New Albany is a state of mind … but whose? Since 2004, we’ve been observing the contemporary scene in this slowly awakening old river town. If it’s true that a pre-digital stopped clock is right twice a day, when will New Albany learn to tell time?
Go there and read all about it. The Urbanophile is remorseless.
I differ with only one point.
By rights I should be writing this for a major national publication instead of putting it on my personal web site. But I love Louisville and Southern Indiana (my hometown) and don’t want to create negative press for them. I just want it known for the record that this did not have to happen.
Without negative press -- without floggings, scourging and negative feedback in every known public configuration, right here in Louisville and all across America -- these imbeciles will do something just as stupid, yet again.
I have been a steadfast critic of the project to build two new bridges across the Ohio River in Louisville for over a decade. In fact, my first critical post on the bridges proposal was put up in 2007 less than six months after starting my original Urbanophile blog.
The end result was even worse than I anticipated. The project has proven to be a money waster of the highest order, and in fact by far the biggest American transportation boondoggle I can identify in the 21st century so far.
Part of the agreement between Indiana and Kentucky to build the bridges was that they would do official before and after surveys of traffic to determine the impact of the new bridges on traffic flow. The study was published in August of this year.
The result? The two states spent $1.3 billion dollars to build a parallel I-65 span in downtown Louisville that doubled the capacity of that crossing. After spending that money, traffic fell by 50%.
Let me repeat that: Indiana and Kentucky spent $1.3 billion to double the capacity of a road while traffic levels were cut in half ...
"I and many others in that crushed grassroots have written about it extensively but, If you want to start getting a sense of our broader rep v.v. the bridges project, check the comments on this article."
But Nicolae Ceaușescu -- boy, wouldn't he have adored the Bridges Boondoggle?
... This week, on short notice, state lawmakers approved $753 million in bonding for the Ohio River Bridges project, which they hope to fund partly with tolls. The bonds were rated BBB, just barely investment grade. The project also expects to receive a $452 million federal TIFIA loan, according to Business First in Louisville.
It's really detestable to think that we're at the stage of looking back on what might have been. But there's this: "Lastly, 8664 proudly promoted a transformative vision, which may still be realized in the years to come. I hope I'm still alive to see it."
This post is a part of CNU’s Highways to Boulevards Blog series, which features interview summaries and insights from some of the best minds at the frontline of our Highways to Boulevards Initiative.
Much of the following post was written by JC Stites, local Louisville business owner and co-founder with Tyler Allen of the advocacy group 8664, a grassroots advocacy group promoting a sensible alternative to Louisville’s Ohio River Bridges Project.
When Job One is fluffing your fellow River Ridge oligarchs, then anyone in Kerry Stemler's position need not be concerned with building communities and cities. By supporting Stemler and these very same oligarchs, entities like One Southern Indiana clearly indicate where their priorities lie -- at the perceived source of operating funds, and not in the notion of building communities and cities. This is the root of the tragedy, with well-meaning indies and small businesses joining One Southern Indiana in the mistaken notion that they're helping to build something, when all they're really achieving is to perpetuate the fluffing.
Meanwhile, those not in Stemler's and his ilk's pockets are trying to determine what to when the freeways come down.
The freeway overpass on North Claiborne Avenue has dominated the downtown landscape for so long it’s hard for some people to imagine the area without it, much less remember how that part of the city functioned before it was built. But as the idea of removing the aging overpass continues to make the rounds among planners and community advocates, an expert with unique experience in urban freeway removal shared his perspective.
“This isn’t about tearing down a freeway, this is really about building communities and cities,” says Peter Park, former planning director for Denver and Milwaukee, where an overpass was removed beginning in 2002. “The reality is all freeways in American cities will come down. They’re not the Roman aqueducts. The question is what to do when they come down.”
It pretty much cuts through the crap, straight to the heart of the matter. Or, as we say it 'round here: 8664, and the bridges project can eat my shorts.
Observation Deck: How Tearing Up Highways Could Make Better Cities, at Wired Tear it all down! Well, OK, not all of it. Let’s start with the freeways. They look permanent, sure, but most highways, especially the ones cutting through city centers, aren’t that old — only a few decades. And in some towns, they do more harm than good.
For your consideration, two items pertaining to the bridges boondoggle, the oligarchic orgasm, and Ed Clere's preferred regimen of "Tolls-R-Us." First, Jim Keith in the newspaper:
... The Clark-Floyd Counties Convention-Tourism Bureau has been outspoken on the proposed building of an additional I-65 bridge and placing tolls on the bridges. Recently we learned through articles in the News and Tribune that, according to the Bridges Authority, our thoughts and concerns were not “appropriate.”
The Board of Managers is concerned that a new I-65 bridge and tolling will be a deterrent to doing business in Jeffersonville and Clarksville. Our concerns were confirmed with the recently released Economic Impact Study of the Ohio River Bridges Project prepared for the Indiana Finance Authority and the Indiana Department of Transportation prepared by the Economic Development Research Group Inc. Businesses will lose customers and sales and thus some of them may be forced to close ...
— Jim Keith, executive director, Clark-Floyd Counties Convention-Tourism Bureau
Tyler Allen, left, and J.C. Stites sit at rear of April 2010 Bridges Authority meeting.
By Curtis Morrison
Remember in 2005 when 8664 co-founders Tyler Allen and J.C. Stites were right about the bridges, especially the proposed changes downtown?
According to the 8664.org website, the two local businessmen founded the grassroots organization “after seeing pictures of the proposed 23-lane Spaghetti Junction planned for Louisville’s waterfront.”
In the first three parts of this series, I discussed how Indiana so badly botched its negotiation with Kentucky on the Louisville bridges project that its share of the project went up by $200 million at the same time the total project declined in cost by $1.5 billion, how this will result in $432 million being drained out of regular highway funds to cover a resulting tolling gap, how tolling likely results in Indiana paying even more, and the significant risks Indiana has taken on by agreeing to build a tunnel in Kentucky. Amazing as it sounds, Indiana’s biggest road project is now a $795 million, 1.4 mile highway in the state of Kentucky.
But just because I believe this deal is bad doesn’t mean I think the project itself is all bad. Indeed, I’m a strong supporter of the East End bridge, which is a generational investment for that part of the state. I also think the $1.5 billion in savings identified so far are great and a good start at getting costs under control on this project. But there’s still more we can do. So with that in mind, I’ll outline the changes I’d make to move the project forward:
#1 – Kill the Drumanard Tunnel
#2 – Adopt 8664
#3 – Revisit the Cost and Toll Revenue Allocations
"If a factory is torn down but the rationality which produced it is left standing then that rationality will simply produce another factory. If a revolution destroys a government, but the systematic patterns of thought that produced that government are left intact, then those patterns will repeat themselves...There's so much talk about the system. And so little understanding."
-Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Perhaps it's a bit early in the "adjustment" period, but the above quote shared by reader Josh and a neighbor's mention of how pleasant New Albany's downtown can be without the noise of interstate traffic have me (re)thinking.
Let's suppose the Sherman Minton Bridge needs replacement. The current projected cost of a new East End Bridge sans tunnel and other approaches is $406 million. One assumes a new Sherman Minton might come with a similar price tag. That's a lot. Given that level of expenditure, would merely replicating an interstate bridge really be the best investment of those dollars?
Haven't a lot of our issues in terms of urban devaluation and decay ridden shotgun on the destruction of Scribner Park and the insertion of an interstate into our downtown street grid and lives? The city's oft-referenced 20th century heyday was an interstate free affair.
Like Steve Wiser's better cross-river plan (PDF) in response to the Ohio River Bridges Project, could we be better served by two local access New Albany bridges, transit options, and park and rides on the perimeter and, like 8664, the removal of the Great Wall of the West End? Aren't a lot of the points we've all made about the downtown portion of the Bridges Project in general as true for New Albany specifically? That our neighborhood streets have become cut through highways and both our green and building spaces mostly unused surface parking might provide a clue.
Before we get too caught up in partisan bickering over paying for it, it may be a good idea to consider what we actually want.
This bit of commentary comes from Southern Indiana native and well-recognized urban development consultant Aaron Renn, aka the Urbanophile, written soon after the latest bridges "deal" was announced. Offered as part of one of his Urbanoscope updates in January, it's worth a look for a quick, objective opinion from an experienced professional. Thanks to Save Louisville for pointing it out. Also worthy of review is Renn's previous, more in-depth support for 8664.
Indiana and Kentucky have supposedly agreed on a plan to chop $500 million off the cost of the Ohio River Bridges Project in Louisville. Now the project will cost “only” $3.6 billion, or almost $3000 for every single man, woman, and child in the entire metro area – and a heckuva lot more than that once financing costs and user delay cost during two decades of construction are taken into account.
This project seems to be a quest for an answer to the question: How big a boondoggle does a highway project have to be before even the most fiscally conservative of politicians will go for a rethink? It’s amazing that leaders on both sides of the rivers continue to push for this plan that will be little more than a cash drain on the region. And a destructive one, obliterating a number of historic buildings in downtown Louisville and erecting an even more gigantic barrier across the riverfront.
There is a better way: 8664. This project will save a couple billion – and reconnect downtown Louisville with the river to boot. Much better, much much cheaper. What’s not to love? Go forward with the adjustment to move the pedestrian path the Big Four, then take the rest of the steps to make 8664 a reality.
By the way, the Star said this was a “Kentucky delegation” and didn’t mention any Southern Indiana representation. I noted one of the cost saving measures was downscoping the east end bridge. Did Kentucky pull a fast one on Mitch? The east end bridge goes through Louisville’s equivalent of Zionsville and the big money types there – who are hugely influential – have never and will never give up on cancelling that bridge outright or, failing that, reducing it as much as possible. This looks to me like Kentucky maneuvering for position moreso than cost savings. Watch out, Indiana.
I wonder if Kerry Stemler (a) read this, and (b) plans to outlaw big ideas that don't buttress a doomed automotive transport system at a cost of billions?
The Greater Louisville Project announced that the grassroots movement 8664 is the winner of its Create Louisville: Your Big Idea project, but the group won’t get a one-on-one sit down with Mayor Greg Fischer as originally promised.
The contest was designed to engage citizens, elicit fresh thinking and new ideas about the city, and garnered more than 2,300 votes since it was launched last fall. Among more than a hundred “big ideas” submitted by community members with 8664 almost receiving more votes than the other top four winners combined.
For years, members and affiliates of the 1Si/GLI/Bridges Coalition/Tolling Authority cabal have been attempting to scare the bejeezus out of citizens with dreadful predictions of the region grinding to a halt if their unpopular pet project isn't fully implemented, costs be damned. Those claims, however, have been and still are based on out of date, inaccurate demographic and traffic projections easily disproved with real, on the ground data.
Thanks to 8664 for compiling a list of actual traffic counts for our interstates near Spaghetti Junction. It's alarming that we can't count on those who are supposed to be representing the public as appointed officials to share such information, but I'm glad someone is.
Click on the press release image below to see how much traffic volumes have decreased since the Ohio River Bridges Project's Record of Decision was issued.
An easily shareable PDF is available here, and Jake at the The 'Ville Voice is covering this as well.
In addition to news that 8664 principal and former Louisville mayoral candidate Tyler Allen is endorsing Hal Heiner in the general election, today brings an email update from JC Stites:
From today's 8664 Update email: What's happened to 8664?
That's a good question. Basically, we've withdrawn from the bridges discussion for the time being. The good news is the oversized project looks to be taking care of itself. More about that below.
As you know, with the help of some spineless Metro Council members, Mayor Abramson supported handing the decision-making on the bridges issue over to an unelected authority. This group, conflicts and all, has made it clear that they don't care what you think - see public poll info below - and just want to "get 'er done". So, the timing for our less expensive, forward-thinking alternative needs to wait.
In what appears to be an effort to discredit possible alternatives, the Bridges Authority did say at their August 19th meeting that they planned to discuss the scaled-down, toll-free St. Louis bridges project and 8664 at a future meeting. But in their last meeting they took the opportunity to arbitrarily rule out downsizing the ORBP and failed to mention 8664 at all. We've sent numerous emails to find out if/when we might be added to their agenda, but they have not responded. After reading this email, it's probably even less likely.
Back to the good news. Louisville doesn't want to build two bridges. Whether you believe the "two bridges, one project" was a political compromise between KY and IN or a way for special interests to stop the East End Bridge, it doesn't matter. While the increasingly pathetic Courier-Journal has neglected to poll on the issue of bridges for more than a decade, cn|2 did a poll last month and the results are overwhelming and positive.
50.3% want only an East End Bridge 17.3% want only a Downtown Bridge 14.5% want both bridges 10.1% want neither 7.9% refused or don't know
It means that Louisville's stale political and media structure got us into this mess. Five years ago, Mayor Abramson basically patted us on the head as to say "never you mind, I've got this all taken care of". Well enough of that.
We need to embrace new media outlets and hold our elected leaders accountable. No more back room deals and unwritten agreements with special interests. Whether you are a Republican, Democrat or Independent, Louisville's future depends on us to hold politicians accountable.
In conclusion, it's clear that Louisville wants to finally build the East End Bridge and move our regional economy forward. We can and will wrestle the decision making for this project away from the Bridges Authority and do the right thing. Removing I-64 from our waterfront will be a game changer, but its time has not yet come. We'll get there and we will make it happen.
Thanks for your continued support.
Ciao,
JC Stites Co-Founder
PS Need a new 8664 decal? Shoot us an email with your mailing address. PPS Louisville is great and getting better!
Roger published a post regarding oil addiction addressed to One Southern Indiana President Michael Dalby. I made a comment about something Dalby once said to me, and, rather than address the concerns raised by the original post - namely, how advocating an increase in regional oil dependency equates to leadership - someone using the handle "Michael" challenged me with the following:
Jeff, how is it that you and only you can possibly be right? As I look back at years of public hearings and input on this project, I see an open process that through negotiation and compromise has brought us to where we are today...two bridges and the re-work of Spaghetti Junction. Tyler Allen ran his campaign as a referendum on the ORBP and got less than 8,000 votes (while the three candidates that openly support the project garnered over 80% of the Democratic vote). I believe the majority of citizens in this region want a comprehensive and safe transportation solution for the next 50-100 years. That's what we are working toward.
I'll take the first part first with the rest to follow:
Jeff, how is it that you and only you can possibly be right?
Unlike Michael does here, I've never made the claim that it is I alone who is singularly correct in assessing regional transportation plans. My point has always been the exact opposite: a large and growing body of evidence from around the country frames the Ohio River Bridges Project as anathema to regional economic progress and sustainability.
What follows is an extremely brief examination of a small amount of that evidence, the tip of a proverbial 'berg based on a short short this morning. It took longer to format it for Blogger than to gather it. Readers will notice that many of the references made here are from several years ago, further making the point that they do not constitute radical new ideas but rather information commonly available for quite some time.
Earlier this decade, the City of Louisville hired the Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, DC, whose mission "is to conduct high-quality, independent research and, based on that research, to provide innovative, practical recommendations that advance three broad goals: Strengthen American democracy; foster the economic and social welfare, security and opportunity of all Americans and secure a more open, safe, prosperous and cooperative international system."
The Brookings Institution was charged with making recommendations to move the Louisville metropolitan area, including Southern Indiana, forward as Louisville and Jefferson County, KY, governments were about to merge. It's report, BEYOND MERGER: A Competitive Vision for the Regional City of Louisville, found the region to be facing two major challenges: "a workforce that is limited in size and skills that will hamper the city's ability to mature its low-wage, service economy to a higher-wage one" and "the region is growing in a decentralized and divided way that will ultimately harm the area's quality of life and hinder low-income households' access to opportunities."
The transportation section of the report presents several findings:
1. While other transit options have gone largely ignored, we have been aggressively building roads at a rate far greater than peer cities. 2.Due to that construction, the number of miles driven in urbanized Louisville have grown much faster than the population. 3. That increase in Vehicle Miles Traveled has led to increased congestion. 4. While those new roadways have been aggressively pursued, existing ones have not been properly maintained. 4. They did mention one positive: TARC ridership had increased.
Excerpts from the heading "What This Means":
The region’s aggressive road-building strategy may not necessarily improve mobility. Granted, the Louisville transportation system remains less snarled than troubled systems in cities such as Atlanta. But rising congestion and increasingVMT combined with deteriorating road conditions are clearly making it harder for Louisvillians to get around. Meanwhile, transit remains a limited option for most residents thanks to the region’s intense focus on freeways and arterials. Taken together, these trends pose a serious threat to the region’s quality of life.
Current transportation patterns could also exacerbate growth and environmental imbalances across the region. Aggressive road building—coupled with proposed large-scale transportation corridor projects—can redistribute business and residential development. Recent evidence suggests that new highways and interchanges become conduits for decentralization. In this fashion, proposed transportation improvements in eastern Jefferson County could weaken older sections of the new Regional City, further isolating the western corridor.14 Pollution tied in part to motor vehicle exhaust emissions, at the same time, continues to complicate economic development planning. From 1998 to 2000, the counties with the worst ozone air pollution in the states of Indiana and Kentucky were both in the Louisville metropolitan area. Clark County, Indiana and Oldham County, Kentucky each offer the most unhealthy air in their respective states. Oldham recently replaced Jefferson County as the worst in Kentucky.15 And these ratings have impacts beyond their undesirable health effects, including the possible loss of federal transportation funds.16 TARC, the regional public transit system, is actively responding to these negative trends with reduced fares, and plans to add electric buses and light rail to its fleet.
Current trends could also undermine the region’s leadership in the distribution and logistics industry. Louisville’s competitive advantage in freight handling depends on the uninhibited movement of goods through and between the region’s major air and rail hubs, its port, and its interstate highway net- work. However, the efficiency of all of these facilities would be compromised by the traffic delays, deteriorating roads, and decentralized development that could result from an ill-considered road-building program. That suggests the need for the Regional City to weigh carefully the full impact of all proposed transportation improvements so as to protect and grow its critical logistics and distribution sector.
Likewise, the Harvard Graduate School of Design produced a supplementary report, "Metro Louisville Moving Forward", (sorry, no link yet) that specifically "questioned the priority of allocating $1.9 billion for highway improvements [the Kentucky and Indiana bridges project] while leaving the funding of a light-rail system to be addressed at a future time." It's hard to imagine that they would think, now that bridges project cost estimates have skyrocketed, that it would suddenly be a better idea.
Writing for the Infrastructurist, Yonah Freemark, a Gordon Grand Fellow from Yale University, named the Ohio River Bridges Project the #1 most ridiculous new road being built in America.
Hank Dittmar's 2002 testimony to the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affiars' Subcommittee on Housing and Transportation also provides clues to the depth of information available that reaffirms the Bridges Project in it's current form as counterproductive. Mr. Dittmar is a member of the board of directors of the Surface Transportation Policy Project. His inclusion isn't remarkable because of that affiliation but because of the sources upon which he's able to draw to make his case.
Some excerpts:
Transit ridership has increased each of the last four years, revealing a growing interest in transit in a range of city types and locales. A preponderance of this ridership growth is in New York City, as a preponderance of transit use is centered in New York. However, many other cities and urban areas around the country are experiencing increased ridership. In fact, the greatest percentage increase in the first four quarters of 2001 occurred in communities with 50,000-99,999 in population, where bus ridership grew 10.25% over 2000 – which also was a banner year for transit. And what is happening in big cities like New York (2.9%), Washington (5.85%), and Los Angeles (15.8%) cannot explain an 11.7% increase in Albuquerque, 6.7% in Providence, 7.7 % in Denver, 5% in Boise City, or 15.67% in Oklahoma City.
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A recent survey by Jones Lang LaSalle in its Property Futures publication found that 77 percent of New Economy companies rated access to mass transit as an extremely important factor in selecting corporate locations. According to the 2001 survey of 350 New Economy companies: "Employers concerned with staff retention regard the public transportation issue as critical. Young and cyber-savvy staff increasingly reject the traditional commuter lifestyle . . .Urban locations, though not always CBDs, will continue to be desirable. This is reinforced by the importance of public transportation to companies and workers." An example in Atlanta was the decision by BellSouth to relocate its entire Atlanta metropolitan workforce – some 20,000 workers – into three locations within walking distance of Metro stations.
Moreover, overwhelmingly, replacement jobs continue to be located in established urban areas near transit. While some researchers have made much hay arguing that most "new jobs" are located in exurban locations, the fact remains that most job openings are for replacement jobs. As Qing Shen of the University of Maryland demonstrated in a recent study of the Boston metropolitan area, "pre-existing employment is still highly concentrated in the central city." (Qing Shen, Winter 2001)
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By the late 1990s, real estate analysts began to see accessible urban locations in a new light as well. The 2001 issue of Price Waterhouse Coopers’ Emerging Trends in Real Estate continued to advise investors to seek out opportunities in what they dub 24-hour cities, with mixed-use development and mass transit access. According to the report, which is compiled from dozens of interviews with real estate investors and professionals:
"Major 24-hour metro markets maintain their pre-eminence while some suburban areas struggle with sprawl and congestion issues. ‘Subcities’—our new term for suburban locations that are urbanizing and taking on 24-hour market characteristics—show particular promise for investors." (Price Waterhouse Cooper and Lendlease, Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2001,) Recent brownfields legislation should improve the interest in existing urbanized locations even more.
Increasingly, real estate investors are looking for value in established communities. Price Waterhouse Coopers’ Emerging Trends report for 2002 - prepared post 9/11 - warns investors away from apartments, retail, and auto dependent suburban locations, while advising investors to buy and hold in 24 cities.
Interviewees have come to realize that properties in better planned, growth-constrained markets hold value in down markets and appreciate more in upcycles. Areas with sensible zoning (integrating commercial, retail and residential), parks and street grids with sidewalks will age better than places connected to disconnected cul-de-sac subdivisions and shopping strips, navigable only by car. Booming populations and wide-open spaces in the Sunbelt’s expanding suburban agglomerations can provide developers and investors with short-term opportunities to cash in on growth waves – but the returns, on average have not been competitive . . . Markets served with mass-transportation alternatives and attractive close-in neighborhoods should be positioned to sustain better long term prospects as people strive top make their lives more convenient. (Jones Lang LaSalle, 2001)
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The consumption of transportation has a major impact on household budgets for all Americans. The American Automobile Association estimates the annual cost of owning and operating an automobile at $7,363 in 1999. About 75% of that cost is fixed costs such as car payments and insurance, and this means that there is little financial incentive for drivers to drive less once they made the investment in a car. Nationally, transportation expenditures account for 17.5% of the average household’s budget, according to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by the Surface Transportation Policy Project and the Center for Neighborhood Technology (STPP & CNT, Driven to Spend, 2000). The proportion of household expenditures that is devoted to transportation has grown as our use of the automobile has grown, from under 1 dollar out of 10 in 1935 to 1 dollar out of seven in 1960, to almost 1 dollar out of five from 1972 through today.
The transportation burden borne by American households falls most heavily upon the poor and lower middle class, as the less a family makes, the more of its budget goes to transportation. The poorest quintile of American households spend 36 percent of their budgets on transportation, while the richest fifth spend only 14 percent. This means that the poorer a family is, the less money it has available for other expenses such as housing, medical care or savings. In fact, transportation takes up the second largest percentage of the household budget, ahead of food, education, medical care and clothing, only behind expenses for housing.
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The growing proportion of consumer expenditures that is devoted to transportation inhibits families from devoting their income to saving or investing, and indeed may be part of the reason why so many families have to send two people to work. For the fact is that spending on transportation by poor families, unlike spending on home ownership or investing in education, has a very poor return on investment because autos, unlike houses, are depreciating assets. Ten thousand dollars invested in a car declines to a value of about four thousand dollars in ten years time, while investment in home ownership builds equity and often appreciates. Similarly, investment in college education for one’s children increases their earning power over their lifetime. The fact that the poorest families must spend over a third of their income on transportation means that they are least able to invest in activities that offer them the opportunity to build wealth. It is indeed ironic that many progressive social scientists believe that the best way to help former welfare recipients secure jobs is to give them automobile purchase assistance, thereby trapping them into the poverty cycle even more profoundly, as the poor typically end up with less reliable cars which are more expensive to operate and maintain.
Some lending institutions are also changing loan criteria to reflect the hundreds of dollars in savings per month that can be experienced in denser, transit rich neighborhoods. The Location Efficient Mortgage (SM) a product of Fannie Mae and a consortium of groups called the Institute of Location Efficiency, allows prospective homebuyers in denser transit-rich neighborhoods to use their transportation savings to help them afford a home in these neighborhoods. The program, which has been introduced in Chicago and Seattle and San Francisco, is under study in Atlanta, Portland and Philadelphia, and Fannie Mae has announced plans to introduce a less comprehensive product with smaller savings in Minneapolis-St. Paul and Baltimore. In essence, financial institutions are now sending a message – if you save money by driving less, we’ll take that into account and offer you more funds to purchase a home. This kind of market adjustment is a positive response to the economic benefits of transit investment upon households.
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As indicated earlier, real estate investors are recognizing that development near transit has locational advantages, and a new style of development is emerging in response to this fact. Transit oriented development is the new term used to characterize mixed use, walkable development located within one-half mile of a transit stop, and evidence indicates that as new transit systems – whether light or commuter rail or rapid bus – are introduced, development follows. A recent study by the University of North Texas found that the new DART system in the Dallas region has already generated over $800 million in development, and that the full system is projected to generate $3.7 billion in economic activity upon build out. (University of North Texas, 2000). Typical of these projects is Mockingbird Station, which features a multi-screen cinema, upscale retail, office space and 211 loft apartments within walking distance of the light rail stop. The project was built without public subsidy.
The potential for transit oriented development to build economic value and staying power in a region is evidenced in the National Capital region by both Montgomery County, Maryland and Arlington County, Virginia. My organization is completing a case study of Arlington County, which has pursued a policy of concentrating its development activity along the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor since the construction of the Washington Metro. Our forthcoming study found that development along transit allowed the County to capture over 13 million square feet of office space and 2 million square feet of retail since 1980. The corridor has increased in population from 19,838 in 1980 to 34,485 in 2000, reversing a steep population decline in the Seventies. Land value within the corridor near the four stations increased by 81 percent from 1992-20002, an average annual increase of 6.1 percent, generating over $109 million in property taxes in 2002 alone. The corridor generates approximately 33% of the County’s real estate tax on 7.7% of the County’s land. According to the study, "Even with the economic downturn and the residual affects of the 9/11 incident (which affected Arlington directly through the bombing of the Pentagon and the subsequent shut down of National Airport and several major arterials), February 2002 vacancy rates were at 10%. This is half of the vacancy rate of suburban office concentrations in outlying Virginia such as Tyson’s Corner and Reston. Office rents in the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor also command a rent premium over other office locations in the Northern Virginia marketplace." (TransManagement, Inc. for Great American Station Foundation, forthcoming)
To accommodate future U.S. population growth, which is expected to increase by 100 million by 2050, Americans favor improving intercity rail and transit, walking and biking over building new highways. When asked what the federal government’s top priority should be for 2009 transportation funding, half of all respondents recommended maintaining and repairing roads and bridges, while nearly one third said “expanding and improving bus, rail, and other public transportation.” Only 16 percent said “expanding and improving roads, highways, freeways and bridges.”
When asked about approaches to addressing traffic, 47 percent preferred improving public transportation, 25 percent chose building communities that encourage people not to drive, and 20 percent preferred building new roads. Fifty-six percent of those surveyed believe the federal government is not devoting enough attention to trains and light rail systems, and three out of four favor improving intercity rail and transit.
Those results have been echoed locally as well:
In order to update its long range plan recently, TARC utilized community outreach to help determine direction.
Results Summary:
• Community outreach conducted as part of the report mirrored prior studies: Louisville residents desire convenient, fast, frequent and affordable transit. Community leaders and residents highly value existing bus service, would like to improve services for seniors and ranked a light rail system and intercity passenger rail as the top improvements that they would use.
• A look at TARC’s short-term and long-term financial outlook illustrates that TARC must have new or greatly expanded funding sources in order to develop advanced transit modes such as Light Rail or commuter rail or even to significantly expand existing bus service.
• New avenues for expansion of transit services may come from changing federal transportation policies and funding, prompted by the current economic crisis and the recent spike in gas prices. (The report was completed in advance of recent discussion regarding economic stimulus funding for transit.)
Though admittedly unscientific, Business First conducted its own Business Pulse Survey poll to gauge what its readers were thinking about 8664, asking, "What do you think of Louisville Metro Council's decision to examine the 8664 proposal?" 55% of respondents answered "It's worth examining the merits of the proposal."
Respected urban development consultant Aaron Renn (a Southern Indiana native), has also chimed in against the Bridges and for 8664.
Here's a recent video featuring several, local well-known thinkers, developers, philanthropists, and representatives expressing disdain for the Bridges project and support for 8664.
So, it's hardly me and only me and I'll remind again that this only a tiny fraction of readily available information pertaining to urban transportation planning and impacts in general and Louisville or Louisville-like situations more specifically. If Michael would care to begin his refutations here, I'll follow up with more information regarding his other claims later.
I think it's probably well established by now that my own thoughts pretty much align with a recent online commenter who said, "Un_ _ _ _ ing believable. When will this community wake up? When will they take back their power and be afforded a say in their waterfront's future?" But hey, I have a "unique ability to piss people off and be unproductive" so don't take my word for it.
Louisville mayoral candidate Tyler Allen reports on transportation and bridges from St. Louis, showing a level of courage and pragmatism conspicuously absent from the rhetoric of our local political leadership on the same topic:
Here's another great vision from the folks at 8664.org. Don't let narrow special interests and the lobbyists and politicians pandering to them steal our region's future. The waterfront doesn't belong to Kerry Stemler's trucking company. It belongs to us. Take it back.
This not unexpected announcement comes to us from the 8664.org mailing list. Tyler becomes the only Louisville mayoral candidate whose number is saved in my cell phone's memory.
One sentence strikes me: "(We have) painted a bold vision for a better solution. Unfortunately, we have also been thwarted in our attempts to get a true conversation started." There's something very close to home about that.
Dear 8664 Supporter,
I wanted you to be among the first to know that I will be stepping aside at 8664.org and announcing tomorrow that I will be a candidate for Mayor of Louisville Metro. I leave 8664.org in the able hands of co-founder JC Stites and a committed advisory board who I would like to thank sincerely for their unwavering support of this critical issue.
These last four years have been an interesting time for our movement. We have raised awareness of the ill-conceived downtown portion of the Ohio River Bridges Project and painted a bold vision for a better solution. Unfortunately, we have also been thwarted in our attempts to get a true conversation started. Even as recently as this summer when it appeared that our Metro Council would be positioned to hold such a conversation, powerful interests seemed to influence them to rubber stamp a new unelected Tolling Authority that will keep this process away from the public.
My experience with 8664 is one of the primary reasons I have decided to seek elected office. It has taught me that many of the most important issues facing this community are deeply connected and the solutions require creativity and commitment. I intend to bring to government the same vision and passion that are fundamental to 8664.
As I move on to a new campaign, be assured that my commitment to 8664 and the vision it represents for the future of this great city will be as strong as ever. As the campaign takes shape, you can learn more about me and take part in the conversation about other issues critical to this city and region at http://www.tyler4mayor.com/.
I look forward to seeing many of you in the months to come. Take care and thank you for your commitment to 8664.
The Ohio River Bridges Project could threaten smaller transportation projects around the Louisville region. The C-J reported today that because there’s no financing plan for the $4.1 Billion fiasco, the Federal government could freeze important short-term transportation projects. A December deadline has been imposed to settle on a financing plan.
“Four years ago, officials expected that the states’ federal gasoline tax revenue would be enough to cover the cost, which was estimated at $1.4 billion.
“But now that the project has climbed to $4.1 billion, Kentucky and Indiana are looking for more money — possibly including tolls — and the federal government wants details. …
“The government requires all federally financed transportation projects to have clear sources of funding to keep unrealistic projects from tying up money.”
We’ve known that the demands of financing this mega-project are far greater than the expected return. For merely half the price, the 8664.org plan solves the same transportation problem without requiring tolls or the destruction of Downtown Louisville. It’s definitely not too late to fix our transportation issues in a responsible way. Perhaps the Feds will finally realize that the Spaghetti Junction-two-bridge solution is as “unrealistic” as many have know for so long.
By now, you should know we are fans of the 8664.org proposal. If you ask us, it just makes too much sense, saves too much money, and steers Louisville’s future growth in a direction that would provide for a real urban, vibrant, and livable city. But as we continue down the road of outdated 20th century planning, we’re more and more going to be associated with mega-mistakes of the past.
We’ve been compiling a set of links that demonstrate some of the reasons 8664.org is the right way to go. The issues surrounding such a massive idea are diverse and complicated, so it takes a lot to get through. We highly recommend you check out an article by the Urbanophile about 8664.org, as well, for background, commentary, and convincing arguments. You can see our previous coverage of this issue here. Each article linked below is worthwhile and expands on the point we’re trying to make.
The Urbanophile is regular reading around the bluegill homestead and for good reason. Even when I don't agree, it's inevitably well researched, well reasoned, and well written. On 8664, the same is true and we agree.
With the help of a site visit, new photography, and borrowed images, the Laconia native puts together a rather comprehensive look at the pending disaster that is the Ohio River Bridges Project and how 8664 is a better and cheaper solution with only a relatively few obstructionists standing in the way of Hoosier interests.
It's time that our local representatives, both publicly elected and privately self-declared, do the same.
Of course, not everybody likes better and cheaper. Highway construction and engineering companies sure don't. And they carry a lot of political weight. But Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels was already wealthy before taking office, doesn't need anyone's money, and isn't angling to do anything but serve out his last term as governor and continue pushing for change. He's brought a keen fiscal eye to the Hoosier State, and 8664 would save Hoosiers a bundle by not having to pay for 50% of a downtown bridge plus 100% of the approach work on the Indiana side. With projects like I-69 running over budget, this could be a great place to save money. Plus, the Major Moves funds allocated to the bridges project are not sufficient to pay Indiana's $1.2 billion share of the project, period. And 8664 preserves the East End bridge that Indiana cares about and which is a no-brainer.
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