A popular item on many a creatives‘ wishlist is to see a car-dominated commercial street transformed into a pedestrian-only plaza brimming with outdoor diners. Some fortunate residents in NYC may not have to wait much longer.

Following a rather astounding recent track record in prioritizing pedestrians over cars, the NYC DOT (Department of Transportation) presented its latest and greatest, the NYC Plaza Program. When was the last time a Department of Transportation issued a statement like this: NYC DOT will work with community partners to create neighborhood plazas throughout the City. We will do this by transforming underused streets into vibrant, social public spaces.” It’s real, and it’s happening now.

The first round will award eight projects in any of NYC’s five boroughs by funding the redesign and redevelopment of the street into a plaza, including possible amenities such as tables and seating, trees and plants, lighting, public art, water features and drinking fountains. In addition, the NYC DOT will provide $50,000 each year for three years for a nonprofit to provide outreach, marketing and event planning. The deadline is August 19, 2008.

Looking forward to seeing the results, as well as hearing from other cities bold (and smart) enough to follow NYC’s lead.

Manhattan is on a roll - first there’s Summer Streets where major streets are being closed to cars on August Saturdays, then talk of a bike sharing program, and now the rather mundane announcement that they’re turning two of four lanes on Broadway in Midtown into a pedestrian and bicycle zone - to be completed in mid-August 2008, permanently.

To be known as Broadway Boulevard between West 42nd and West 35th Street, the project will feature a Euro-style designated bicycle lane and a host of public gathering spaces that include cafe tables, chairs, umbrellas and planters.

Once again, the effort is being led by Mayor Bloomberg and the NYC DOT (Department of Transportation). All cities need to take note of this level of government leadership if they’re to establish their own pedestrian-friendly destinations.

Read more at NY Times: Closing on Broadway: Two Traffic Lanes.

Austin looks to keep their 'Live Music Capital of the World' reputation

How important is live music to the city of Austin? How many cities do you know of that have a Live Music Task Force? Not only that, the city-funded group won't consist of the usual suspect government bureaucrats, but local musicians, music venue owners and regular music-loving Austin residents - all deciding how to spend the government's money to keep Austin's Live Music Capital of the World reputation thriving.

The final report will come in October, but here are the four areas they're looking at investing in. Cities looking to initiate or grow a music scene should take note:

1. The possible creation of an entertainment district;
2. Establishing building requirements to mitigate sound issues;
3. Providing incentives to redevelop local venues;
4. Developing current and potential programs to assist musicians.

The city's mayor even recently proclaimed February as Love Austin Music Month, encouraging people to visit their favorite live music venue.

State of Vermont gets in on creative cities

How serious is the commitment to building more vibrant cities? This whole creative city thing isn't confined to just cities - entire states are taking such a proactive approach to modernizing their economies, from Michigan's Cool Cities Initiative to now, Vermont's Creative Communities Program (CCP):

"Communities apply to participate in the Creative Communities Program. Successful applicants receive technical assistance in the form of a community visit process that moves quickly from community-wide brainstorming sessions to setting out specific, focused project plans that local teams can begin work on immediately."

Initiated in 2004 with their first statewide conference, Advancing Vermont's Creative Economy, the state celebrated its success by recognizing 11 communities that participated in the program:

The "Virginia Council on Rural Development (VCRD) developed the Creative Communities Program to help residents look at their towns and regions through a creative economy lens and identify specific projects to pursue that would make them more vibrant communities - places that would attract and inspire innovative entrepreneurs. The program was modeled on the revitalization of Vermont towns like Brandon, Bellows Falls and Vergennes where local leaders built partnerships between artists, cultural non-profits, town government, and key businesses to build activities, redevelop properties, and establish reputations as towns that encourage innovative business development. Today, these towns are building their creative workforces, attracting businesses, and developing jobs. Tax revenues are up. They have a public image - a brand - as a town on the move with rising energy and spirit."

Image source: Church Street, Burlington Vermont, by no3rdw.

Cities making efforts to promote people over cars

Succeeding generations really do want more pedestrian-oriented downtowns, and cities are starting to recognize that, such as London with its auto congestion pricing.

In 2003, Mayor Ken Livingstone enacted a congestion charge of $10 per day for auto usage within the central city. Congestion is down 25%, and so is air pollution. After an initial drop of 7% in retail sales, it has since not affected the city's economy, and its popularity has increased to the point of allowing it to be raised to $16 earlier this year, as well as being expanded to other regions (Kensington, Chelsea...)

Stockholm, Sweden and Oslo, Norway also have congestion pricing, but New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s congestion pricing plan of $8 for cars and $21 for trucks failed.

Other programs to promote pedestrian traffic:
- Rome has strict emissions standards for all vehicles in its historic core.
- Copenhagen, Denmark has a fuel surcharge for downtown travel, and implemented a “safe routes to school” program that ensures schools can be accessed by safe, walkable and bike-friendly paths.
- In London, in the decade before 1995 more than 600 parking spaces were removed from the inner core, and recent policy allows new development only within 1 km (0.6 miles) of a transit station.
- Many European cities are completely car free in parts of their historic core, which you can find here.

Pictured: Very Important Pedestrian (VIP) day in London where two major auto-filled downtown streets (Oxford and Regent) were closed to cars in order to raise awareness for pedestrian life.

Read more about how European cities are taking the lead in the ULI article, Change of Climate.

Youngstown, Ohio a lesson in "Change or Die"

The knowledge economy moved on without Youngstown, Ohio, whose heyday was in the midst the steel industry and the industrial economy, peaking in 1962 with a population of 162,000, more than twice today's 82,000.

Pressed with the question, "Change or die," Youngstown's mayoral candidates were unconsciously choosing death for their city. When local leaders established an initiative, Youngstown 2010 to acknowledge Youngstown's shrinking population, invest in new economy industries, focus on quality of life and implement plans for action, the mayoral candidates at the time all but ignored the vision. So purely out of concern for the future of his city, one of the group's leaders, Jay Williams, 34-year-old director of the City's Community Development Agency, took it into his own hands to run for mayor. And won.

Youngstown 2010 has since received an American Planning Association award, Mayor Williams has since been featured on Smart City Radio, Youngstown in USA Today. One of the first acts was to 'accept the death' of underserved neighborhoods, provide incentives for residents to leave, and implement plans to return them to nature or as city parks. These bold quality of live moves, combined with the mayor's plans to invest in the downtown and university, can only lead to economic prosperity (and yes, growth) in the near future.

Read a previous entry on why cities shrink and what they're doing about it to regenerate themselves.

Image: Contrast the future master plan's (above) clearly defined neighborhoods with the current master plan here that is a model of sprawl and lack of sense of place, even within urban boundaries.

The story behind Boulder's open source development (2 of 2)

So how did Boulder Housing Partners (BHP) bring together seven different developers to work together on a common vision for the Holiday Neighborhood in Boulder? Mind you, developers rarely partner with other developers, much less six others.

The key is that BHP had a very clear vision for the 27-acre former drive-in theater site, one that resulted from extensive citizen participation. The vision's focus on people and community also greatly appealed to the 45 interested parties that responded to a request for letters of interest. It's also no coincidence whatsoever that BHP had someone like Cindy Brown, the co-executive director for development, who was essentially the project manager for the Holiday neighborhood from beginning to end.

She recognized what kinds of interested tenants were good matches for interested developers and introduced them to one another, such as artists/creatives with live/work, mews, and studio developers, or even Habitat for Humanity with a co-housing group. She also ensured that 138 of the 333 housing units were attainable, an especially important asset in attracting the creative class.

The good news is that Cindy, through BHP, is available to consult other cities that are interested in multi-developer, even multi-site development, with a keen interest in urban infill and redevelopment.

The story behind Boulder's open source development (1 of 2)

If you're familiar with the open-source form of business development that's becoming the standard for the fastest growing companies, and read the entry introducing the Holiday Neighborhood's application of such in Boulder, CO, you may be interested in the story behind it all.

Here's a brief timeline, with a more detailed summary in the American Planning Association article, They're Bolder in Boulder:

- 1969-1989: Drive-in theater operates on 27-acre site.
- 1990: Drive-in owners' plans for big-box development clashes with City's vision for mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented development. City wins out and begins working with the Boulder Housing Authority (BHA) to plan an affordable neighborhood, led by Cindy Brown, co-executor for development.
- 1995: City completes citizen-driven community plan for area, detailing the vision for mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods.
- 1997: City purchases the site from the owners.
- 1998: BHA purchases the site from the City and commences with development plans, incorporating extensive public participation and a goal to catalyze what would appear as a diverse neighborhood and not a 'project'.
- 1999: BHA first sends out a request for letters of intent (LOI) targeting developers, commercial tenants.
- 2001: Boulder Housing Authority changes its name to Boulder Housing Partners (BHP), to focus on a public-private partnership to develop the site as that diverse neighborhood, with attainable housing, neighborhood park, community garden, and small blocks and buildings oriented to the street.
- 2002: After BHP's request for LOIs attracts 45 letters of interest from developers and commercial tenants who share the community vision, seven developers are selected.
- 2003: Holiday Neighborhood breaks ground.
- 2007: Development is finalized, the ~500 residents are fully engaged in improving their community and hosting events, and the surrounding areas start to follow their lead with similar investments.

Image: The restored Holiday drive-in theater sign, and the new surrounding developments inspired by Holiday - Greater Holiday you could say.

How did Boulder Housing Partners put it all together? More tomorrow...

Pittsburgh investing heavily in a creative identity

How important is Pittsburgh's creative future? $460 million worth, in what is
billed as the nation's first master-planned, green, mixed-use neighborhood, referred to as the Cultural District Riverfront Development.

You know the times are changing when the following words are spoken by a state governor (Ed Rendell):

"Working together, we're funding projects that will draw people back downtown to live, work and play. It's the same successful approach we've used across the state over the last four years to bring new investments to our cities and towns. By supporting the re-birth of Pittsburgh's cultural district., we're opening the doors to a better quality of life for local residents and stirring new opportunities for the city.

Increasingly, cities are recognizing the importance of going green. Designing this section of the city with the environment in mind is a wise decision, as it lessens energy consumption, provides a more attractive setting, promotes healthy living, and reduces operating costs over the long run."

The six-acre site has a goal of becoming one of the nation's leading urban arts and residential centers, featuring a performing arts venue, major public park, hotel, 700 new residential units and workplaces for 9200 jobs with an economic impact exceeding $1 billion.

More info on the state's financial involvement here, and on the overall project here.

Cities prosper with open-source approach to development

Continuing yesterday's entry, what happens when a city takes a more open-source approach to real estate development?

New Urban News features two such stories in one article, More developers, better results: A lesson in orchestration.

In each example, the city established an RFP competition for multiple sites, selecting multiple developers. The primary reason? Diversity and variety, which speaks to authenticity, which is paramount to a creative class that dispels much of new urbanism on account of sterility. In the case of the Holiday neighborhood on a former drive-in theater site in Boulder, CO, the housing authority (the city entity that owned the site) also accepted a smaller financial return than would have been demanded by a master developer, resulting in more attainable homes, another key creative class requirement.

For the Beerline B industrial riverfront district in Milwaukee, WI, the city created a competition for parcels as small as feasible, (often under two acres) to encourage multiple developers. Why? They felt (and they were right) that the development would happen faster than with a single master developer, and resulted in more innovative designs and variety of residences. This interactive map displays the different properties in Beerline. This, by the way, is how we would display a multi-site 'cool town'-oriented RFP for your city, with a 'cool town'-oriented $150M real estate equity fund standing by... if needed.

Was the 'open source' program successful financially? Take Beerline for instance. With $200 million invested in an undesirable area since 1999, over 1000 residential units built or approved, and $25M in TIFs (project-generated taxes reinvested into the project), you be the judge.

Image: Beerline B, Milwaukee, WI