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April 20, 2007

The Mission, SF

Some ideas on protecting creatives from gentrification...

We know more than enough stories of creatives being priced out of the neighborhoods they helped revitalize, but what about examples of how they're being protected?

Bookmark this page, and I'll keep it updated with city programs to support creatives. The list to date:

City-led programs:

- Portland, OR amended its housing regulations to enable artists to live, work and sell under one roof.

- Toledo, OH put in place tax-abatement incentives for developers who lease space to artists and nonprofits.

- Boston provides affordable-housing set-asides for artists in public-private projects and zoning to allow live/work spaces in industrial, commercial and residential districts.

Community-led programs:

- San Francisco - The Mission Yuppie Eradication Program (remember, this is San Francisco we're talking about) made chain stores uncomfortable about moving into SF's bohemian Mission district (pictured). The Gap and Starbucks abandoned their plans as a result.

Know of any others? Please provide comments (and ideally links) and I'll add them to this list.

Image source: dougvansant

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April 19, 2007

Cyclocity

You've heard of car sharing... how about bike sharing?

Car sharing has become standard equipment in many cities, but what about those of us who want something even quicker, less expensive, more convenient and healthier? Well then, there's Cyclocity.

First of all, the caveat is that you have to live in Lyon (France's third-largest city) or Paris (coming this summer), but this is just a sign of things to come. Perhaps it's easiest to compare how it is, and isn't similar to car sharing:

How it's like car sharing:
- There are permanent parking spaces throughout the city.
- You pay based on the time used, tracked by satellite.
- You pay a membership fee ($7/year in Lyon, $38/year in Paris)

How it's not like car sharing:
- You can park it at any designated parking station, unlike car sharing where the car must be returned to the original parking space.
- The first half hour is free, then $1.30 for the next 30 minutes, $2.60 the next, and $5.20 every half-hour thereafter, encouraging more frequent usage.
- Customers buy a prepaid card or use a credit card at a bike station kiosk.

95% of the 20,000 daily bike rentals (that's not a typo) in Lyon are free based on this pricing structure. The impact is even more surprising: Vehicle traffic dropped 4% and overall bicycle use tripled. "It has completely transformed the landscape of Lyon - everywhere you see people on the bikes," said the city's deputy mayor. Paris expects 250,000 trips a day, or 91 million trips a year.

The biggest complaint? Not enough parking. Some things never change. For more on this story and financials, check out the Washington Post article, Paris Embraces Plan to Become City of Bikes.

Image source: PeterForret

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April 18, 2007

Trader Joe's

The grocery store every downtown wants

Why is there such a frenzy to score a Trader Joe's in one's neighborhood? To sum it up with a quote sourced amid the hysteria of NYC's first Trader Joe's ever last year (pictured above), "It's kind of like the Grateful Dead of supermarkets."

Yes, it's a chain, but for the neighborhood that isn't able to organize its own co-op supermarket, finds Whole Foods too pricey for normal shopping, detests the suburban chains, and can't get everything it wants from the smaller neighborhood groceries, downtown populations want a Trader Joe's... badly, desperately... as this L.A. article provides evidence of.

What's the insane appeal to the growing downtown market and the ? Not only grocers, but small businesses, take note! TJ's is know for:

- Low prices. Oftentimes shockingly low, such as...
- Two-buck chuck (now $2.99 for a decent bottle of wine), which is a cult all its own.- Unique items. 80% of their merchandise has their own label.
- A health-oriented selection where more than a third of its offerings are fresh, plus a large selection of organic, vegetarian and even vegan products.
- Operating as a triple-bottom-line company.
- Legendary customer service, especially in listening to its customers.
- A 'life is too short not to have fun' vibe. For instance, their ads read like conversations and the staff 'uniform' is aloha-themed. Priceless.

Image sources: baobee and juicyrai

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April 17, 2007

Innovate Building, Greenville, SC

The 'Innovate' workplace

Innovate Building, Greenville, SC

Where do you put your city's most innovative companies?

Well, in Greenville, SC, the answer is easy. They'd obviously go into the Innovate Building.

What makes it worthy of the name, and more importantly, the companies?

The loft-like building is located downtown in a former textile mill built in 1908 with hand-molded brick, exposed timbers, and stunning solid maple flooring, yet it features state-of-the-art audio and visual communications systems; open, flexible floor plans; and daylighting throughout. The 53,000 s.f. building also features a patio that provides opportunities for events and entertaining, with a great view of the city's river, and a lease rate of $17/s.f./year.

However, it's the companies themselves that give the building life, and a workplace this inspiring needs the kind of forward-thinking people to synergize with its surroundings. This is when job growth takes off. The Innovate Building nurtures a marketing company, Brain on Fire; an environmental firm and the city's metropolitan community weekly.

I highly suggest checking out Brain on Fire's cutting edge work on their website - that's how I found out about the Innovate Building in the first place. In fact, their theme is pretty much dead on for a cool town,

"Life’s just too short to live it in the shadow of fear and the rut of mediocrity."

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April 16, 2007

Cafe in Yungho, Taipei, Taiwan

Four different beta community types

Veterans of this website know that a beta community is a group of future tenants/patrons formally co-designing a cool place with a partnered developer. However, there are many definitions of what a 'place' is, so here are the four types places and their associated beta communities:

1. VIBE Beta Communities - For third places, establishing a community of patrons to co-design and co-invest (via sweat equity) in those businesses. Click here for a current example in Washington DC.

2. Building Beta Communities - For 'cool' buildings, establishing a community of tenants and patrons to co-design and even co-invest in the development of a single building. One current project is based in New York to transform a 55,000 s.f. warehouse into an artist/musician live/work community. This could involve VIBE Beta Communities.

3. Block Beta Communities - for large-scale developments of several buildings, establishing a community of developers to co-develop a site under a common vision. Boulder Housing Partners coordinated multiple developers to complete a new neighborhood (Holiday) under a unifying master plan. This could involve both VIBE and Building Beta Communities.

4. Retail-Entertainment Center Beta Communities - for neighborhood retail/entertainment centers, establishing a community of VIBEs to develop their businesses as a group under a common development and vision. This involves the expertise of individuals like Kennedy Smith, who worked for and ran the National Main Street Center for a total of 20 years. This could involve all four Beta Community types.

Image source: Hamar

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