouldn’t it
have been ridiculous to warn drivers to be alert to my twice daily half-block walks
during the school year while letting me play ball in the street and wander all
over my neighborhood, on foot and on bicycle, all summer long with nary a
warning to drivers?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some will note that there are fewer children out
and about on their own these days, with streetball games almost never
seen. They’re right on both points,
which is a separate subject worthy of its own discussion, but I’ll also note
that walking and bicycling to school are at historic lows, with many more students
getting rides to school.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I know this
will be only one data point, but I think it’s a good one. My wife and I live on a moderately busy
street. Our home is nearly equidistant
and within walking distance of three schools, a high school, junior high, and
elementary school. And we see more youths
walking and bicycling during the summer than we do when school is in session.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The first
day of school warnings are a clichéd remnant of a time that never was. They’re not a bad thing, but the more useful
reminder is to be aware of all street users on foot and on bicycle year round.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, grumble
complete.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
However, the
grumble had the upside of broaching the fact that fewer children are using the
streets on their own these days, a problem that many describe as the loss of
free-range childhoods. It’s the topic that’s
important to urbanism and into which I’ll dig next time, while still awaiting
the road diet posts.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-54339467910599226432016-08-19T09:45:00.000-07:002016-08-19T09:45:47.749-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of August 21<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcLtWlJLcl9WozjmGRoD6EdFAn_gnvCKNzH2dGt55DQkboJ8JdQLqzq8hgGFxWXqQxiM8fTLcE5_ngHYE3Qxl8UPN_e4dYVjyEajl4GTnHIYJL57z8s0CJ0REgQlJqtcpw0wYMLtZMyA/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAcLtWlJLcl9WozjmGRoD6EdFAn_gnvCKNzH2dGt55DQkboJ8JdQLqzq8hgGFxWXqQxiM8fTLcE5_ngHYE3Qxl8UPN_e4dYVjyEajl4GTnHIYJL57z8s0CJ0REgQlJqtcpw0wYMLtZMyA/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
The number of North Bay public meetings with urbanist overtones seems to be increasing as we approach Labor Day. Hopefully this will portend a winter of paradigm shifting. It’s time to get onboard and to begin making your voice heard. Also, with issues such as municipal elections and the road diet in Petaluma looming, there are also chances for neighborhood outreach. If you want to make a difference in the world, there are opportunities to do so.<br />
<br />
Meetings this Week<br />
<br />
Cotati Planning Commission and Rohnert Park Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Monday August 22, 5:30pm, City Council Chamber, Rohnert Park City Hall, 130 Avram Avenue – A few weeks back, I puzzled in this space about a joint meeting that had been scheduled and then cancelled involving public bodies of the adjoining cities of Cotati and Rohnert Park. I couldn’t imagine what topic could have been of joint interest. I now have my answer. They would have assembled for a study session of the “Bicycle and Pedestrian Network Adjacent/Interconnected Facilities.”<br />
<br />
And the previously canceled meeting has now been rescheduled for Monday.<br />
<br />
Given the adjoining boundaries of the two cities and the moderately continuous land-use pattern, I think a joint study session is a great idea, applaud the two cities for their foresight, and encourage the interested members of the two communities to participate.<br />
<br />
Petaluma Planning Commission, Tuesday, August 23, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 11 English Street – I’m not sure I can truly characterize this as an urbanism issue, but I’m also not sure that it isn’t. To buttress attendance, the downtown Petaluma movie theatre is asking permission to begin selling beer and wine to moviegoers.<br />
<br />
The land-use entitlement angle is sufficiently complex that the Petaluma planning staff had to discourse at length before recommending approval.<br />
<br />
But I find the urbanist issues even more complex. On one hand, I want the theatre to thrive because theatres can be important elements of downtowns, adding to sidewalk vitality. On the other hand, I remain unconvinced that the ability to buy a beer will attract more patrons. Also, movie theatres are a great place for youth to learn socialization away from parental oversight and I fear that adding alcohol to the mix, even if the youth aren’t the ones consuming, could be counterproductive to those learning experiences.<br />
<br />
And on a personal level, I’m not eager to have more people climbing over me mid-movie to visit the restroom.<br />
<br />
I’ll likely attend this meeting to see if I can find personal clarity.<br />
<br />
Windsor City Council and Planning Commission, Tuesday, August 23, 5:30pm, Windsor Civic Center Council Chambers, 9291 Old Redwood Highway, Building 400 – Windsor, in a joint session of the City Council and Planning Commission, will continue their consideration of the draft 2040 General Plan. This week, they’ll focus on the economic development and public facilities elements.<br />
<br />
General plan study sessions will never be riveting experiences, but I attended the study session earlier this week on land use and community design and found it unexpectedly compelling. Windsor has been more aggressive in adopting urbanist concepts than many North Bay cities and it shows in both the urban fabric around the civic complex and in the general discussion.<br />
<br />
To be sure, there are still folks asking for down-zonings because they claim the market won’t support higher densities, but the down-zonings for which they’re asking are less extreme than similar requests in other communities and the tenor of the discussion seems more urban, and urbane, in tone.<br />
<br />
This doesn’t mean that Windsor has reached financial stability through urbanism. As a local urbanist assured me as I was taking my leave, Windsor still has a long ways to go. But they’ve already reached a higher level of urbanism and a higher level of debate, both of which were enjoyable to observe.<br />
<br />
I won’t make the meeting this coming week, but encourage others to attend who may need to have flagging urbanist spirits raised.<br />
<br />
Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<br />
<br />
Petaluma City Council, Monday, September 12, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English Street – The Petaluma Planning Commission recently rejected the site design for the proposed Marina Apartments on Lakeville Highway east of Highway 101. The reason was concern over the building massing and architecture, but disappointments were also expressed about the recent Council decision to relieve the applicant of a requirement to build a segment of multi-use path.<br />
<br />
The applicant appealed the Planning Commission rejection. The appeal will be heard by the City Council on September 12. Although the primary focus will be the design of the building, it’s likely that the multi-use path will also be a subject of public comment. Legally, the City Council could re-impose the multi-use path condition, although it’s unlikely barring a public outcry in support of the path.<br />
<br />
Petaluma City Council, Monday, September 19, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English Street – Petaluma staff will return to the Council for approval to submit a grant application for street improvements. To best conform to the standards of the granting agency, staff initially proposed a road diet for Petaluma Boulevard South. The Council, by directing that the item be removed from the Council agenda, effectively asked staff to look at other possible street projects as subjects for the possible grant application.<br />
<br />
The Petaluma Boulevard South road diet reportedly remains the preferred project for City staff, setting up a potentially interesting discussion when the matter returns to the Council agenda on September 19.<br />
<br />
I’ve been working with a group of citizens who are passionate supporters of the Petaluma Boulevard South road diet and have been working toward ensuring that the road diet returns to the Council with a strong public endorsement. If you wish to help with the effort, please email me. There is a role for additional helping hands.<br />
<br />
Joe Minicozzi Digs into the Municipal Finances of Urbanism, Week of September 19, Multiple locations - Many readers attended three evening of talks by Chuck Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 this past January in Santa Rosa. The two spoke about the theory of why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the theory. Conversations are underway for a return visit by Minicozzi to the North Bay later this year.<br />
<br />
Exact dates and meeting locations are still being developed, but I encourage everyone to block out much of the week. Minicozzi’s message could have profound consequences for North Bay cities.<br />
<br />
Rail~Volution, October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay will surely be discussed, as will the increasing density around BART stations.<br />
<br />
Fun stuff coming up, with lots of opportunities to get involved. Please grab at least one and hopefully more.<br />
<br />
When I next write, I won’t write. Instead, I’ll turn this space over to an urban planner trained in bicycle transportation who will write about road diets and bicycles.<br />
<br />
As always, your questions or comments will be appreciated. Please comment below or email me. And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (davealden53@comcast.net)Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-1574346860350615432016-08-18T08:06:00.001-07:002016-08-18T08:06:32.463-07:00The Shrinking Role of Retail in Planning Cities <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/AVvXsEgZbrGG4tphyphenhyphenE4KKqxldHLw3nBFYt8J7G3Y-03dmIbQUZZTdgtt0eGsWuN213fUcA3AeM_EOGrsoy7eZfdwHWphi4AsFJ7xG60ki61HBOl2OGxDRZcJCJ2ACX-hTEEY8wLWs-H6dO-uvpM/s1600/141229C003+Main+Street+at+1st.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZbrGG4tphyphenhyphenE4KKqxldHLw3nBFYt8J7G3Y-03dmIbQUZZTdgtt0eGsWuN213fUcA3AeM_EOGrsoy7eZfdwHWphi4AsFJ7xG60ki61HBOl2OGxDRZcJCJ2ACX-hTEEY8wLWs-H6dO-uvpM/s320/141229C003+Main+Street+at+1st.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Office over retail mixed-use in downtown Napa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In 1962, when
I was a nine-year-old living in south Sacramento, Macy’s announced plans to
build a store in downtown Sacramento. It
was big news for the adults in my world.
It was also big news for Sacramento, a point of new-found pride in a town
that often thought of itself as falling short in comparisons with San Francisco
and Los Angeles.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I wasn’t
quite sure I knew what Macy’s was. I
doubt I’ve yet seen “Miracle on 34th Street”.
But I sensed the buzz of excitement about Macy’s coming to town. Retail stores mattered.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I thought
back on those days of innocence this week as word came out that Macy’s would <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2016/08/11/investing/macys-closes-100-stores/"><span style="color: red;">close another 100 stores</span></a> to instead focus on its
internet businesses.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Macy’s isn’t
a factor in most walkable urban districts, but the message still stands. Retail stores are shrinking in importance and
shrinking quickly. And it’s not just the
old-line department stores like Macy’s.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The failure
of enclosed malls is well-known, with photos of derelict malls rivaling abandoned
industrial plants as ruin porn.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Downtown
retail is increasingly antique stores and boutiques rather the diapers and
canned soup that make up daily shopping lists.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Many strip
malls have storefronts lined with butcher paper and leasing signs out front.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The new
generation of open malls, whether the conventional configuration with giant
parking lots fronting on supersized strip malls or the downtown-emulating
lifestyle centers, struggle to fill their space.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even residential
over retail mixed-used, the backbone of many walkable urbanist plans, often can’t
find enough tenants to fill the retail space created.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
We needn’t like
this direction, much as many bemoaned the abrupt loss of a great number of newspapers
a few years back. But lamenting the
shrinking role of retail won’t make a difference, just as it didn’t with the
newspaper downward spiral.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Instead, our
role is to accept the inevitability of the change and to adjust to it. (Earlier this week, I listened as the Windsor
City Council and Planning Commission debated whether to give developers the
option to substitute horizontal mixed-use for vertical. I agreed with those who argued to hold firm
on vertical, but at the same time wondered if they weren’t fighting over a
corpse.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma had
the dual good fortune of updating their downtown development code just as the
slide in retail was becoming evident and of having a far-sighted planning firm,
Opticos Design, doing the update. As a
result, the amount of required sidewalk retail was reduced to levels that will
hopefully be more consistent with future demand.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The
reduction of sidewalk retail has urban design implications. Although a level of pedestrian interest must
be maintained to promote walkability, with interest being one of Jeff Speck’s
four keys to walkability, the relationship between the sidewalk and a home is
fundamentally different than between a sidewalk and a store. (Long ago, I noted <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2013/05/bart-tod-stoops.html"><span style="color: red;">some examples</span></a></span> at BART TOD projects.) Opticos understood this and gave good design
direction in the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://cityofpetaluma.net/cmgr/pdf/samp-final-draft.pdf"><span style="color: red;">Station Area Masterplan</span></a></span>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Macy’s isn’t
coming back nor is the number of local bookstores likely to rebound. The future will belong to those who quickly accept
this new reality and adjust their planning to accommodate it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, it will be to offer my weekly list of opportunities to get involved in
the public advocacy for urbanism. As
fall creeps closer, the list is beginning to grow.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-18941922067694261372016-08-16T02:02:00.001-07:002016-08-16T02:02:29.776-07:00The Cost of a Car-Oriented World: Suspended Licenses Don't Mean What They Once Did <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhR6mhCgG-4aN0-SpcdNlpVwtXMmVW7HZnU4895F9WUeAL1AbkFVIn5WjizqS8mtvg9Ek46MPgTmQV1jkTJrPgHEibABBueV2EvtqIG1V0BALgiX_slmyRmTvW2tQK8ikYIC7FpRT2KY/s1600/140313005+Lakeville+Street.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhR6mhCgG-4aN0-SpcdNlpVwtXMmVW7HZnU4895F9WUeAL1AbkFVIn5WjizqS8mtvg9Ek46MPgTmQV1jkTJrPgHEibABBueV2EvtqIG1V0BALgiX_slmyRmTvW2tQK8ikYIC7FpRT2KY/s320/140313005+Lakeville+Street.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Today, I’ll
write about suspended drivers’ licenses.
It’s a topic that may seem unconnected to urbanism, but the linkages are
surprisingly robust.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
A few days
ago, there was a <a href="http://patch.com/california/petaluma/car-carrier-driver-who-set-hwy-101-8-vehicle-crash-had-suspended-license-chp?utm_source=alert-breakingnews&utm_medium=email&utm_term=police%20%26%20fire&utm_campaign=alert"><span style="color: red;">major traffic accident</span></a> on the freeway just north
of my town. It was a chain reaction that
began when the driver of a car carrier, in a moment of inattention, hit the car
in front of him. Quickly, eight vehicles
were involved.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Luckily, no
one was killed, with the worst injury being a broken arm. But the freeway, a major commute route, was
closed for hours. The cost in lost time
was substantial.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
A day later,
it was announced by the Highway Patrol that the driver of the car carrier had a
suspended license. The outcry was
predictable, with the public wondering how a driver with a suspended license
had been employed and what should be done to keep him off the road.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Thirty years
ago, those might have been good questions.
Today, not so much.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In
California today, <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/09/us/disparity-is-seen-in-california-drivers-license-suspensions.html?_r=0"><span style="color: red;">seventeen percent of all drivers</span></a></span> are
carrying suspended licenses. Seventeen
percent! In the eight-vehicle pileup
noted above, there is nearly a 75 percent that a second driver also had a
suspended license.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The
proliferation of suspended licenses has roots in the drivable suburban
paradigm. I’ll connect the dots below.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As I’ve
written many times, drivable suburbia was a theoretical experiment imposed on
the U.S. in the halcyon days of economic growth following World War II, an experiment
that soon ran into financial trouble.
The planners who had initiated the experiment recognized the failure and
began to argue to abandon it, but the public, enthralled by single-family homes
on large lots and wide boulevards, refused to let go. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As the
public then became disenchanted with the costs of drivable suburbia, and began
looking for villains everywhere except in the mirror, their eyes soon lit upon
government and its assumed inefficiencies.
Eager to stop the presumed
malefactor, property tax limitations soon began to proliferate. In California, it was Proposition 13. In other states, different names applied.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
With
property taxes constrained to less than the amount required to sustain the
land-use pattern, policy-makers looked elsewhere for revenue. (Over the years, a few office-holders pointed
to the underlying problem of land-use and other costs of the modern world, but
those troublemakers were soon flushed from public life.) The citizenry quickly sniffed out attempts to
bypass the intent of property tax limitation and imposed further measures
limiting many other taxes and fees. But one item that wasn’t constrained was
traffic fines.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The result
was predictable. The amounts of traffic
fines soon grew, in many cases outstripping the ability of lower-income folks
to pay. And that non-payment became a further
source of revenue with various penalties, fees, and license restrictions
attached until rules were in place such that a $300 speeding ticket could soon
became a $1,000 debt and a suspended license, both of which were swords hanging
over the financial security of lower-income homes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But that’s
only part of the story. The drivable
suburban model also resulted in many homes, including the homes of low-income
families, being built in places where daily tasks couldn’t be easily
accomplished on foot or bike and where the density was too low for transit to
work. So a resident in one of those
homes, in order to reach work with the hope of someday being able to pay the
accumulating fines, had to ignore any license suspensions in order to reach work
or, as in the case of the car carrier driver, to work at all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’s hard to
imagine a more perverse scenario than one in which people are forced into their
cars and then threatened with bankruptcy and jail time as the inescapable
consequences of driving miscues, many of which are relatively minor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But it’s the
scenario that we created and have continued to perpetuate.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And even
then there is one more aspect of the problem to be noted. In communities dominated by low-income
households, the percent of residents with pending arrest warrants, many related
to unpaid traffic fines, can become staggering.
In Ferguson, Missouri at the time of the unrest, some estimate that <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/04/09/398576196/study-find-the-poor-subject-to-unfair-fines-drivers-license-suspensions"><span style="color: red;">over 75 percent of the residents</span></a></span> had
pending arrest warrants, a fact that had to increase the anger shown during the
long nights of confrontation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So the
recent flare-up of antagonism between police and non-white communities has some
of its roots in the financial failure of suburbia and the desperate attempt to
find funds to prop up the failed experiment.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I recently
had someone suggest to me that the problem could be avoided if people would
just drive within the law. If the epidemic
of suspended licenses was due to DUI arrests, I’d agree. But only 15 percent of suspended licenses are
the result of DUIs. The remainder are the
result of more minor offenses, speeding, expired tags, rolling through stop
signs, of which many of us are regularly guilty. The difference is some of us can pay the
fine, considering it an inconvenience, while others are pushed into a hole
leading to ever larger fines, suspended licenses, and the threat of an arrest. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the
aftermath of Ferguson, the depth of the problem with traffic fines was
recognized and many states, including California, implemented programs <span style="color: red;"><a href="https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2016/01/22/millions-of-californians-could-regain-drivers-licenses-under-new-bill/"><span style="color: red;">to lift license suspensions</span></a></span>. They were laudable efforts, but backsliding
is inevitable. The only real solution is
to admit the failure of suburbia and to return our communities to a more
financially sustainable model in which we needn’t threaten ruin to households
that dare to drive a car even when a car is necessary to survive.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It wouldn’t
be an easy transition, but the time is long past for us to commit to it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, I’ll look at some news from the world of retail that has implications
for urbanism.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-40933205817698994602016-08-12T09:44:00.000-07:002016-08-12T11:33:32.381-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of August 14<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidq2yNV4xu0URgm2SXEnBf2SqmkIfaJHCXQeadjEatW_rFbZcvQqoY2mISGRLwxt20KlluPReqnn_94WrCxO91pr2Uxkd4TbBRPChsW7yQnSzBHLuQUh7vqVLeSv7R5SRpzNfvKEBJB2c/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidq2yNV4xu0URgm2SXEnBf2SqmkIfaJHCXQeadjEatW_rFbZcvQqoY2mISGRLwxt20KlluPReqnn_94WrCxO91pr2Uxkd4TbBRPChsW7yQnSzBHLuQUh7vqVLeSv7R5SRpzNfvKEBJB2c/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As we move
into the heart of August, the near-term opportunities for urbanist involvement at
public meetings remain scarce, but the September calendar remains
promising. Also, with issues such as municipal
elections and the road diet in Petaluma looming, there are chances for
neighborhood outreach. If you want to
make a difference in the world, there are always opportunities to do so.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings this Week<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Friends
of SMART</u>, Wednesday, August 17, 11:30am – Friends of SMART is a citizens
group that was instrumental in getting the SMART Train ballot measure passed and
continues to fill an oversight role as SMART moves toward revenue service. I’ve been involved with FoS for more than a
year and find them a passionate group, focused on the role SMART can play in
the North Bay and on what the next SMART-type rail expansion should be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
If anyone is
interested in attending the FoS Board
meeting, let me know and I’ll arrange an invitation.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Sonoma
Marin Area Rail Transit Board</u>, Wednesday, August 17, 1:30pm, 5401 Old
Redwood Highway, Petaluma – The agenda for the SMART Board meeting still hasn’t
been announced, but with the testing of the full schedule looming ever closer,
to be closely followed by revenue service, the agenda will likely include items
of urbanist interest. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
Recreation Music and Park Commission</u>, Wednesday, August 17, 7:00pm,
Petaluma Community Center, 320 N. McDowell Boulevard (Note: Not City Hall!) - Sunset
Park is an odd little park, hiding in plain sight between the historic Silk
Mill and Lakeville Street. I suspect that
many Petalumans don’t even realize that it’s a city park, but they’re wrong.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Furthermore,
the park has an upcoming opportunity to take a bigger role in civic life. As a part of the retasking of the Silk Mill
into a hotel, the developer is proposing revisions to Sunset Park. Should the park serve as the frontyard of the
hotel, as a neighborhood park for the children living in the nearby homes, as a
waystation for bicyclists traveling Lakeville, or as some combination of the
three?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
That will be
the question in front of the Recreation Music and Park Commission Wednesday
evening. If you have an opinion, please come
and share.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
City Council</u>, Monday, September 12, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – The Petaluma Planning Commission recently rejected the site design for
the proposed Marina Apartments on Lakeville Highway east of Highway 101. The reason was concern over the building
massing and architecture, but disappointments were also expressed about the recent
Council decision to relieve the applicant of a requirement to build a segment
of multi-use path.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The
applicant appealed the Planning Commission rejection. The appeal will be heard by the City Council
on September 12. Although the primary focus
will be the design of the building, it’s likely that the multi-use path will also
be a subject of public comment. Legally,
the City Council could re-impose the multi-use path condition, although it’s unlikely
barring a major public outcry in support of the path. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
City Council</u>, Monday, September 19, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – Petaluma staff will return to the Council for approval to submit a
grant application for street improvements.
To best conform to the standards of the granting agency, staff initially
proposed a road diet for Petaluma Boulevard South. The Council, by directing that the item be
removed from the Council agenda, effectively asked staff to look at other
possible street projects as subjects for the possible grant application.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet reportedly remains the preferred project for City
staff, setting up a potentially interesting discussion when the matter returns
to the Council agenda on September 19.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve been
working with a group of citizens who are passionate supporters of the Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet and have been working toward ensuring that the road
diet returns to the Council with a strong public endorsement.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Joe
Minicozzi Digs into the Municipal Finances of Urbanism</u>, Week of September
19, Multiple locations - Many readers attended three evening of talks by Chuck
Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 this past January in Santa
Rosa. The two spoke about the theory of
why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the theory. Conversations are underway for a return visit
by Minicozzi to the North Bay later this year.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Exact dates
and meeting locations are still being developed, but I encourage everyone to
block out much of the week. Minicozzi’s
message could have profound consequences for North Bay cities.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Rail~Volution</u>,
October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use
of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay
will surely be discussed, as will the increasing density around BART stations.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even with
the paucity of opportunities in the coming week, there are still lots of
opportunities to get involved. Please
grab at least one and hopefully more.<br />
<br />
When I next
write, I’ll revisit the connection between suspended drivers’ licenses and
urbanism. It may seem an odd link, but
it’s very real.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-67990940154272939812016-08-11T01:52:00.000-07:002016-08-11T08:34:11.342-07:00“Twenty is Plenty” is More than a Clever Rhyme <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkb9qNS9GzvwK_YBu-UNUlSZI_nkb6IOxbRmE-INdQ0VormqWmn0W1c1cknndbLJ2A9SxrhhdFrDUqizS47tMAA_JIXy-NNbOIh051Plvq1dA07Lqx689A1bfxOGMWtSSI_LhJVwII20/s1600/141107001+E+Washington+Street.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkb9qNS9GzvwK_YBu-UNUlSZI_nkb6IOxbRmE-INdQ0VormqWmn0W1c1cknndbLJ2A9SxrhhdFrDUqizS47tMAA_JIXy-NNbOIh051Plvq1dA07Lqx689A1bfxOGMWtSSI_LhJVwII20/s320/141107001+E+Washington+Street.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The subject
promised for today has been shoved aside in favor of a subject that abruptly
gained urgency.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2014/04/can-twenty-be-plenty.html"><span style="color: red;">previously written</span></a></span> about the “Twenty is
Plenty” movement. Adherents promote the
argument that most vehicular speeds within towns should be limited to twenty
miles per hour. It’s a crusade that has
gained a foothold in Europe, with some towns fully implementing the standard.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the U.S.,
there has been less progress, but still some notable successes. Although not all the way down to the target speed,
New York City has dropped many street speed limits to twenty-five miles per
hour in response to Twenty is Plenty supporters. (Update: Hours after publishing this post, I
came across news that <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.universalhub.com/2016/boston-drop-default-speed-limit-30-25-mph-asap?nocache=1"><span style="color: red;">Boston asked the state</span></a></span> to allow them to
adjust to a widespread twenty miles per hours.
The state allowed them to go with twenty-five miles per hour.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’s easy to
think of the movement in an idealistic, bloodless way as creating better walkable
places where cars are made less threatening.
But there is a real, flesh-and-blood public safety side to the
concept. I had a front row seat to
observe that reality earlier today.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I was
returning home, still feeling good about an extended lunch during which a
companion and I hashed out strategies for the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/07/an-urbanist-learns-about-electoral.html"><span style="color: red;">upcoming city council race</span></a></span>. I was driving on a major arterial in my town,
at the far end of the road segment shown above.
There are two travel lanes in each direction, along with a center turn
pocket.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As I
approached a crosswalk often used by pedestrians, a long line of cars queued up
to turn left partially blocked my view.
I couldn’t see if someone might be waiting to cross the street from the
near left corner.</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Consistent
with the law and with common sense, I slowed to check. Sure enough, there was a young family waiting
to cross from left to right, a mother with an infant strapped to her chest, two
toddlers being led by their hands, and a dog on a leash. One of the toddlers was a blond girl of
perhaps three.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Seeing me
stop and with no traffic in the opposing direction, the mother began to lead
her family across. As she neared my car,
I looked in my right hand mirror. A car
was quickly coming up in the right lane, above the speed limit, without visibility
of the family on foot, and with no apparent intention to stop.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My options
were limited. In the seconds that were available,
I had no way to attract the attention of the other driver. I considered waving at the mother from my
front seat, but wasn’t sure she’d see me through the windshield in the early
afternoon sun. So l defaulted to the only
remaining option and leaned on my horn.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The mother
looked up in puzzlement and pulled back slightly on her children’s hands as a
dusty blue Ford Focus sped through the crosswalk, perhaps three feet from the
little girl. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’m not sure
my actions made the difference. It’s
possible that the child would have been still been missed, although by a lesser
margin, if I hadn’t spotted the onrushing car and hit my horn. Regardless, the situation was all too real
and I’m still shaken hours later.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
At this
point, many would facilely note the need to remain alert to pedestrians and
think they’ve done all they can. That response
is useless.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
To begin, the
driver probably doesn’t read this blog or any other materials promoting traffic
safety. And even in the unlikely event that
he does come across these words, I doubt he’ll see himself in the story told being
told. Based on how he continued to drive
above the speed limit as he sped away, I don’t think he ever saw the little
girl, even as she flashed by his driver’s side window.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also,
although the actions of this particular driver were beyond the pale, we all
make mistakes. Perhaps an engrossing conversation
with a passenger keeps a driver from picking up the clues that pedestrians
might be present. And even at the posted
speed limit of twenty-five miles per hour, the results can still be disastrous.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
No solution
is perfect, but the best approach is a system of changes to streets, including
narrower lane widths, bulb-outs, and other traffic calming changes, that would pull
traffic speeds down to twenty miles per hour.
Not only are pedestrians struck at lower speeds markedly more likely to
survive, but drivers have more time to react to visual clues and to avert
accidents.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some will
note that California state law doesn’t allow arterials to have speed limits of twenty
miles per hour and that the city doesn’t have the resources to make the street
modifications to slow traffic. To which
I can only reply that they haven’t seen a smiling toddler, happily tugging at
her mother’s hand in one moment and nearly tossed into the air by a speeding
car in the next. Once that image has
been seared into memory, impediments like state law and diminished municipal
coffers seem less important.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Twenty is
Plenty may be difficult to implement, but the alternative is even harder.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
P.S. Through
the vagaries of traffic flow, the blue Ford Focus was stopped by a traffic
light a few blocks further ahead.
Although I couldn’t get close enough to see the face of the driver, I
was able to get a license plate number.
I’ll forward it shortly to the local police, along with this story. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, I’ll update my list of upcoming chances for community involvement toward
the furtherance of urbanism. Perhaps
there will be a chance to argue for Twenty is Plenty.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-31715793189549307992016-08-09T01:09:00.001-07:002016-08-09T01:09:50.975-07:00Towns Can Overbuild More than Infrastructure <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<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/AVvXsEiqT33jGZlSJoBrNG1krNCk4lUChnrq-VRuTjWnRVMcvSRTTImraNa5QuzutRO9ZdQtnxYsAVlb8oQ_Rs5y_1aybhbyo2VTfEhRU6DIOV3uRumMJ5uVj8uaGFbqrjUGtZ7e962WnSc_ZCw/s1600/160801+Kannapolis+City+Hall.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqT33jGZlSJoBrNG1krNCk4lUChnrq-VRuTjWnRVMcvSRTTImraNa5QuzutRO9ZdQtnxYsAVlb8oQ_Rs5y_1aybhbyo2VTfEhRU6DIOV3uRumMJ5uVj8uaGFbqrjUGtZ7e962WnSc_ZCw/s400/160801+Kannapolis+City+Hall.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kannapolis City Hall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In writing
about the best moments from CNU 24, the annual gathering of urbanists held in
Detroit earlier this year, I <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/06/cnu-24-best-moments-part-2.html"><span style="color: red;">quoted</span></a></span> Andres Duany on the role of public
buildings, “Urbanist codes should cover residential, commercial, and office
buildings, but not public buildings.
It’s in public buildings where architects should be free to depict the
grandeur of civilization and civic life.”<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdaB9dKIbCzZ9ICcBcv3-opcxG00Yb5DJjaMqSAvKHm9-_nrhC3VnHdeFc1Q3Cz3NmXHUNnscOOr8EoZlb8q6q5tPfENNGW0Kk3FL9szkUKLCTkvLo_owqDm3Et3RHkRDyjDnJa2SUidc/s1600/160807003+Petaluma+City+Hall.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdaB9dKIbCzZ9ICcBcv3-opcxG00Yb5DJjaMqSAvKHm9-_nrhC3VnHdeFc1Q3Cz3NmXHUNnscOOr8EoZlb8q6q5tPfENNGW0Kk3FL9szkUKLCTkvLo_owqDm3Et3RHkRDyjDnJa2SUidc/s320/160807003+Petaluma+City+Hall.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petaluma City Hall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’s a
lesson that Kannapolis, North Carolina seems to have taken to heart, perhaps
too much so and definitively contrary to the urban planning approach espoused
by Duany.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ll start
with the backstory. In the past few
days, I’ve returned from an annual vacation I take with two old friends. Every year, we pick a different region of the
country to visit and then lay out a schedule of minor league ballgames to
anchor our itinerary. This year, our destination
of choice was Appalachia, with ballgames in Virginia, Tennessee, and North
Carolina.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But evening
ballgames aren’t enough to fill our days, so we’ve evolved into a daily routine
of country breakfasts, brewpubs, and local sights.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
We’re
tolerant of each other’s personal interests, so the choice of local sights is usually
driven by individual areas of fascination.
This year alone, we toured a pair of Revolutionary War battlegrounds,
engaged in an extended conversation with a park ranger on the nuances of firing
older artillery, peered through fences at the moldering remains of one of the largest
textile mills in the country, and wandered through the Bristol Motor Speedway.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Because of
my interests, we take regular tours of downtown cores and nearby environs,
looking for evidence of walkability and sidewalk vitality, often in vain.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Thus, we
found ourselves about a week ago driving through downtown Kannapolis, North
Carolina, 30 miles northeast of Charlotte.
We were in town for an evening ballgame between the Charlestown
RiverDogs and the Kannapolis Intimidators.
(If you need to look up the origin of the latter team nickname, you’re
not a NASCAR fan. Heck, I’m not a NASCAR
fan and I knew it.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
There were a
few Kannapolis few blocks that I liked, with shoulder-to-shoulder buildings tight
to the back of sidewalk, but otherwise the development pattern was sparse with
the result that even that walkable portion of downtown was devoid of
activity. (The high heat and humidity of
a summer afternoon in North Carolina could have also played a role.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Having seen
what we could of walkable urbanism in Kannapolis, we were about to turn around
when we came across the first of four incongruously large Greek Revival buildings,
seemingly plopped down at random on open land a few blocks beyond downtown. The first three were research buildings for
the University of North Carolina. The
fourth was the Kannapolis City Hall.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Later
research found that all four had been based to some extent of the largesse of
an heir to the Fieldcrest Cannon (think towels) fortune. The buildings occupied the site of the former
Fieldcrest Cannon textile mill.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As we
stopped and considered the four massive and seemingly out-of-place buildings, my
feelings were mixed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
To begin, considering
solely the buildings, I liked the architecture.
It was solid and predictable, lacking whimsy, but felt comfortable in a
paternal, steadfast way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But I strongly
questioned the siting of the buildings, particularly for a city hall. UNC might have good reasons for large buildings
remote from the already thin urban fabric.
But I didn’t think it was how city halls should be sited. To go back to Duany’s words, if a city hall
is to “depict the grandeur of civilization and civic life”, it must be located where
people come across it on a daily basis, not on the straggling outskirts of
town.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But even
more than the siting, I questioned the size of the city hall. I don’t claim to know the architectural
programming for the building, but I know that it serves a town with a
population of 44,000. Compare it to the city
hall that serves my town with a population of 59,000. (Both are pictured above.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Admittedly,
I don’t find much merit in the architecture of my town’s city hall, which
always struck me as the result of a city council giving a charity commission to
a down-on-his-luck elementary school architect.
Also, there are several administrative functions, including water
department, transit, advance planning, economic development, and police, that
my town spins off to other locations, but may be housed within the Kannapolis
structure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But even if all
those functions were moved downtown and attached to the current city hall in my
town, it still wouldn’t come close to the Kannapolis City Hall in size. And that’s before considering that my town
has 15,000 more residents than Kannapolis.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Overall, the
feeling was that Kannapolis, using the largesse of the Fieldcrest Cannon heir
as a springboard, had built more structure than they truly needed and perhaps more
that they could afford to maintain.
StrongTowns often writes about communities that are seduced by capital
infusions from higher levels of government or developers to build or to accept
ownership of more infrastructure than they can afford to maintain. It would seem that the same phenomenon could
be true for municipal buildings, with the Kannapolis city hall as an example.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And then
there’s the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.independenttribune.com/news/construction-set-to-begin-on-kannapolis-municipal-center/article_9181f4c2-0c61-11e4-9f3f-001a4bcf6878.html"><span style="color: red;">$30 million cost of the structure</span></a></span>, or almost
$700 per resident in a town where I’d guess $700 per person is considered real
money, as it is in most places. Perhaps
Kannapolis was in dire needs of new facilities and some expenditure was
essential, but $30 million seems excessive in a time when many cities,
overburdened by infrastructure, are struggling to remain financially afloat, a
fate that may soon come calling on Kannapolis</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also, the city
hall siting undermines a goal being pursued by the city, the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.kannapolisnc.gov/KannapolisRevitalization/tabid/209/Default.aspx"><span style="color: red;">laudable goal of revitalizing downtown</span></a></span>. The city is acquiring downtown properties
with the goal of repositioning them to create a more active urban core, a path that
I wish more cities could find a way to follow.
Putting the city hall in that urban core should have been an element of
that plan, but somehow wasn’t.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In our short
visit, there was no opportunity to chat with municipal officials or local
citizens, but I can’t imagine any explanation that would make the siting or size
of the new city hall rational. I
departed disheartened.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4woQvbrhXbSibn36u_5i_Ecqy_riUSwKbPpQsY0RgEvGiMjDnVPeyE8Z7u7W5mdIDbNVTTNRg-JP2RU-RPjbEBhsBN5aCbESkcnwrBkAFihdj4NckB2YnConjcDnG6aiX-38PMYR-B0/s1600/160725001+Clown+found+by+Curt+Alden.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4woQvbrhXbSibn36u_5i_Ecqy_riUSwKbPpQsY0RgEvGiMjDnVPeyE8Z7u7W5mdIDbNVTTNRg-JP2RU-RPjbEBhsBN5aCbESkcnwrBkAFihdj4NckB2YnConjcDnG6aiX-38PMYR-B0/s200/160725001+Clown+found+by+Curt+Alden.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Before
closing, I’ll give a further flavor of our baseball travels relative to the
Kannapolis experience. One member of the
traveling party admitted to being spooked by the new buildings. If felt to him as the buildings had been
dropped haphazardly by aliens, aliens who might still be hanging out nearby. He was eager to move on.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Another traveler
had long acknowledged a fear of clowns, especially ones that appear
unexpectedly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Thus, I could
joke for the remainder of the trip about clowns popping out from behind the
columns on outsized porticos and be assured of having both of my traveling
companions shudder. It made the last few
days of travel quite enjoyable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, my subject will be the critical mass for walkable urbanism. Two articles have recently crossed my desk
that touch upon the struggles of isolated projects that are otherwise touted as
walkably urban. To me, the role of critical
mass should be obvious to the informed observer, but many seem to miss the
point.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-67980693672299802202016-08-05T18:21:00.000-07:002016-08-05T18:26:56.653-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of August 7 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidq2yNV4xu0URgm2SXEnBf2SqmkIfaJHCXQeadjEatW_rFbZcvQqoY2mISGRLwxt20KlluPReqnn_94WrCxO91pr2Uxkd4TbBRPChsW7yQnSzBHLuQUh7vqVLeSv7R5SRpzNfvKEBJB2c/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidq2yNV4xu0URgm2SXEnBf2SqmkIfaJHCXQeadjEatW_rFbZcvQqoY2mISGRLwxt20KlluPReqnn_94WrCxO91pr2Uxkd4TbBRPChsW7yQnSzBHLuQUh7vqVLeSv7R5SRpzNfvKEBJB2c/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I returned yesterday
from two weeks of travel, filled with enthusiasm to repopulate the event
calendar below and to resume my efforts to create an ever larger cadre of
urbanist advocates.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
And then I
checked the civic calendars for the North Bay cities near my town. I found exactly zero meetings of urbanist
interest next week. Perhaps it’s the
nature of early August, but it was disheartening.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Luckily, Petaluma
Urban Chat is scheduled for next week. Otherwise
the near-term prospects are bleak, although there is a hope for more meetings
as the month progresses.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also, there
are some intriguing September meetings to anticipate.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings this Week<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
Urban Chat</u>, Wednesday, August 10, 7:00pm, Aqus Café, 2nd and H Streets,
Petaluma - Petaluma Urban Chat meets monthly to discuss land use activities in
Petaluma and to consider strategies to make
North Bay cities resilient, environmentally sustainable, and financially stable. At the upcoming meeting, ongoing urbanist
issues in Petaluma will be discussed, such as the road diet that has been
proposed for Petaluma Boulevard South.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma City
Council</u>, Monday, September 12, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – The Petaluma Planning Commission recently rejected the site design for
the proposed Marina Apartments on Lakeville Highway east of Highway 101. The reason was concern over the building
massing and architecture, but disappointments were also expressed about the
recent Council decision to relieve the applicant of a condition of approval to
build a segment of multi-use path.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The
applicant appealed the Planning Commission rejection. The appeal will be heard by the City Council
on September 12. Although the primary
focus will be the design of the building, it’s likely that the multi-use path
will be the subject of public comment.
Legally, the City Council could re-impose the multi-use path condition, but I consider that unlikely. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma City
Council</u>, Monday, September 19, 7:00pm, Petaluma City Hall, 111 English
Street – </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma
staff will soon return to the Council for approval to submit a grant
application for street improvements. To best
conform to the standards of the granting agency, staff initially proposed a road
diet for Petaluma Boulevard South. The
Council, by directing that the item be removed from the Council agenda,
effectively asked staff to look at other possible street projects as targets
for the possible grant application.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet reportedly remains the preferred project for City
staff, setting up a potentially interesting discussion when the subject returns
to the Council agenda on September 19.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve been
working with a group of citizens who are passionate supporters of the Petaluma
Boulevard South road diet and have been working toward ensuring that the road
diet returns to the Council with a strong public endorsement.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Joe
Minicozzi Digs into the Municipal Finances of Urbanism</u>, Week of September
19, Multiple locations - Many readers attended three evening of talks by Chuck
Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 this past January in Santa
Rosa. The two spoke about the theory of
why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the theory. Conversations are underway for a return visit
by Minicozzi to the North Bay later this year.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Exact dates
and meeting locations are still being developed, but I encourage everyone to
block out much of the week. Minicozzi’s
message could have profound consequences for North Bay cities.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Rail~Volution</u>,
October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use
of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay
will surely be discussed, as will the increasing density around BART stations.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even with
the paucity of opportunities in the coming week, there are still lots of
opportunities to get involved. Please
grab at least one and hopefully more.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Next time, I’ll
share some thoughts about the physical size and presence of city halls. While traveling, I came across a city hall that
I need to share.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-31737210451217661322016-08-03T04:00:00.000-07:002016-08-03T04:00:06.801-07:00Another Look at My Hometown: A Snail Would Move Quicker <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/AVvXsEj3z-XlLvohIXe1Zc0m8ZUEX4Plnat_qVH8IwJkEx5wDgc0kYL97S9-G99kGtN3q9f9qmCKiNaCw4dGkZVmFMKykTMaRRs8Q0uWymQ4m29DjwYGrfuqg-aNmjGSLvnHxhWo_SOgyi3TI7U/s1600/140225D004+Fair+Oaks+Boulevard.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3z-XlLvohIXe1Zc0m8ZUEX4Plnat_qVH8IwJkEx5wDgc0kYL97S9-G99kGtN3q9f9qmCKiNaCw4dGkZVmFMKykTMaRRs8Q0uWymQ4m29DjwYGrfuqg-aNmjGSLvnHxhWo_SOgyi3TI7U/s320/140225D004+Fair+Oaks+Boulevard.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Downtown Carmichael</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ve
previously written a couple of times about my hometown of Carmichael, near
Sacramento. Once I noted its supposed
turn to urbanism that, while laudable, seemed <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2014/04/northern-california-tour-carmichael-one.html"><span style="color: red;">wrongly focused</span></a></span>. Later, I <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2015/07/saying-goodbye-to-hometown.html"><span style="color: red;">bade it farewell</span></a></span> as my mother sold the
family home and moved away.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But hometowns, even those that are the
antithesis of walkable urbanism, can set their hooks deep. I continued to wonder about what was happening
there. And I never got around to
unsubscribing from the emails about upcoming projects.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It was the
emails that got me to digging more deeply.
It seemed that there had been remarkably little residential development proposed. So I searched all the 2016 agendas for the Carmichael
Community Planning Advisory Council. In the
first nearly seven months of 2016, exactly two projects had been brought
forward.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On March 16,
an applicant asked about a 48-unit condominium complex. Then, on July 20, an applicant asked about splitting
one lot into two.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In seven
months, that would be 49 new residences or about 115 new residents. For a community of <span style="color: red;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmichael,_California"><span style="color: red;">almost 62,000 people</span></a></span>, the growth rate would
be 0.3 percent. And that growth rate
assumes that both projects proceed, an assumption that’s often wrong. If the condominium project fails, the growth rate
drops to almost zero.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
For a
community that is far closer to the urban core than many other Sacramento suburbs,
has a light-rail system at its north edge, and is served by a bus system that
could be stronger but still meets commuting needs, that’s a pathetic growth rate,
especially for a place that has expressed a desire to become more urban.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Even the condo
project, which might be seen as a sign of hope, really isn’t. It’s miles from the suggested urban core and
a short block away from a five-lane arterial.
The only services available to pedestrians are auto shops, a tattoo
parlor, a smoke shop, and Tap Plastics, none of which meet anyone’s daily
needs, at least anyone I know.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some will
suggest that the market won’t support walkable urbanism in my hometown or that
developers haven’t chosen to provide it.
But the problem goes deeper. Most
places have people eager to live in walkable settings. And developers are always happy to build
places that people want. But the
transition from drivable suburban to walkable urban is never easy. The government must be an active,
participatory partner in turning away from seventy years of mistakes and
starting to create better places. I don’t
think my hometown has yet grasped that.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
It’s hard to
sever ties with a hometown. I’m sure I’ll
keep looking back, even if I cringe every time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
By the time
I next write, I’ll have returned from traveling and will update a full calendar
of upcoming opportunities for urbanist advocacy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-83904405642657067692016-08-01T04:00:00.000-07:002016-08-01T04:00:00.981-07:00Must We Always Avoid Controversy? <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/AVvXsEgFwMWSIQNgmffbptBzMiDPM8zR1DAOKj7t0LO_qZUpL7A58s82YnM0LyzvTO55_nd9NXl6b4lZX6RXrLlMW0JUro89E1Jq7aK9rWsPm4Gg7jmW2nUxSxK_8VdLcVSINIaKEtiCHwLKy5A/s1600/140606+DSC_0189+Buffalo+Street+Scene.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFwMWSIQNgmffbptBzMiDPM8zR1DAOKj7t0LO_qZUpL7A58s82YnM0LyzvTO55_nd9NXl6b4lZX6RXrLlMW0JUro89E1Jq7aK9rWsPm4Gg7jmW2nUxSxK_8VdLcVSINIaKEtiCHwLKy5A/s320/140606+DSC_0189+Buffalo+Street+Scene.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walkable neighborhood in Buffalo, New York</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’m on the
periphery of an on-going public planning process with an element of
controversy. I won’t identify either the
particulars or the principals for fear of getting sidetracked into a discussion
of the specific situation, but I’ll present enough of the story to illustrate
the larger point I want to make.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Based on a
coming change with city-wide implications, a planner I know proposed a number
of neighborhood-level changes. He and
his team had worked hard on the changes, looking for ways to maximize the
services that could be provided within the city’s scant resources.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some of the
changes elicited controversy. One in
particular ignited a stormy neighborhood debate. Unlike many controversies, this one drew
responses on both sides of this issue, with some residents welcoming the change
and others bitterly condemning it, many with personal and vitriolic attacks on
the planner.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
No polling was
conducted on the matter, so I don’t know with certainty how the neighborhood as
a whole viewed the change. But my guess
is that it would have followed the pattern of many planning decisions, with 5
percent in opposition, 15 percent in support, with varying levels of commitment
to that support, and 80 percent either not caring or even aware of the issue.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The planner eventually
backed away from the change, tiring of the rancor and fearing the impression
being made on his superiors. There were
also technical reasons why the change might not have been feasible, but the infeasibility
hadn’t been proved when the plug was pulled</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I respect
the many tasks I’ve watched the planner undertake and hope that he remains
involved in planning for a long time. And
I understand that opting out of the change might have been the right move for
him and for his department, so I intend no criticism of his decision. But I’m not comfortable with a planning ethos
in which ducking controversy can be a reason to avoid change. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When we
conduct an election, we accept 51 percent as being sufficient to determine a
winner. But when we try to institute new
public policy, we often let a loud five percent block a change, no matter how
well conceived that change might be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The reality
is that there are few matters, including whether the sun will rise tomorrow
morning, for which a dissenting five percent can’t be found. So, as
long as we let a vociferous five percent derail public policy, the fate of our
cities becomes dependent on the fickleness of whether the dissenting five
percent can be energized to become a vociferous five percent on a specific
issue.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
That’s no way
to run a city.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
This issue matters
to urbanists because many of the changes we espouse have built-in adversaries.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Set aside pavement
width for bike lanes? We can’t reduce
the lane widths for cars.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Add downtown
parking meters? Most downtown businesses
would immediately fold.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Reduce
parking requirements? The curbs for
blocks around would be jammed with an overflow of new cars.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Set aside a length
of curb for a new bus stop? We can’t
lose a single parking place.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Put multi-family
homes within a walkable distance of downtown and transit? No one will walk so we’ll only jam the
already crowded streets.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
There are
good and valid responses to all of those concerns. Indeed, urbanists welcome the opportunity to
have frank conversations on subjects like this.
But if the future of urbanism relies on winning over the final and most
obstreperous five percent, there may not be a future. Or at least it will be delayed far longer
that it should be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’m not
suggesting that a planning elite should be allowed to impose new development
without garnering broad public support. Good
public policy requires public involvement.
But deferring to a five percent who doesn’t choose to listen or to learn
doesn’t serve anyone.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The future
demands that we sometimes overrule a minority, no matter how loud and obnoxious
they may be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, I’ll look at the state of urbanism in my hometown.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-7977634051736796962016-07-29T04:00:00.000-07:002016-07-29T04:00:16.206-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of July 31 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewegBV5o20pb1GThrqgpPfgaCRoFPSoC7OjyyfAPrbiVxXDaLB9SkpYkmlTgndtDzZa8OHvApXsUn1_A7M8Tw9HjYanV19AswcYBigQ-VguqnLPXP-enycNSposgsclpta5Gm5JdWmbs/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewegBV5o20pb1GThrqgpPfgaCRoFPSoC7OjyyfAPrbiVxXDaLB9SkpYkmlTgndtDzZa8OHvApXsUn1_A7M8Tw9HjYanV19AswcYBigQ-VguqnLPXP-enycNSposgsclpta5Gm5JdWmbs/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’m
traveling this week, so my research for the calendar below was close to
non-existent. But both of the meetings
in Petaluma could be interesting. And if
readers know of any North Bay meetings that I’ve missed, please add them in the
comments.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ll
repopulate the calendar upon my return in a few days.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings this Week<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
Pedestrian Bicycle Advisory Committee</u>, Wednesday, August 3, 6:00pm, Petaluma
City Hall, 11 English Street, Petaluma – From what I know of the likely agenda
items, the urbanist angles will be limited.
But the conversation about non-auto transportation is often interesting
regardless. (Note: I serve on this
committee, but will still be traveling when it convenes.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
Transit Advisory Committee</u>, Thursday, August 4, 4:00pm, Petaluma City Hall,
11 English Street, Petaluma – The Transit Advisory Committee will consider the
final draft of the Short-Range Transit Plan, a document required from all Bay Area transit agencies by the
Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
After nine months of work, the plan will be given a final review and
likely passed onto the City Council for their approval. But there will be time between the Committee
meeting and the Council meeting for final edits, so the public is encouraged to
participate. (Note: I’ll chair this
meeting after returning from travels only hours before.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Rail~Volution</u>,
October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use
of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay
will surely be discussed, as will the increased density occurring around BART stations.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Other Opportunities to Get Involved<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Petaluma
Boulevard South</u> – Bikeable/walkable revisions to Petaluma Boulevard South
recently flickered onto and off of the Petaluma City Council agenda. A group of citizens was energized by the
flicker, is committed to the goal of calming of Petaluma Boulevard South, and
is organizing with the goal of returning the proposal to the City Council with
enough votes to approve it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
If you’re
interested in advocating for improvements to Petaluma Boulevard South that will
make the boulevard friendlier for non-motorists while also creating better
connectivity across the boulevard, let me know.
I’ll connect you with the group, in which I’m participating.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Digging
Deeper into Urbanism</u> - Many readers attended three evening of talks by
Chuck Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 last January in Santa
Rosa. The two spoke about the theory of
why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the theory. Initial conversations are underway for a
return visit by Minicozzi to the North Bay later this year, a visit that is
tentatively scheduled to include an evening in Petaluma, along with time in
other Sonoma County communities.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Petaluma was
well-represented at the January meetings, but it was largely urbanists who were
already familiar with the work of Marohn and Minicozzi. If we organize properly, having Minicozzi
visit Petaluma can educate others, including those who hold positions in which
they can make a difference. Having the
visit during the election season can make the event additionally pivotal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ll need
folks to assist with organizational and fund-raising efforts. Please let me know if you’re willing to lend
a hand.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Lots of
opportunities to get involved. Please
grab at least one and hopefully more.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-47316616777470756252016-07-27T04:00:00.000-07:002016-07-27T04:00:04.237-07:00Perusing the Grand Jury Report <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/AVvXsEjjonkLxWGDGg5SSHsa57759_zXtWx-bxjEmMq9kvIoKxgo0R4Ha5dQpH63aPtd3K5ebFEbceQDQnWjFPcEICsS6QTlm8LwYJNX20iIfclB853z2ku-jnKKkajmC1zCQXeUZuOVAW82C9s/s1600/110714B001+Courthouse.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/AVvXsEjjonkLxWGDGg5SSHsa57759_zXtWx-bxjEmMq9kvIoKxgo0R4Ha5dQpH63aPtd3K5ebFEbceQDQnWjFPcEICsS6QTlm8LwYJNX20iIfclB853z2ku-jnKKkajmC1zCQXeUZuOVAW82C9s/s320/110714B001+Courthouse.JPG" width="288" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A County courthouse in Tennessee</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The local
newspaper recently included the <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://sonoma.courts.ca.gov/sites/all/assets/pdfs/general-info/grand-jury/2015-2016/FinalReport.pdf"><span style="color: red;">final 2015-16 report</span></a></span> from the Sonoma County
Civil Grand Jury. I’m not an expert on
grand jury reports, with my interest normally limited to a hope that my name
isn’t somewhere in the report. However,
this report seemed nicely structured and written. Concise, to the point, and not wandering too
far afield in a muckraking scavenger hunt.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Grand
Jury noted seven local concerns. It’s insightful
to consider those concerns from an urbanist perspective.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Maintenance
funds for County roads are lacking</u> - The inability of government to cover
the costs of infrastructure maintenance and other government functions is at
the top of most “Why urbanism?” lists, up there with climate change.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Affordable
housing is in a continual crisis</u> – Although not often noted, the cost of
transportation can approach the cost of housing for low income families. And yet affordable housing is frequently built
on sites where cars are essential, many times ensuring that the families in
affordable housing will continue to lose financial ground.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
One solution
is to put affordable housing in places where walkability, bikeability, and
transit are reasonable options, such as near downtowns.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
But the
better solution to make more of the community into places where walkability,
bikeability, and transit are reasonable options, including current affordable
housing developments. This solution is the
central goal of walkable urbanism.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>The Law
Library is in financial trouble</u> – The proposed solution requires additional
funds from the County, the same County that is already struggling to find
resources to maintain infrastructure and other services because of the cost of
suburbia.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Retirement
benefits for the County Public Library are underfunded </u>– Yet another
financial concern for a County government that already has too many because of
the costs of suburbia.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>The County
should be doing a better job of overseeing Special Districts</u> – See above.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Citizen
complaint procedures are working well</u> – This is the only subject without a
credible connection to the failure of suburbia and the need for urbanism. It’s also the only subject on which the Grand
Jury has no suggestions to make.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u>Better
accommodation for women prisoners should be made at the County Detention
Facilities</u> – Yet another demand on the County’s finances that are already over-stressed
by suburbia.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the final
tally, of the seven issues raised by the Civil Grand Jury, two are directly
related to the land-use pattern of suburbia and four require funds from a County
budget stressed by suburbia. The only
issue without a tie to suburbia is the only issue on which the Grand Jury is
completed satisfied. The pattern is hard
to miss.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My next post
will be the weekly update of public advocacy opportunities for urbanists.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-55172839610899732502016-07-25T04:00:00.000-07:002016-07-25T04:00:07.113-07:00CNU 24: Best Moments, Part 4 <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/AVvXsEiJ6_HwV-2CdmqNAy69pcDV_ZAmErDMX_zF7Hf0tBNtpb6sHA5ogkv-TlGJps1TG4myv1DqadWigKh91vjf6MNUDchWyBmgDOj2Avt-IfS8aAqugmKQtUSp_BANhA-UBa05k2N42pqezP0/s1600/160611A014+Woodward+Avenue+Buildings+South+of+Grand+River+Avenue.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ6_HwV-2CdmqNAy69pcDV_ZAmErDMX_zF7Hf0tBNtpb6sHA5ogkv-TlGJps1TG4myv1DqadWigKh91vjf6MNUDchWyBmgDOj2Avt-IfS8aAqugmKQtUSp_BANhA-UBa05k2N42pqezP0/s320/160611A014+Woodward+Avenue+Buildings+South+of+Grand+River+Avenue.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit<br />on a quiet Saturday monring</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ll return today
to CNU 24, the annual gathering of the Congress for the New Urbanism recently
conducted in Detroit. I’ve previously
offered the highlights of the opening day talks by Andres Duany, in <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/06/cnu-24-best-moments-part-1.html"><span style="color: red;">two</span></a></span> <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/06/cnu-24-best-moments-part-2.html"><span style="color: red;">parts</span></a></span>, and <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/07/cnu-24-best-moments-part-3.html"><span style="color: red;">Kaid Benfield</span></a></span>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Today I’ll
move onto Jeff Speck, who is a personal favorite. Not only do I have a passion for his topic,
walkability, but I love the way he presents his material, with quiet, confident
good sense. And, although our exchanges
have been limited to simple stuff such as “Please sign my book” and “I’m sorry
about spilling beer on your shoes”, he seems a genuinely nice person.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
He did nothing
at CNU 24 to change my opinion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My favorite
moments from his talk are below. As
before, the quotes are reconstructed from my notes and are likely imprecise,
but capture Speck’s intent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On the many
elements of modern life that can be improved by walkability: “Also supportive
are economists, climatologists, and epidemiologists.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On the underfunding
of transit, an essential complement to walkability: “Between 1970 and 2010, the
number of road miles in the U.S doubled.
Transit funding increased by 10 to 20 percent.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On the lack of
awareness of the impacts of a drivable world: “We naturalize car deaths,
considering them an inescapable fact of modern life.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On how the lack
of housing can inhibit downtowns: “A downtown with little residential can have
a density of five to ten people per acre, similar to the most sparse
suburbs. And housing would begat retail
and restaurants.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On when
transit becomes essential to complement walkability: “Walkable neighborhoods
don’t need transit. Walkable cities do. Streetcars are pedestrian accelerators.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
On the
effect of pedestrian friendly road diets on traffic: “There is typically little
change in the average daily trips after a road diet.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
quiet commonsense, delivered with good humor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I next
write, I’ll take an urbanist perspective in perusing the recent Civil Grand
Jury report for Sonoma County.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-5360956596238139262016-07-22T04:00:00.000-07:002016-07-22T04:00:15.869-07:00Taking the Next Step - Opportunities to Get Involved during the Week of July 24 <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlmwloDtx8qSKvAZw13vdGpJEqv7u_-gsxCqZ7BvP0yXDTqnGGvV1GWgQJb0PCY76gxHzjiSGj5uV5uug5K-opU5M20mOLUrNVjKin6LtReH5Axu_FSFBxseUsMNj7DuRyBMgM7x5ZBKg/s1600/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlmwloDtx8qSKvAZw13vdGpJEqv7u_-gsxCqZ7BvP0yXDTqnGGvV1GWgQJb0PCY76gxHzjiSGj5uV5uug5K-opU5M20mOLUrNVjKin6LtReH5Axu_FSFBxseUsMNj7DuRyBMgM7x5ZBKg/s320/130313006+Balshaw+Bridge.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
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Due to
travel plans, the research for this post was done earlier in the week than I’d prefer. Perhaps as a result, I couldn’t find a single
good meeting next week to share. Perhaps
readers can instead curl up with a tome from <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2012/01/book-review-death-and-life-of-great.html"><span style="color: red;">Jane Jacobs</span></a></span> or <span style="color: red;"><a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2013/04/walkable-city-filled-with-well-polished.html"><span style="color: red;">Jeff Speck</span></a></span>? </div>
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<b>Meetings this Week<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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None that I
know. But if someone comes across
something that I missed, please post a note in the comments.</div>
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<b>Meetings in the Weeks and Months to Follow<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<u>Petaluma Pedestrian
Bicycle Advisory Committee</u>, Wednesday, August 3, 6:00pm, Petaluma City
Hall, 11 English Street, Petaluma – From what I know of the likely agenda
items, the urbanist angles will be limited.
But the conversation about non-auto transportation is often interesting
regardless. (Note: I serve on this
committee, but will still be traveling when it convenes.)<u><o:p></o:p></u></div>
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<u>Petaluma
Transit Advisory Committee</u>, Thursday, August 4, 4:00pm, Petaluma City Hall,
11 English Street, Petaluma – The Transit Advisory Committee will consider the
final draft of the Short-Range Transit Plan, a document required from all Bay Area transit agencies by the
Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
After nine months of work, the plan will be given a final review and
likely passed onto the City Council for their approval. But there will be time between the Committee
meeting and the Council meeting for final edits, so the public is encouraged to
participate. (Note: I’ll chair this
meeting after returning from travels only hours before.)</div>
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<u>Rail~Volution</u>,
October 10-12, Hyatt Regency, San Francisco – The leading conference on the use
of rail for community building is coming to San Francisco this fall. The coming role of SMART in the North Bay
will surely be discussed, as will the increased density occurring around BART
stations.</div>
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<b>Other Opportunities to Get Involved<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<u>Petaluma
Boulevard South</u> – Bikeable/walkable revisions to Petaluma Boulevard South
recently flickered onto and off of the Petaluma City Council agenda. A group of citizens was energized by the
flicker, is committed to the goal of calming of Petaluma Boulevard South, and
is organizing with the goal of returning the proposal to the City Council with
enough votes to approve it.</div>
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If you’re
interested in advocating for improvements to Petaluma Boulevard South that will
make the boulevard friendlier for non-motorists while also creating better
connectivity across the boulevard, let me know.
I’ll connect you with the group, in which I’m participating.</div>
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<u>Digging
Deeper into Urbanism</u> - Many readers attended three evening of talks by
Chuck Marohn of StrongTowns and Joe Minicozzi of Urban3 last January in Santa
Rosa. The two spoke about the theory of
why suburbia often fails and the data that supports the theory. Initial conversations are underway for a
return visit by Minicozzi to the North Bay later this year, a visit that is tentatively
scheduled to include an evening in Petaluma, along with time in other Sonoma
County communities.</div>
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Petaluma was
well-represented at the January meetings, but it was largely urbanists who were
already familiar with the work of Marohn and Minicozzi. If we organize properly, having Minicozzi
visit Petaluma can educate others, including those who hold positions in which
they can make a difference. Having the
visit during the election season can make the event additionally pivotal.</div>
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I’ll need
folks to assist with organizational and fund-raising efforts. Please let me know if you’re willing to lend
a hand.</div>
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Lots of
opportunities to get involved. Please
grab at least one and hopefully more.</div>
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As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1928622184607631910.post-81277379002428957342016-07-20T04:00:00.000-07:002016-07-20T04:00:28.016-07:00Where’s the Urgency? <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/AVvXsEh0BfdfcTP6wGUxW_kvXscbyPQZ2_IZuhFRKQQba_tvduE6bMvUbkhFOfL2iEuYZ0PeHWrR3N8-yqnXLtV7yuLEYw18RUN63Glc6qs0_JAf7e6qSw_UOkOYl4X3NV8FZL6kYlbXuRt_SsU/s1600/120719A014+Bostwick+Building+on+Broadway.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/AVvXsEh0BfdfcTP6wGUxW_kvXscbyPQZ2_IZuhFRKQQba_tvduE6bMvUbkhFOfL2iEuYZ0PeHWrR3N8-yqnXLtV7yuLEYw18RUN63Glc6qs0_JAf7e6qSw_UOkOYl4X3NV8FZL6kYlbXuRt_SsU/s320/120719A014+Bostwick+Building+on+Broadway.JPG" width="218" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mixed-use building in downtown Tacoma</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Over the years
that I’ve advocated for urbanism, I’ve consistently written that I needn’t
argue for eventual return of walkable urbanism as the dominant paradigm because
the forces of history will make urbanism inevitable. Instead, I advocated for a quicker return to
urbanism to reduce the pain as the transition progressed.</div>
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I may have
been entirely too sanguine about anyone listening to the forces of history.</div>
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We’ve
reached the time when it seems the paradigm shift should be underway. After three years of deep California drought,
strongly tied to climate change, we’re finishing a barely average water year
despite indicators pointing toward a wet winter. With forests stressed by low precipitation,
wildfires are rampant.</div>
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Cities
everywhere, stressed by the costs of suburbia, are teetering on the precipice
of bankruptcy.</div>
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There is so
much dissatisfaction among the electorate that populist uprisings took hold on
both ends of the political spectrum during the presidential campaign, one of
which has apparently secured a major party nomination. (Admittedly, many of the surface causes cited
as the reasons for the resurgence of populism don’t tie immediately to
urbanism, but the roots of lingering segregation, income inequality, the
housing crisis, the inability of government to provide services, etc. are
entwined with the experiment and subsequent failure of drivable suburbia.) </div>
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By any measure,
we should be in the drivable suburban end-of-times. But that seems not to be the case.</div>
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A few
evenings ago, I bumped into a former Councilmember in my town while we were
both browsing in the downtown bookstore.
In the course of our conversation, I expressed my surprise at the lack
of concern within the electorate over the climate change and municipal
finances, two of many issues that should be pushing us toward urbanism. He responded that many folks don’t care “as
long as they can afford a tank of gas for their new SUV.” It was a bleak assessment, but seemingly
true.</div>
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It was same
message given by the community organizer to the local group that has been <a href="http://northbaydesignkit.blogspot.com/2016/07/an-urbanist-learns-about-electoral_6.html"><span style="color: red;">seeking an urbanist candidate</span></a> for the council. As she described it, voters are still heading
to the polls asking “What’s in it for me tomorrow?” I understand that many are too focused on
putting food on the table and assembling money for rent to think much about the
longer term, but it was still a distressing message.</div>
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I continue
to believe that the return to urbanism is inevitable as the collapse of the
suburban model becomes so obvious that even the most otherwise preoccupied can’t
miss it. But it seems that the bankruptcy
courts and Mother Nature must swing a larger piece of lumber before we listen.</div>
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Which is a
shame because it’d be easier for all if we’d listen now. </div>
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My next post
will be the weekly summary of urbanist public advocacy opportunities.</div>
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<br /></div>
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As always,
your questions or comments will be appreciated.
Please comment below or email me.
And thanks for reading. - Dave Alden (<a href="mailto:davealden53@comcast.net"><span style="color: red;">davealden53@comcast.net</span></a>)</div>
Dave Aldenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04365271229524041881noreply@blogger.com0