Community Architect

What is the Architect's Kodak Moment?

2012-01-21T10:43:00.000-05:00

"Kodak moment" has a new meaning since Kodak, the proud Rochester based American legacy company has declared bankruptcy this week. (Economist article)

"One cannot delay the future, the company failed because of its museum mentality, it invented the rope its hanging from" (the digital camera), so go the commentators. Legacy industries across the world look down on their shoes and wonder, what does this mean for us?

What does it mean for architects, for the construction industry? True, architects and even more the construction industry are not a company (like Kodak), we don't have a legendary founder (Eastman), we are not really tied up in the digital revolution. We have been around for eons, we cater to a very basic need (humans need shelter) that will be around forever, so, why would the Kodak story mean anything for us?

T Square, slide ruler and blue prints are gone from architects' offices

replaced by flatscreens, workstations and CAD

but construction sites can still look like they would have 50 or a 100 years ago

The construction industry today is one of the greatest anachronisms in all of production. Possibly even farmers have revolutionized their production more than the construction industry. (Atlantic Cities article). Just go and watch how houses, offices and stores are built, even today. The excavators and dump trucks, the concrete trucks, the concrete block and brick trucks, the lumber trucks, the goods dangling at the hooks of cranes, the welders riding on those beams way up in the air, finally the carpenters, plumbers, HVAC guys, electricians, dry-wallers, painters and tile layers. Each trade a different company, each with deliveries from different suppliers, each with their own foremen, each their own communications (walkie talkies now often supplanted by Blackberries), each with their own contract either with the General Contractor or with a construction manager or even directly with the invetsor/owner.

Just think about how buildings are conceived: Owners who go out to hire architects who then hire a platoon of different engineering firms who then, in a rather archaic process, each draw up a design for their own segment of the puzzle. Each, if we are lucky, have their own QA/QC process, then the architect will somehow review it all before finally a corresponding platoon of underpaid and often under-qualified local government architect and engineer reviewers will check the design for code compliance for a permit. Likely they will request all kinds of changes. Eventually contractors bid on the design and tell the owner what the project will cost. At this time the owner may discover for the first time that the price is above his budget. In that case the design will get "value engineered" a euphemism for butchered. Maybe the design needs to go back to the permit reviewers because it changed too much. And all this happens before the first backhoe or crane shows up for construction. And then the real waste begins.

Yes, the architectshave replaced T-squares and mylar with CADD and maybe even "Building Information Modelling" (BIM). But except for large and fancy projects one can safely assume that the engineering firms involved will not use BIM and be still stuck in two dimensional line CADD. So the computer generated 3D models live only at the architect's office and cannot be exported to the platforms of the engineering fiorms or the contractors. Today the contractors have more expensive machines, they planthe work of an army of laborers and trades with detailed Primavera flowcharts and erect columns and studs with the help of laser. But most of the laborers remain pretty unskilled, often hired off the street for the particular project. Yes, we they deal with some newbuikding materials such as improved insulation materials and better glass, even with IT wiring for fancy electronics that might be strung among the studs and hidden in the hollow walls. But the true and trusted materials are still concrete, brick, wood, steel and gypsum board.

Modern indoor curtain wall assembly (Harman, Glen Burnie)

In fact, the entire method of separation between design and construction, once typical for almost anything made, today is nothing but a quaint relic unique to among all major industries. It reflects essentially pre-industrial methods and defies all efficiencies of production we associate with the industrial revolution. As part of this, most of the production occurs out in the open and not in the controlled environment of the shop floor. There is hammering, sawing, cutting and patching going on on every construction site all day long with waste piling up in the dumpsters.
In his book Broken Buildings, Busted Budgets: How to Fix America’s Trillion-Dollar Construction Industry, construction industry expert Barry LePatner analyzes how the $1.2 trillion industry ranks highest among industries on the “waste and inefficiency” scale, and lowest in the amount of money invested annually in technology and R&D. Indeed, America’s sole remaining “mom and pop” industry wastes at least $120 billion each year! (website. Wall Street Journal Review)

This, of course, is no new insight. In fact, from Frank Lloyd Wright to Corbusier and Buckminster Fuller, there is no shortage of architects and tinkerers who tried to bring the "house" in line with the machine, usually with disastrous consequences. In the wake of these failed attempts of equating the building with a machine many fellow architects successfully argued that buildings are different from machines in that they are grounded in one place (lest we talk about the American phenomenon of mobile homes, which, indeed, are made like trucks) and thus, have to respond to unique settings, need to be customized and are unique by necessity. Essentially the machine guys went down in defeat and their products are mostly derided today. (see Corbusier's Plan Voisin for Paris).

Which leaves us where we are, with a splintered industry, ineffective production, high cost, huge energy inefficiency (about 40 percent of all energy needs come from buildings, not counting their construction) and resources. As an industry the world of construction is slow, messy, inefficient and deeply wedded to the the past. A perfect candidate for a "Kodak moment" of its own.

As a subset of the industry, architects are still rather glamorous in films, but they represent the largest contingent among unemployed professionals. Those who are employed are underpaid in comparison to almost any other professional, scores who have their own business preside over tiny operations with 1-5 employees. The profession, highly skilled to solve today's complex problems with holistic thinking, find themselves squeezed between engineers, ever new specialty disciplines and a lack of funds for the expensive buildings our current process produces.

Who would not agree, that the construction industry, badly hit by the current recession, is at some sort of crossroads and that the future will be vastly different from the past?

We will explore what all this means in further blogs or maybe by adding to this one. We will have to look at "integrated design", "integrated project delivery models", LEED and sustainability codes, at BIM. We have to look at the growing trend of large engineering conglomerates (like AECOM) to buy up small firms, engineers, architects and al,l and provide one-stop design. We have to look at industries where the makers of the machinery increasingly provide also the design (Siemens for hospital operating rooms). We have to look at the quest for sustainability and energy efficiency, reserach for biometric building materials and how methods from other industries can work for us.

And, finally, we have to also look at the growing body of evidence that suggests that the well being of us humans is vastly dependant on the quality of our buildings and the built stuff around us.

(modifications were made 1/22/11)

Clean Water finds broad support in Maryland Poll

2012-01-19T14:43:00.001-05:00

Press Release

January 19, 2012

For Immediate Release

For Information Contact: Dawn Stoltzfus, The Hatcher Group: 410-562-5655 Steve Raabe, Opinion Works: 410- 271-3795 Erik Michelsen, South River Federation: 410-212-3309

Dru Schmidt-Perkins, 1000 Friends of Maryland: 410-258-8601

Tom Zolper, Chesapeake Bay Foundation: 443-482-2066

Two-thirds of Maryland Voters Support Bay Restoration Fund Increase; Large Majority of Voters – Even in Rural Areas –

Support Restrictions on Septics

Poll Shows Strong Commitment to Clean Water and State Management of Growth

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Demonstrating strong support for improving Maryland waterways even in difficult economic times, nearly two-thirds of Maryland voters support increasing the Bay Restoration Fund, currently funded through an annual $30 household fee, and large majorities believe the State should actively manage growth and restrict septic systems, according to a poll released today.

The polling results underscore the importance Maryland voters place on continuing to clean up the state’s waters. Nine voters in 10 agreed it is important to take actions to make the Chesapeake Bay and local streams clean and healthy. Hearing that the Bay is in fact making progress towards clean water goals, three-quarters of voters surveyed agreed that "we need to do even more for the Bay to finish the job."

A memo about the poll notes that this support level is significant because "Maryland voters today have a strong underlying skepticism about public spending and taxes."

Erik Michelsen, Executive Director of the South River Federation, said, "We know Marylanders want the Bay and our streams to be clean and healthy. What the polling makes clear is that Marylanders are willing to spend more on clean water projects like upgrading wastewater treatment plants and reducing polluted stormwater runoff – even in these difficult economic times."

Alison Prost, Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Maryland Executive Director, added: "Maryland voters also support the state doing more to regulate septic systems as a way to reduce pollution. Even in rural areas we see strong support for stricter regulations."

The poll’s findings include:

 Nine out of ten voters (91 percent) say it is extremely, very, or somewhat important to them "to take the actions necessary to make the Chesapeake Bay and local streams clean and healthy."

 Having heard the Bay is halfway to its cleanup goal, three-quarters (77 percent) of voters think "we need to do even more for the Bay to finish the job."

 Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of voters would spend more tax dollars to make the waters safe and healthy "if State leaders and scientists said more tax dollars were needed."

 Sixty-four percent of voters support an increase in the Bay Restoration Fund, after being reminded it comes from a $30/month household fee, "to finish upgrading major wastewater treatment plants and provide local governments with money to reduce polluted stormwater runoff and complete other water quality projects."

 Knowing that the Bay Restoration Fund is a dedicated fee and has clear goals, deadlines, and accountability makes voters more willing to support it.

 Eight voters in ten (80 percent) want the State to have an active role in managing growth, with 40 percent wanting that role to be "very active."

 Three-quarters (76 percent) of Maryland voters support the idea of "smart growth," which directs growth away from less-developed areas and towards places that already have services such as schools, hospitals, and transportation.

 Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of voters support legislation that would tighten regulations on septic systems, and a similar large majority (69 percent) would limit the number of houses in rural areas that have septic systems in order to help clean up local waters.

 Voters in areas with more use of septic systems – in the more rural counties of Western Maryland, Southern Maryland, and the Eastern Shore – are nearly as supportive of restrictions on septic systems as voters statewide. Sixty-two percent of respondents in the rural counties support tightening regulations on septics and 57 percent of voters in those areas support limiting the number of septic systems.

The poll by OpinionWorks, an Annapolis-based firm, was conducted December 11-15, 2011, and surveyed 801 registered voters statewide. It was commissioned by the Clean Water, Healthy Families Coalition.

Dru Schmidt-Perkins, Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Maryland, said, "This poll clearly shows that Maryland voters are willing to invest in healthy waters, and they want the State to take action. Over the next three months, we hope members of the General Assembly are listening to their constituents and are ready to show their commitment to finishing the job of cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay and our local waters."

In the 2012 General Assembly Session, the Clean Water, Healthy Families Coalition is advocating for legislation to meet the following goals: finish upgrading the wastewater treatment plants that Maryland has already committed to upgrade; ensure that local governments have resources to reduce polluted stormwater runoff and implement their local clean water plans; reduce pollution from poorly planned development – including limiting septic systems; and require a standard to make sure wastewater is better treated, so it can be safely released back into the environment.

###

The members of the Clean Water, Healthy Families Coalition are: 1,000 Friends of Maryland, Anacostia Watershed Society, Audubon Naturalist Society, Blue Water Baltimore, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Chester River Association, Clean Water Action, Environment Maryland, Maryland League of Conservation Voters; Mid-shore Riverkeeper Conservancy, Patuxent Riverkeeper, Sierra Club, South River Federation, and West/Rhode Riverkeeper. More information is available at www.cleanwaterhealthyfamilies.org.

Background:

Opinion Works

Research & Communications in the Public Interest

To: Clean Water Healthy Families Coalition
From: Steve Raabe, OpinionWorks

Date: January 19, 2012

Subject: Poll: Voters Support Increasing Bay Fund, Restricting Septics
Overview
OpinionWorks’ Maryland voter poll, conducted December 11-15, 2011 among 801 registered

voters statewide, has found strong support for increasing the Bay Restoration Fund and for

reducing pollution from growth and septic systems.

This support is based in part on the importance Maryland voters place on continuing to clean

up the state’s waters. Nine voters in ten believe it is important to take actions to make the Bay

and local streams clean and healthy, while giving the waters poor grades for health today.

Hearing that the Bay is in fact making progress towards clean water goals, three-quarters of

voters believe “we need to do even more for the Bay to finish the job.” Meanwhile, a nearconsensus

of voters believes the State should be active in coordinating and managing growth.

This translates into strong support for the concept of “smart growth.”

Ultimately, these voter attitudes help explain why large majorities of voters support increasing

the Bay Restoration Fund and placing limits on septic systems.

Details

What watershed improvements, maximum daily loads and septic tanks have to do with smart growth

2012-01-14T12:06:00.001-05:00

Although anybody who has traveled Europe can attest that countries with much denser population than the US somehow seem to be able to maintain pristine open spaces right around their metro areas (just drive out of Paris and find pastures and farms instead of endless commercial strips and McMansions), it has become a widely believed truth that the same is impossible here. Maybe because of our local land use powers, our property rights, our love of freedom or whatever other insurmountable reason possibly derived from US "exceptionalism"?

So if planning cannot stop the wasteful consumption (Maryland used up more land in the last 30 years than in 300 years before) and the associated degradation of our lands near big and sometimes small cities, what can? Not surprisingly, lawsuits can. And also not surprising, land use and environmental protection are closely connected. While land use control in the US has historically been weak, fragmented and local, environmental protection got teeth and became a federal affair with the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act of 1972.

And should the federal government be disinclined to enforce its own laws, it can be sued in court. In 2000 the American Canoe Association and the Sierra Club sued the United States Environmental Protection Agency for non enforcement of its own Clean Water Act. In the wake of this landmark case many more lawsuits against EPA followed resulting in consent decrees and executive orders for endangered waters around the nation often involving the development of watershed plans with "Total Daily Maximum nutrient Loads" (TDML).

The endangered water relevant to Pennsylvania, Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia is, of course, the Chesapeake Bay, the nation's largest natural estuary (more information on the Bay see below this article). The Chesapeake Bay Foundation and others filed a lawsuit against EPA in January 2009. In May 2009 the Obama Administration followed up with an Administrative Order regarding the Bay clean up.

The short of the EPA decree is that all States and jurisdictions in The Bay watershed are now legally required to first develop plans (Phase I) how to achieve the TDML targets and then have these plans followed by specific implementation strategies (Phase II) and be done with implementation by 2025.
With land use power being local, the states passed the requirements on to the locals and each city and county has to come up with its own plans. The Bay TDML strategy includes Watershed Implementation Plans (WIP) with specific milestones. Maryland developed the BayStat method for keeping tabs on the progress of the plans. The terms TDML and WIP are only slowly seeping into general consciousness. Translated into local action they mostly mean that run-off needs to be reduced and it needs to be cleaner. Run-off reduction comes from making the land "more spongy", mostly through reducing pavement and increase of perviousness. it is clear that this requires hundreds if not thousands of small steps in each County. Cleanliness includes many things, especially nutrient and pollutant run-off from farms and industry. It also includes the elimination of sewage seepage as it is common in old urban sewage system. DC, which has in many areas still a combined sewer and stormwater piping system, isn't even trying to fix all the old leaky pipes but builds huge deep tunnels under the pipes to catch the spills. All told, the watershed improvement plans will cost billions to implement.

Although the two year milestone framework promised tight oversight from EPA and little wiggle room for politics, the Phase II WIPs have run already into full fledged wrangling over data, methods and modelling resulting in delays and very divergent compliance of the different counties. One reason for the delays was that in August 2011 EPA provided new load targets based on new Bay models which forced local implementation strategists to go back to the drawing board right around the deadline for phase II. For an assessment what Counties have done to date see this press release from the Choose Clean Water action coalition.

From the Septic Commission

But the O'Malley administration went a step further. It considered the significant impacts that failing and aging septic systems have on the nutrient loads (the chief culprit nutrient is nitrogen) and considered strictly curtailing those systems.

With one fell swoop sprawl would be nibbed in the butt. At least the sprawl from residential subdivisions, one of the main engines of sprawl. Those large lot developments far away from water and sewer systems where each lot digs a hole for a sewer tank with an overflow, euphemistically called a septic field. This medieval technique probably worked alright for the original settlers but it wouldn't work in a time when in 30 years we have developed more land than in the three hundred years before (Maryland).

However, this big strike against septic systems came as a big surprise even to environmentalists when Governor O'Malley proposed it first in 2011. Instantly all kinds of interests rallied against this idea anticipating how effective it might be on the land use side. One senator even created his own website just to propagate his understanding of O'Malley's actions as "war on rural America". The idea was delegated to "summer study" and a committee chaired by Delegate Maggie McIntosh (Task Force on Sustainable Growth and Wastewater Disposal) was created to study it further. The Task Force issued its report in December 2011 which suggested a tiered approach depending on what land is at issue and requires "best available technology" septic systems (which can remove nitrogen) for all new construction in Bay watersheds. The report also includes funding mechanisms that determine how Bay restoration Funds would be distributed to local governments. However, although the report there is lots of movement in Annapolis towards how the bill would come back for this year's legislative session and one can predict that the fight will continue in full force.

No ideological argument will lead around the fact that Maryland and its jurisdictions in the Chesapeake watershed need to comply with the EPA decree and meet the nutrient load targets. One way or another. That order might do more for a smarter use of our lands than all other smart growth legislation combined. It would be worth a discussion why we do the right thing only by edict from above rather than as the result of resolve, enlightenment and foresight.

Another water related topic is the scarecity of water, both in the US and worldwide. For this see this excellent link at Atlantic Cities, "Americas soon to be waterless cities"
from Bay Barometer, March 2009:

About the Chesapeake Bay

TheChesapeake Bay is an estuary, a body of water where fresh and salt water mix.It is the largest estuary in the United States and the thirdlargest in the world. The Bay is about 200 miles long, stretchingfrom Havre de Grace, Maryland, to Virginia Beach, Virginia. The Bay’s

width ranges from 3.4 miles nearAberdeen, Maryland, to 35 miles near the mouth of the Potomac River. The Bay holds more than 15 trillion gallons of water. The Bayis surprisingly shallow. Its average depth, including all tidal tributaries, isabout 21 feet. A person who is six feet tall could wade through more than 700,000acres of the Bay and never get his or her hat wet. A few deep troughs runningalong much of the Bay’s length reach up to 174feet in depth. These troughs are remnants of the ancientSusquehanna River. The Bay and its tidal

tributarieshave 11,684 miles of shoreline – more than the entire U.S. West Coast. The surface area of the Bayand its tidal tributaries is 125billion square feet, or around 4,480square miles. The Bay supports more than 3,600 species of plants, fish and other animals,

including348 species of finfish, 173 species of shellfish and more than 2,700 plantspecies. The Chesapeake is home to 29species of waterfowl and is a major resting ground along the AtlanticFlyway. Every year, about 1 millionwaterfowl winter in the Bay region. The Bay produces about 500 million pounds of seafood peryear.

A b o u t T h e C h e s ape a k e Bay W at er s h e d

About half the water in the Chesapeake Bay is from the Atlantic Ocean.The rest drains into the Bay from an enormous 64,000-square-mile watershed. The Chesapeake Bay watershed includes parts of six states – Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West

Virginia – and the entire District of Columbia. The Chesapeake’s land-to-water ratio is 14:1, the highest of any coastal water body in theworld.

The Bay watershed is home to almost 17 million people. About 150,000 people move to the area each year. Experts predict that thepopulation will increase to nearly 20million by 2030. Everyone in the watershed livesjust a few minutes from one of the 100,000streams and rivers

that drain into the Bay. Each of these waterways is a pipelinefrom communities to the Bay. Of the 50largest tributaries that flow into the Bay, justthree deliver about 80 percent of Bay’s fresh water: the Susquehanna River (48 percent), the PotomacRiver (19 percent) and the James

River (14 percent). During the 1600s, 95 percent of the watershedwas forested. Now about 58 percent is forest. The rest of the land has been developed for otheruses, such as agriculture and urban andsuburban lands.

From the EPA webpage:

Q. What action has EPA taken?

TMDL

Q. What is a TMDL?

Q. What are the primary elements of a TMDL?

Q. Why is a TMDL being developed for the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries?

Q. What are some of the features of the Bay TMDL?

chlorophyll-a

Q. How are the pollution limits set and what are those limits?

jurisdiction partners

Q. How are the Bay and its tidal tributaries impaired?

Q. What are the sources of pollution?

Q. How is Chesapeake Bay water quality impacted by actions on the land?

Q. How long has the Bay TMDL process been underway?

Q. When does the TMDL anticipate the Bay will be restored?

Q. How is the Bay TMDL connected to the Presidential Executive Order to protect and restore the Chesapeake Bay?

Q. Will the Bay TMDL have benefits for waterways throughout the watershed?

Q. There have been many TMDLs written in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. How do they relate to this Bay TMDL?

Q.What is the Chesapeake Bay Program?

Q. How large is the Chesapeake Bay? How big is the watershed that drains into it? How many people live within the watershed?

Governor O'Malley to receive APA Award

2012-01-10T12:17:00.001-05:00

O'Malley, lately a familiar face on national morning talk shows as chair of the national Governor's Association, has been a strong champion for smart growth and environmental protection in Maryland. (article). It will boost his national standing to receive an award from a nationwide organization of professionals dedicated to good planning.
Much of what needs to be done is still depending on this and other legislative sessions in Annapolis. Replenishing the Transportation Trust Fund (gas tax!) and curbing sprawl through a strong restriction on the proliferation of septic tanks will be thorny issues. The battle over the now enacted PlanMaryland state planning document was just a warm up for what we can expect in Annapolis this season.

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Andrew Ratner, 410-767-4544

Cell (410) 340-7230

John Coleman, (410) 767-4614

Governor O'Malley to receive national award for planning leadership

Recognition for Chesapeake Bay focus, transit-oriented development, PlanMaryland

BALTIMORE, MD (Tuesday, January 10, 2012) - The American Planning Association today named Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley as the recipient of its 2012 National Planning Leadership Award for his advocacy of environmental planning issues. The association, which represents the field of city and regional planning in the United States, made the announcement at its Washington, D.C. headquarters. The Planning Advocate award recognizes an individual who has advanced or promoted the cause of planning in the public arena.

"Governor O'Malley has been a powerful catalyst for smart growth from the day he took office," said Marie L. York, FAICP, an APA board director and 2012 awards jury co-chair. "He has worked tirelessly to bring a multi-faceted approach to planning - one that proves smart growth doesn't mean 'no growth' if done right." APA's national awards program was established a half-century ago to recognize outstanding community plans, planning programs and initiatives, public education efforts and individuals for leadership on planning issues.

"As a long-time member of the APA, I am delighted that the nation's preeminent planning organization has seen fit to recognize Governor O'Malley's efforts among the highest honors bestowed by the profession," said Maryland Planning Secretary Richard Eberhart Hall, AICP. "The governor is the first individual from Maryland to receive the award in more than a decade. Baltimore County's pioneering 1960s-Plan for the Valleys and Enterprise Community Partners Inc. of Columbia were honored in 2010."

The award will be presented at APA's national conference in Los Angeles on April 16, 2012. The association noted that Governor O'Malley adapted for planning some of the statistical tools he had used as mayor of Baltimore to combat crime and other problems. In 2007, the governor created a rigorous accounting program called BayStat for state agencies to ensure progress toward restoring the Chesapeake Bay. His departments of planning, natural resources and agriculture developed web-based tools called AgPrint, GreenPrint and GrowthPrint to better identify areas for growth and preservation. A proponent of Transit-Oriented Development, he has championed two light rail projects in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. areas. His administration also recently created Maryland's first statewide growth plan, PlanMaryland.

# # #

Sustainable Cities - Dialogue in Hamburg. International collaboration and competition

2012-01-08T21:49:00.001-05:00

Tom Stosur, Baltimore Planning Director, found himself recently sitting in Hamburg and discussing the chances of US cities to really become green. Next to him sat Harriet Tregoning, Planning Director in Washington DC and a sustainability expert from Boston and one from Hamburg, Germany. (video). The event was one of many international attempts of making cities green, organized by the Urban Land Institute and the German Embassy. Hamburg was the 2011 Green Capital of Europe, a title that is bestowed yearly on applicant cities that have been extra aggressive in being sustainable. (video)

Internationally cities step in where nations have failed so far. With Kyoto agreements still elusive and national carbon emission targets not much but lofty goals it is no surprise to see cities taking up the slack. Most people live in metro regions worldwide and compared to nations cities are much more manageable units to actually achieve change.

Baltimore has its own Sustainability Plan overseen by a Sustainability Commission and has enacted the Baltimore Green Building Code, closely modeled after the LEED Silver USGBC rating system. Washington DC's Mayor Gray launched his "Sustainable DC" initiative in July of 2011 (link) with the goal to make DC the most sustainable city in the nation. He wants to have a draft plan on his desk late April 2012 together with a catchier name and a branding campaign.

DC's goal to be the greenest city in America is also the goal of Philadelphia's Mayor Nutter who launched Greenworks at his inaugural address and finished a plan in 2009. Maybe the biggest and one of the boldest city plans is Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC 2030, a plan already in place since 2007 and slated for update in 2011. Its ambition enticed the USGBC to invite Bloomberg to the 2011 GreenBuild conference in Toronto to close the conference with a keynote. Bloomberg wants every large building in New York to publish its energy profile.

Cities across the globe realize that being green means being efficient, means to offer quality of life and means having a competitive advantage in a world in which metro regions compete directly for talent and capital.

From Baltimore Sustainability Plan

Links:
http://www.usa.siemens.com/sustainable-cities/?stc=usccc025107
http://greencities.com/
http://sustainablecities.net/

A 2008 compilation of the top 50 US Green Cities looks like this:

America's 50 Greenest Cities

Want to see a model for successful and rapid environmental action? Don't look to the federal government—check out your own town. Here, our list of the 50 communities that are leading the way. Does yours make the cut?

By Elizabeth Svoboda, with additional reporting by Eric Mika and Saba BerhiePosted 02.08.2008 at 3:54 pm107 Comments

How the Rankings Work:
We used raw data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Geographic Society’s Green Guide, which collected survey data and government statistics for American cities of over 100,000 people in more than 30 categories, including air quality, electricity use and transportation habits. We then compiled these statistics into four broad categories, each scored out of either 5 or 10 possible points. The sum of these four scores determines a city’s place in the rankings. Our categories are:

Electricity (E; 10 points): Cities score points for drawing their energy from renewable sources such as wind, solar, biomass and hydroelectric power, as well as for offering incentives for residents to invest in their own power sources, like roof-mounted solar panels.
Transportation (T; 10 points): High scores go to cities whose commuters take public transportation or carpool. Air quality also plays a role.
Green living (G; 5 points): Cities earn points for the number of buildings certified by the U.S. Green Building Council, as well as for devoting area to green space, such as public parks and nature preserves.
Recycling and green perspective (R; 5 points): This measures how comprehensive a city’s recycling program is (if the city collects old electronics, for example) and how important its citizens consider environmental issues.

See the the full list below. Click here to launch the gallery to see six case studies on how our greenest cities are cleaning up

1. Portland, Ore. 23.1

Electricity: 7.1 Transportation: 6.4 Green Living: 4.8 Recycling/Perspective: 4.8

America’s top green city has it all: Half its power comes from renewable sources, a quarter of the workforce commutes by bike, carpool or public transportation, and it has 35 buildings certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.

2. San Francisco, Calif. 23.0

Electricity: 6.8 Transportation: 8.8 Green Living: 3.5 Recycling/Perspective: 3.9
See how San Francisco turns wasted roof space into power, here.

3. Boston, Mass. 22.7

Electricity: 5.7 Transportation: 8.7 Green Living: 3.4 Recycling/Perspective: 4.9
CASE STUDY: Grass Power
Boston has preliminary plans for a plant that would turn 50,000 tons of fall color into power and fertilizer. The facility would first separate yard clippings into grass and leaves. Anaerobic bacteria feeding on the grass would make enough methane to power at least 1.5 megawatts’ worth of generators, while heat and agitation would hasten the breakdown of leaves and twigs into compost.

4. Oakland, Calif. 22.5

Electricity: 7.0 Transportation: 7.5 Green Living: 3.1 Recycling/Perspective: 4.9
See how Oakland's hydrogen-powered transit helps the city cut pollution, here.

5. Eugene, Ore. 22.4

Electricity: 10.0 Transportation: 4.7 Green Living: 2.9 Recycling/Perspective: 4.8
CATEGORY LEADER: Electricity
Much of the wet Pacific Northwest draws its energy from hydroelectric dams. But Eugene draws an additional 9 percent of its municipal electricity from wind farms. It also buys back excess power from residents who install solar panel

6. Cambridge, Mass. 22.2

Electricity: 6.1 Transportation: 7.5 Green Living: 3.9 Recycling/Perspective: 4.7

7. Berkeley, Calif. 22.2

Electricity: 6.2 Transportation: 8.4 Green Living: 2.9 Recycling/Perspective: 4.7

8. Seattle, Wash. 22.1

Electricity: 6.2 Transportation: 7.3 Green Living: 4.7 Recycling/Perspective: 3.9

9. Chicago, Ill. 21.3

Electricity: 5.4 Transportation: 7.3 Green Living: 5.0 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6
CATEGORY LEADER: Green Space
In addition to the 12,000 acres Chicago has devoted to public parks and waterfront space, the U.S. Green Building Council has awarded four city projects with a “Platinum” rating, its highest award.
See how Chicago's power plants produce twice the energy with a third the carbon, here.

10. Austin, Tex. 21.0

Electricity: 6.9 Transportation: 5.9 Green Living: 3.3 Recycling/Perspective: 4.9

11. Minneapolis, Minn. 20.3

Electricity: 7.8 Transportation: 7.4 Green Living: 2.8 Recycling/Perspective: 2.3
CASE STUDY: Citizen Enviro-Grants
If you’ve got a world-saving idea, the City of Lakes will give you, your church or your community group the money to get it done. Twenty $1,000 mini-grants and five $10,000 awards were distributed last year to programs ranging from household power-consumption monitors to “block club talks” about global warming. A similar initiative has sprung up in Seattle.

12. St. Paul, Minn. 20.2

Electricity: 8.0 Transportation: 4.0 Green Living: 3.5 Recycling/Perspective: 4.7

13. Sunnyvale, Calif. 19.9

Electricity: 7.3 Transportation: 6.8 Green Living: 2.2 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

14. Honolulu, Hawaii 19.9

Electricity: 6.0 Transportation: 7.8 Green Living: 2.6 Recycling/Perspective: 3.5

15. Fort Worth, Tex. 19.7

Electricity: 8.3 Transportation: 4.6 Green Living: 2.4 Recycling/Perspective: 4.4

16. Albuquerque, N.M. 19.1

Electricity: 7.6 Transportation: 5.5 Green Living: 2.4 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

17. Syracuse, N.Y. 18.9

Electricity: 7.0 Transportation: 4.9 Green Living: 2.6 Recycling/Perspective: 4.4

18. Huntsville, Ala. 18.4

Electricity: 6.2 Transportation: 4.1 Green Living: 3.6 Recycling/Perspective: 4.5

19. Denver, Colo. 18.2

Electricity: 5.9 Transportation: 5.2 Green Living: 3.0 Recycling/Perspective: 4.1
CASE STUDY: Green Concrete
Fly ash, a by-product of coal-burning power plants, usually ends up in landfills. Researchers at the University of Colorado Denver found a way to reuse this industrial by-product. They add it at concentrations of about 20 percent to a new green concrete mix. The addition of fly ash also reduces the amount of sulfur- and carbon-spewing concrete production needed to finish a job. The mayor has signed an executive order requiring the use of green concrete in new city projects, and a $550-million infrastructure bond makes demand for the mix likely to grow.

20. New York, N.Y. 18.2

Electricity: 2.8 Transportation: 10.0 Green Living: 3.4 Recycling/Perspective: 2.0
CATEGORY LEADER: Transportation
More than 54 percent of New Yorkers take public transportation to work, beating the next-best metropolis, Washington, D.C., by 17 percent.
See how New York City turns its tides into electricity, here.

21. Irvine, Calif. 18.1

Electricity: 4.2 Transportation: 6.8 Green Living: 2.9 Recycling/Perspective: 4.2

22. Milwaukee, Wis. 17.3

Electricity: 5.0 Transportation: 4.9 Green Living: 3.1 Recycling/Perspective: 4.3

23. Santa Rosa, Calif. 17.2

Electricity: 7.0 Transportation: 3.4 Green Living: 2.4 Recycling/Perspective: 4.4
See how Santa Rosa taps geysers for watts, here.

24. Ann Arbor, Mich. 17.2

Electricity: 4.6 Transportation: 4.8 Green Living: 2.9 Recycling/Perspective: 4.9

25. Lexington, Ky. 16.8

Electricity: 5.9 Transportation: 3.6 Green Living: 2.3 Recycling/Perspective: 5.0
CATEGORY LEADER: Recycling and green perspective
Lexingtonians recycle everything from surplus electronics to scrap metal, and they listed the environment as their third most important concern (behind only employment and public safety)—the highest ranking in our survey.

26. Tulsa, Okla. 16.7

Electricity: 5.0 Transportation: 3.9 Green Living: 3.4 Recycling/Perspective: 4.4

27. Rochester, N.Y. 16.1

Electricity: 4.5 Transportation: 4.4 Green Living: 3.1 Recycling/Perspective: 4.1

28. Riverside, Calif. 16.0

Electricity: 7.5 Transportation: 3.1 Green Living: 2.1 Recycling/Perspective: 3.3

29. Springfield, Ill. 15.7

Electricity: 5.3 Transportation: 3.0 Green Living: 3.2 Recycling/Perspective: 4.2

30. Alexandria, Va. 15.7

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 6.3 Green Living: 3.1 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

31. St. Louis, Mo. 15.0

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 5.0 Green Living: 3.7 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

32. Anchorage, Alaska 14.4

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 4.7 Green Living: 2.1 Recycling/Perspective: 4.9
CASE STUDY: Power-Saving Streetlights
Since Anchorage spends a good part of the year buried under highly reflective snow, it doesn’t make sense to keep the street lamps at full bore when moonlight can do the job. The fix? Install citywide dimmers. On top of that, the city is planning to upgrade its 16,000 streetlamps to either LED or induction bulbs, depending on the results of computer simulations designed to find the type of light that helps humans see best and disturbs wildlife the least. The swap should be complete by year’s end, and the initial $5-million investment is expected to save up to $3 million in energy costs annually.

33. Athens-Clarke, Ga. 14.1

Electricity: 2.4 Transportation: 4.7 Green Living: 3.2 Recycling/Perspective: 3.8

34. Amarillo, Tex. 14.0

Electricity: 5.2 Transportation: 2.9 Green Living: 2.3 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

35. Kansas City, Mo. 13.8

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 3.7 Green Living: 2.7 Recycling/Perspective: 4.7

36. Salt Lake City, Utah 13.5

Electricity: 3.6 Transportation: 4.1 Green Living: 2.3 Recycling/Perspective: 3.5
See how Salt Lake City heats homes from waste, here.

37. Pasadena, Calif. 13.2

Electricity: 5.8 Transportation: 3.1 Green Living: 1.8 Recycling/Perspective: 2.5

38. Norwalk, Calif. 13.0

Electricity: 3.5 Transportation: 3.1 Green Living: 2.5 Recycling/Perspective: 3.9

39. Laredo, Tex. 12.9

Electricity: 4.4 Transportation: 2.5 Green Living: 1.7 Recycling/Perspective: 4.3

40. Joliet, Ill. 12.0

Electricity: 1.3 Transportation: 4.3 Green Living: 2.6 Recycling/Perspective: 3.8

41. Newport News, Va. 11.9

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 2.7 Green Living: 2.7 Recycling/Perspective: 3.8

42. Louisville, Ky. 11.9

Electricity: 1.3 Transportation: 4.0 Green Living: 2.5 Recycling/Perspective: 4.1

43. Concord, Calif. 11.9

Electricity: 3.0 Transportation: 3.2 Green Living: 2.2 Recycling/Perspective: 3.5

44. Fremont, Calif. 11.3

Electricity: 3.0 Transportation: 3.0 Green Living: 1.5 Recycling/Perspective: 3.8

45. Elizabeth, N.J. 10.5

Electricity: 2.6 Transportation: 2.8 Green Living: 1.8 Recycling/Perspective: 3.3

46. Livonia, Mich. 10.2

Electricity: 2.7 Transportation: 2.1 Green Living: 1.8 Recycling/Perspective: 3.6

47. San Bernardino, Calif. 10.2

Electricity: 2.8 Transportation: 2.3 Green Living: 1.6 Recycling/Perspective: 3.5

48. Thousand Oaks, Calif. 10.2

Electricity: 2.9 Transportation: 2.9 Green Living: 1.6 Recycling/Perspective: 2.8

49. Stockton, Calif. 10.1

Electricity: 2.8 Transportation: 2.5 Green Living: 1.0 Recycling/Perspective: 3.8

50. Greensboro, N.C. 10.0

Electricity: 2.0 Transportation: 2.0 Green Living: 2.1 Recycling/Perspective: 3.9

Should a Zoning Code include Design Guidelines?

2012-01-03T22:18:00.001-05:00

When Otis Rolley was appointed by then Baltimore Mayor O'Malley to become the youngest Planning Director in the country, Rolley opted ambitiously for completing a new comprehensive plan (an earlier version had been stuck in analysis) and then revise the decades old zoning code. This, too, had been an undertaking that had been started earlier, only to get stuck. The comp plan become a rather quick and thin affair, written innovatively as a business plan. Before the zoning code could be tackled in earnest, Rolley left his position as planning director. The department, though, soldiered on. A long time was spent with a typology of the existing urban form, categorizing the various types of built environment that make up Baltimore with the goal to distill from this analysis some idea for a future zoning code that would be "form based" (rather than strictly two-dimensional) and one that would build on the existing urban form. Efforts were made to indicate areas that would need change versus those that should remain stable. Staff labored through this, a consultant had been hired and released until the initiative gained new steam under current planning director Tom Stosur and was dubbed Transform Baltimore.

The same consultants that had completed the Denver zoning code were hired to rework the outdated Baltimore code that suffered from the fact that it was written for an industrial city, that it was basically "Euklidian" (separation of uses) and that it was circumvented by developers and property owners at every turn, requiring hundreds of "variance" hearings each year. Variances meant to convene the BMZA (Board of Municipal Zoning Appeals) often over trivial issues such as "non conforming" rowhouses which per the zoning code would be any rowhouse under 16' wide. (The majority of Baltimore's rowhouses as it turned out). Prolific were also PUDs (Planned Unit Developments), a method of working pretty much around existing zoning with a set of rules for a project based approach. PUDs were supposed to be applied only in special circumstances where larger tracts of lands had possibly several underlying traditional zones and where densities and massing, setbacks and green spaces could be swapped around more freely among those zones to achieve a better composition and design. Instead, they became the go to tool for anyone who didn't like the existing zoning, setting in motion each time a complicated review and participation machinery with little predictability for the final outcome.

It was the noble goal of the project "transform Baltimore" to get rid of these problems and it gained momentum from the simple compilation of all the problems the old code has. for the first time the new code would recohnize open spaces and would identify transit oriented development areas. Yet the Baltimore approach was fraught with deficiencies from the beginning. Although Baltimore seemed to adopt the Denver approach, for lack of resources Baltimore skipped an important step in which Denver had invested much time and energy: The "Blueprint Denver" effort. In it a three dimensional vision for the future of the city was developed in close cooperation with communities and stakeholders under the guidance of respectable consultants such as Fregonese Calthorpe Associates. This truly form-based approach was meant to be a compendium to Denver's comp plan. But by laying out a physical vision for Denver the "blueprint" also guided the new zoning code. It was this vision that gave the code meaning. Essentially, the code simply described this vision and urban form in legal terms and became the "covenant" of the vision.

By skipping the visioning step and a blueprint of a future Baltimore, the re-zoning here fell into the near vacuum of the business plan like comp plan that revealed almost nothing in terms of a physical vision of Baltimore's future.
Soon the new zoning code effort degenerated into what one could describe as a modern translation of the old code and its zones. Sure, there are still the important new elements such as TOD zones (Transit Oriented Development), and green space in the code; the old urban renewal plans are eliminated, Baltimore's initial flight from the old code into a great number of overlay plans which were a recognition that one size cannot fit all and neighborhood specific rules are needed to manage development appropriately. Under the old code neighborhood masterplans existed in addition to the urban renewal plans, sometimes combined with design guidelines such as in the case of the gigantic urban renewal undertaking of the EBDI area near Hopkins Hospital, where a biotech park had been linked to a renewal of a whole neighborhood. This patchwork of land use regulations was certainly confusing to developers and communities alike, yet, it represented a clear understanding that conditions vary widely inside a large city.

The new code, in its desire to simplify, now seems to lose some the ability to codify in a more finely grained manner. To not entirely forgo the idea of "form based" the draft code resorted to including design guidelines inside the code itself. Absent a "blueprint" this effort falls back on what arreas to be CNU (Congress of New Urbanism) cookbook rules of good building proportions and taste. While New Urbanism has certainly helped a lot in reforming new suburban development (Kentlands), it is a very questionable tool for historic urban settings or a large metro areas such as Baltimore. Too narrow is the canon of permissible form, too theoretical the range of the "transect" to truly do justice to the vast diversity of buildings and forms that makes a city really urban, urbane and interesting. Little pictures interspersed into the new (draft) code book make the read possibly more pleasant, but they are helpless attempts of creating "recipes" for good design. They cannot replace a city "blueprint" and by being applicable to whole swaths of the city zoned a certain way, the are dangerously ignorant of local flavor.

The Baltimore AIA Urban Design Committee (UDC) early on sent volunteers into the trenches of this zoning rewrite and they have been battling this enormous task alongside planning staff for years now. The UDC held all along that not only do we need a "blueprint", but that any guidelines should be limited to urban design (such as massing, orientation, placement etc.) and should avoid forays into the field of architecture, style and material. (see March 11 AIA Newsletter, page 13). However, in spite of many public workshops and hearings, the basic course that the city had settled on changed little. In the late summer of 2011 a zoning book containing the second draft code was printed and published for a last round of comments (the comment period has been extended and is still open in January 2012).

In its near final form it was now clear, that the new code opens the door to frightening possible outcomes. Lawyers may complain about ambiguities and unclear language. But architects could be bewildered by the very specific and arbitrary requirements for form, materials and even style. Would this document really foster better design or, rather, would the cookbook approach stifle creativity and innovation? Can it be that after years of hard work the good intentions might be overtaken by unintended consequences?

Read also Wall Street Journal about Zoning In NYC: Zoning Laws Grow up

Read below a few current (abbreviated) discussion points from Urban Design Committee participants regarding the proposed design guidelines.

S:

I found the text and illustrations pretty Orwellian, soI'm hoping the City does not think we are in agreement withthe document. The land use language is not bad (even if not realistic), butthose design standards! Leftover postmodernism and proscriptive materialchoices are scary - even ArchPlan's Calvert Street project appears to beimpermissible under those standards calling for "real clay masonry"on street facades. Pictures of the ugly rowhouses are extolled for their rhythm, despite their cheap stick-on tinfacade detailing. Handing that illustration to the non-Architects who apply formost residential rehab permits is an easy way to get more ugly houses inBaltimore.

I'm sorry if Planning must now review plans forugly buildings with no standards to use to force a redesign, but the proposedstandards don't help improve design quality. Are we (Baltimore AIA) willing tointervene and offer services to mitigate ugliness for a fee or pro-bono?Planning certainly does not have the personnel capacity to review or enforcethis level of detail on a house-by-house basis, and I see nothing to indicatethey will have that capacity in the near or far future.

C:

I am sure Baltimore Planning is well meaning. Do wereally want Architecture in Baltimore tobecome a cookbook of rules and regs. in brick and clay ? I am sure Planning isfighting the horribly proportioned cheap vinyl window & aluminum/vinylsiding and dryvit battle hacked in place by market forces but there must beanother way to achieve design excellence. One can always create historicdistricts if they are concerned with new interventions within existing historicfabric and continuity with the past.

Architectural styles do change with time (unless you area Modernist and have transcended time and place) and the idea of makingprogress and breaking new ground kind of goes away with design standards of anykind. Most owners just want to get through the process as quickly and cheaplyas possible. The magnificent rowhouse typology could use bit of updating anddesign innovation don't you think ? Wewould not want to get stuck in the base, middle & top Pomo 80's would we ?-- or in some slavish historicistOrwellian future_world of brick ?

This merits a far deeper discussion than an e-mail or twoand in reality is a big deal because the profession will have to live with theresults of this legislation for decades.

Unfortunately the past appeal [to architects]to get involved has been responded to weakly, infact, there has been little response which leaves us with the feeling thatthere is a general complacency about these matters. But just wait until thisdocument hits the streets for the majority of architects to start yelling aboutimpact on their visions and practices.

I am sure that Planning can justify these things from anumber of different standpoints such as protecting character of neighborhoods,setting a quality standard, not allowing bad design to be done bynon-architects (and architects), etc.... We have heard it all!

I think our best achievement has been to get anAdministrative Exception Section in the code which would help to get a higherquality of design possible and accepted. Still there are flaws to this becauseof some of the reasons that you all gave, as well as our own client'swillingness to pay for the extra effort it will take to achieve a better designand not just minimally meet the requirements of the code.

Gn:

I am personally concerned with having these designstandards written into the zoning code itself; design requirements written intoa legal document become difficult to modify if unintended consequences appear(the simplistic example that springs to mind is the plaza bonus in NYC a fewyears back which caused deserted and tightly controlled open spaces toproliferate). I offered the analogy of a beta version of new software;there are always unexpected interactions and other results that require aseries of "bug fixes", basically a constantly evolving system. The zoning mechanism will largely freeze the design requirements in place,cutting off any evolution or adaptations to changes circumstances and specificneighborhoods; this is a classic "fuzzball" problem in systemsengineering parlance, a problem that cannot be solved through top-down direction because it is too complex and changeable for suchmethods. The administrative exceptions provision is important, as Gillpoints out, but it has been my experience that these are used only where theproposal still meets the “intent” of the code provision, which may be strictlyinterpreted as this is safer for the reviewer. I believe that we are setting upa system that has the same issues as the current Urban Renewal Ordinances thatthe City is trying to get rid of; legally binding rigid requirements that arequickly outdated.

Regardless where we stand, We can be sure that wearchitects and our clients will have to live with the new zoning code for manyyears. So we better try to get it right.

The UDC has come down with three (minimum) requests (morecan be added):

· Re-phrase the administrative exception processand language to shift the burden of proof away from the applicant (if nonconforming with design guidelines)

· Move all photos and specific pictureillustrations that illustrate the intent of the code to an appendix so they arenot part of the code itself

· Remove onerous language and images from thedesign guidelines for commercial districts to make these guidelines lessprescriptive.

(The Planning Department emphasizes their experiences with lousy single family residential design whereas mostarchitects are probably more concerned with housing and commercial.)

America's most visible public space, the highway, ruined by traffic control devices

2011-12-18T21:07:00.001-05:00

It is bad enough that most of our public spaces are perceived mostly through the frame of the windshield. And now that our attention is too often on the virtual landscapes of the GPS or, even worse, we are fully distracted by text messages, e-mail and gadgets of all kinds, highway engineers must have concluded that aesthetics don't matter at all any more. Not that public space aesthetics were often a top priority. Thus, already in 1927 H.L. Mencken in his grim humor mused about the "libido of the ugly" suspecting "a love of the ugly for its own sake".
Indeed, campaigns such as Ladybird Johnson's Highway Beautification Act of 1965 can only be understood in the context of the institutional neglect of the public roam or worse, its continual assault on it. So here we find ourselves, many decades later still bemoaning the same things that bothered already Mencken when he traveled from Baltimore to Pittsburgh (although, truth be told, he traveled by train).

And that is why today there is a great deal of real joy within me, and within my family, as we meet here in this historic East Room to sign the Highway Beautification Act of 1965.
Now, this bill does more than control advertising and junkyards along the billions of dollars of highways that the people have built with their money--public money, not private money. It does more than give us the tools just to landscape some of those highways. This bill will bring the wonders of nature back into our daily lives.
This bill will enrich our spirits and restore a small measure of our national greatness.
Lyndon B Johnson, 1965

The quality and care of the American public space (or the lack thereof) is such a wide field that we want to narrow it down to one particular thing for the purpose of this blog: The way how utilities, street lights, signals and other electric equipment impose themselves and are seemingly in an arms race towards bigness and ugliness.
In a quest to create the strongest, most mass producible, cheapest to erect pole that can carry the largest possible number of signal-heads, camera detectors, signs and streetlights safely through any kind of weather, the engineers came up with poles as fat as bridge pylons crudely bolted to baseplates floating above concrete footings. Inelegantly bolted to the sides of those pylons are cantilevers reaching in a ridiculously disproportionate way across all lanes of those huge intersections.

While bridge and building engineers traditionally tried to work "tectonically" i.e. design structures which follow elegantly the forces into the ground, these pylon-mast-arm beasts are designed on the concept of brute force and probably cost alone. Nationwide, these abominations are replacing the older more elegant pole and span-wire constructions that had a bit of the feel of third world when the signal heads were dangling in the wind, but did their job with a lot less steel.

Even inside cities, in real streets with sidewalks and buildings all around, the monster poles are replacing the historic poles which had brackets and often combined trolley wires, street lights and signals. And while the highway departments are at it, they also add all kinds of boxes on or near the ground that house electric meters, transformers, conduit ends and whatever else is apparently needed these days to run a set of traffic control devices. These stainless steel boxes are not only less elegant than typical refrigerators, they often block the path and views for pedestrians.

It seems that in the past the two unholy partners of street uglification, the highway engineers and the utility engineers, had some level of collaboration. Thus, many times street lights were mounted on signal poles and signal poles were, in fact, also utility poles. Not any more. Now the signal poles spring up right next to the overloaded utility poles which are leaning already any which way under the cables, telephone wires and high voltage lines strung carelessly along our arteries and alleys.
The below photos speak for themselves.

It is time that we get out of our cars and walk our streets to see what has been done to them. Let's wake up and request design competitions for traffic control devices and maybe create some rules for the utilities as well. Let's revive President Johnson's thoughts about a quality public realm and prove Mencken wrong. We have long way to go, though.

For a good example of how to design decent public spaces, we don't have to go no further than Washington DC, our capital. There we not only see beautiful plazas, parks and avenues but also attention to detail when it comes to utilities, power lines and signal devices.
Imagine, back when DC had streetcars, it didn't even allow them to have the overhead wires! (This discussion was recently revived when streetcars came back to DC on H Street). For traffic signals no mast-arms and no dangling heads are allowed. All signals sit on decorative posts at the corners of intersections and they have a nice historic color instead of flaming yellow.

The first four photos are all from one extra hideous intersection, but they could be pretty much anywhere in the US


Signal poles with huge cantilever arms require huge pylons, footings and connection bolts, often sitting in sidewalks creating tripping hazards. Plus there are meters and control boxes which block pathways and views for pedestrians.

Utility companies offer their poles to telephone companies and to cable companies until they are so loaded that any major storm could knock them over. This picture shows the next generation signal installation. No more span-wires, instead gigantic galvanized steel poles and mast-arms. Yet the utility poles will remain and so there is just additional clutter .

Notice the various street light types (cobra-head and box fixture, one uglier than the other). The ubiquitous cell phone tower makes an appropriate background. The old spanwire and the new mast arm mounted signals (still covered up) are seen together here.

That signals and lights can also be held up by much smaller poles is proven by this example in Manhattan. This is not a historic intersection although the equipment is modeled after historic precedents. This is new newly re-designed area of the Hudson Expressway where it comes down at grade near Battery Park.

Pioneer Square, Portland, historic traffic signal. (Net image)

Four sided compact signals were hanging from wires over the center of Baltimore intersections before streets became one way streets. Some signals are still in place likes this one.

Washington DC, typical signal on fluted pole with grey or dark green colors instead of bright yellow. The District of Columbia does not allow the span-wires and mast arms and should be a model across the nation. (Net image)

Useful Links:
Project Public Spaces
The American Public Space
Learning From Las Vegas
The Geography of Nowhere
The Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices

Growing Baltimore. Yes!

2011-12-10T17:54:00.001-05:00

Finally growing Baltimore, the city that shrank by one third in 50 years, is on the agenda. The newly elected Mayor postulated this goal as a central theme of her inaugural speech. Good for her.

For years I have been pestering first Mayor Martin O'Malley and then Sheila Dixon with the slogan "Baltimore 850,000", a much more ambitious goal than 10,000 families in 10 years, but still. The Comprehensive Plan, the guiding planning document of the city, stated growth as a goal and includes a capacity analysis indicating that Baltimore has the infrastructure to support tens of thousands of new residents. Then a list of projects surfaced how Baltimore wants to attract growth expected from BRAC (the national base realignment that is supposed to bring 40,000 additional residents to Maryland) but was soon forgotten. Then the city started a new zoning code and a strategy towards growth in TOD zones (Transit oriented development).
But it took until now, that this become a banner goal stated by the Mayor for everyone to see.

See Dan Rodricks' column in the SUN:
Growing Baltimore, the only way!
I posted the following comment under his column online:

Rodricks is right, the forever naysayers and pessimists repeating the same old litany of Baltimore's ills over and over have no vision and not the one who lays out the goal of growth. The closest thing to a "silver bullet" which can solve urban decay is adding population and new demographics to the City. More people will makebetter schools, result in less crime and will allow to lower taxes. Those who think that this is impossible not only ignore the progress that the city has made in many areas but ignore also the demographic and cultural shifts out there, the stagnation in suburbs and the desire to live in urban and vital places which have begun to revitalize cities all across the nation. Progress is made not only around the harbor but also in many neighborhoods. Witness the communities around Patterson Park, along Eastern Avenue or go to Druid Heights and Reservoir Hill or Remington. That a depopulated city in decline can fill its vacant houses and become vital again has been proven. Look at Boston and compare it to the early seventies, or more recently, look how our neighbor DC has righted itself. Nobody says this is easy. But snide comments from those who prefer to sit in their armchairs and watch are of no help.

Hamden in its holiday glory

Baltimore Inner Harbor on a recent rainy night

Brandnew townhomes in Druid Heights, just completed in spite of the recession

Zero Energy Construction Crosses the Ocean. New York Times 12/4/11

2011-12-04T17:23:00.001-05:00

The NYT article (link below) is interesting for a few particular messages:

1. The differential cost between standard construction and zero energy construction is higher in the US because the standard is cheaper (and lousier one might say, i.e. the base code requirements are lower)

2. The much lower cost of energy in the US makes it more difficult to amortize the extra cost for energy efficiency

3. Many of the products and technologies needed for energy efficient construction are not available in the US. This is a particular issue for government funded projects with a "Buy USA" requirement. It also drives cost up and uses energy for distant transport.

The new ASHRAE standard and strengthened LEED requirements for energy should take of item 1. For item 2 we need higher taxes on energy so that higher cost is coupled with a public benefit instead of just profits for energy and oil.
Item 3 will take care of itself once the other two are in effect.

New York Times Article

USA
Canada
Germany (deutsch)

Example: Oberlin College

Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies--Oberlin College
(Oberlin College Lewis Center)

Photo credit: John Petersen, Oberlin College

Overview

Location: Oberlin, OH
Building type(s): Campus, Higher education, Library, Assembly
New construction
13,600 ft2 (1,260 m2)
Project scope: 2-story building
Other setting
Completed January 2000
Although the building opened for classes in 2000, modifications continue as the energy performance of the building is studied and is better understood. The building is part of an academic program and consequently has experimental aspects to it that are being evaluated. In addition, improvements will be made as new technologies become available.
Rating: Green Building Challenge
Rating: Zero Energy Building

The Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies is located on the Oberlin College campus in Oberlin, Ohio. It houses classroom and office space, an auditorium, a small environmental studies library and resource center, a wastewater-purification system in a greenhouse, and an open atrium.

Zero Energy Building
The Lewis Center is an all electric building and was designed with maximum energy efficiency in mind. The Lewis Center generates its own on-site electricity through a roof mounted 60 kW photovoltaic (PV) system and a 100 kW PV system located over the parking lot. Because of this, it is a net zero energy building (ZEB). Specifically, the Lewis Center is a:

Site ZEB: Building produces at least as much energy as it uses in a year, when accounted for at the site. The Lewis Center is an all electric building that produces all energy on-site using PV.
Source ZEB: Building produces at least as much energy as it uses in a year, when accounted for at the source. Because the Lewis Center is an all electric site ZEB it also qualifies as a source ZEB.
Emissions ZEB: Building produces at least as much emissions-free renewable energy as it uses from emission-producing energy sources annually. The Lewis Center offsets any emissions for which it is responsible through its PV system which produces electricity with zero emissions.

Environmental Aspects
Upon initiation of the project, Professor David Orr asked three questions that continue to serve as a guiding philosophy for the Lewis Center:

Is it possible—even in Ohio—to power buildings by current sunlight?
Is it possible to create buildings that purify their own wastewater?
Is it possible to build without compromising human or environmental health somewhere else or at some later time?

Background: (from http://zeb.buildinggreen.com/overview.

Net Zero Energy Buildings
By Amanda Magee, PE
Steven Winter Associates, Inc.
Last updated: 07-26-2011
Within This Page
Introduction
Description
Application
Relevant Codes and Standards
Additional Resources
Introduction
Amid growing concerns about rising energy prices, energy independence, and the impact of climate change, statistics show buildings to be the primary energy consumer in the U.S. This fact underscores the importance of targeting building energy use as a key to decreasing the nation's energy consumption. The building sector can significantly reduce energy use by incorporating energy-efficient strategies into the design, construction, and operation of new buildings and undertaking retrofits to improve the efficiency of existing buildings. It can further reduce dependence on fossil fuel derived energy by increasing use of on-site and off-site renewable energy sources.
The concept of a Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB), one which produces as much energy as it uses over the course of a year, recently has been evolving from research to reality. Currently, there are only a small number of highly efficient buildings that meet the criteria to be called "Net Zero". As a result of advances in construction technologies, renewable energy systems, and academic research, creating Net Zero Energy buildings is becoming more and more feasible.
While the exact definitions of metrics for "net zero energy" vary (this is discussed below), most agree that Net Zero Energy Buildings combine:
Exemplary building design to minimize energy requirements
Renewable energy systems that meet these reduced energy needs.
Description
Definitions
As the "zero energy" and "net zero energy" concepts are relatively new, there are not yet definitive, widely accepted zero-energy metrics. The Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have spearheaded much of the work on net zero energy buildings to date. NREL presents several definitions for "net zero energy", and they encourage building designers, owners, and operators to select the metric that best fits their project. The NREL publication Zero Energy Buildings: A Critical Look at the Definition (PDF 477 KB) explores definitions in detail, and it suggests four ways in which net zero energy may be defined:

Net Zero Site Energy
Net Zero Source Energy
Net Zero Energy Costs
Net Zero Energy Emissions
Site Energy refers to the energy consumed and generated at a site (e.g. a building), regardless of where or how that energy originated. In a net zero site energy building, for every unit of energy the building consumes over a year, it must generate a unit of energy.
Source Energy refers to primary energy needed to extract and deliver energy to a site, including the energy that may be lost or wasted in the process of generation, transmission and distribution. For example, a coal-burning power plant may generate 1 Joule of electricity for every 3 Joules of energy in the coal consumed. If natural gas is used at a site, for every 20 Joules consumed, 1 Joule may be needed to extract and distribute the gas to the site. Metrics for net zero source energy buildings account for these factors, though exact metrics can vary depending on site and utility factors.
Net Zero Energy Cost is perhaps the simplest metric to use: it means that the building has an energy utility bill of $0 over the course of a year. In some cases, building owners or operators may take advantage of selling Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from on-site renewable generation.
Many conventional energy sources result in emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, etc. A Net Zero Energy Emissions building either uses no energy which results in emissions or offsets the emissions by exporting emissions-free energy (typically from on-site renewable energy systems).

Rainwater Harvesting and Stormwater Management

2011-11-30T20:08:00.001-05:00

ArchPlan has completed construction documents for two larger projects that include rainwater harvesting combined with stormwater management using a hybrid cistern solution.

The basic concept in both cases is to collect rainwater not only for flushing toilets and plant irrigation but to let the cistern also act as a tool in the stormwater management toolbox, both for quantity and quality requirements. In this function the cistern pretty much acts like an underground storage tank, a solution often chosen in projects where there isn't enough open space to install sufficient pervious areas, bioretention or raingardens. The new Maryland stormwater management regulations encourage a mix of smaller solutions which can work in tandem. Maryland Stormwater Design Manual. In the case of our Sphinx Club Museum and Restaurant project we are using all these stormwater management tools:

Green roof
Bio-retention area with raingarden
hybrid cisterne.

We specified initially a 10,000 gallon fiberglass tank but in the final version it was chnaged to a 8000 gallon concrete tank.

In the case of our Tacoma Langley Transit Center with its about 18,000 squarefeet of glass roof we combine bioretention and the hybrid cistern on a very tight site which is mostly paved for the buses. Here a steel tank is specified with a 20,000 gallon capacity.

Civil engineers and mechanical engineers need to closely cooperate regarding these systems, because they fall in the grey area (think grey-water!) between the two disciplines. The tank might be considered part of the stormwater management typically part of the civil scope while the pumps, filters and pipes are part of the water system typically under the mechnaical engineer.
Although a filtered rainwater harvesting system will not accept the very first minute of rain to avoid the high concentration of pollutants in the tank that come with the first wainitial flush after a longer dry period, it will contain the bulk of the critical initial rainfall that is so crucial to be kept out of our rivers and the bay. The filter will also keep leaves and objects out of tank while sediment settles in the tank itself. During very large storms the tank might fill up and excess water will flow out through overflow pipes. In that situation water quality is not so much an issue any more (later in a large storm most pollutant have already washed away) even if quantity would still be an issue. However, the delay in releasing water into the pubic sewer system that comes from filling the cistern first still helps to lower the peak loads in the municipal stormwater system.

The water in the cistern will be clear and plenty good enough for plant irrigation and flushing toilets. To achieve this a pump needs to be installed in the tank that pumps the water out of the cistern and into especially installed greywater pipes which are placed parallel to the freshwater system which is still required by law. This is for the case that the cistern should empty in a long draught or that the pump which is needed to pressurize the greywater would fail for example in a power outage.

The use of rainwater harvesting systems provides the following possible LEED credits:
From RMS website (Link)

· StormWater Design: Quality Control
SustainableSites Credit 6.1: 1 pt:
Limitdisruption and pollution of natural water flows by managing stormwater runoff.
Sustainable Sites Credit 6.2: 1 pt: Limit disruption of natural waterflows by eliminating stormwater runoff, increasing on-site infiltration, andeliminating contaminant.

Water Efficient Landscaping: Reduce by 50%
WaterEfficiency Credit 1.1: 2 pts:
Usecaptured rain or recycled site water to reduce potable water consumption forirrigation by 50% over conventional means.

Water Efficient Landscaping: No Potable Use or No Irrigation
WaterEfficiency Credit 1.2: 2 pts:
Use onlycaptured rain or recycled site water to eliminate all potable water use forsite irrigation.

Innovative Wastewater Technologies
WaterEfficiency Credit 2: 2 pts:
Reduce thegeneration of wastewater and potable water demand, while increasing the localaquifer recharge.

Water Use Reduction: 20% Reduction
WaterEfficiency Credit 3.1: Required:
Maximizewater efficiency within buildings to reduce the burden on municipal watersupply and wastewater systems. Use 20% less water than the water use baselinecalculated for the building (not including irrigation).

Water Use Reduction: 30% Reduction
WaterEfficiency Credit 3.2: 2-4 pts:
Maximizewater efficiency within buildings to reduce the burden on municipal watersupply and wastewater systems. Use 30% less water than the water use baselinecalculated for the building (not including irrigation).
30%reduction: 2 pts
35% reduction: 3 pts
40% reduction: 4 pts

Reduce energy demands
Rainwaterharvesting water used for nonpotable needs consumes less energy thanmunicipally supplied water, which undergoes high energy requiring watertreatment and distribution processes.

Promote green technologies and water conservation
Reduce stormwater runoff and non-point source pollution
Reducestormwater fees
Reduce detention pond areas
Increaseusable green space
Utilize land more efficiently for buildings
Protectsensitive waterways

Reuse water on site for nonpotable demands like:
landscape irrigation
green roof irrigation
pool or pond filling
vehicle washing
cars
fleet vehicles
emergency vehicles: fire trucks, police cars, ambulances
lawnmowers
tractors
toilet flushing
clothes washing
fire suppression
cooling towers
cleaning

Provide a water supply in areas where groundwater is diminished and/or municipal water supply is not available.
Provide an onsite safe water supply during natural disasters and terrorist attacks.
Allow for irrigation during times of drought, which promotes plant health, thus reducing the heat island effect and subsequent energy demands around buildings.
Collect water during heavy rains, which can not be absorbed into ground, and reapply at the appropriate infiltration rate, thus encouraging plant growth and reducing stormwater runoff.
Recharge groundwater aquifers with collected rainwater.

It is not easy to eat local

2011-11-21T21:53:00.001-05:00

From A report by the 1000 Friends of Maryland
For the complete report: Link

1000 Friends of Maryland Report compiled with support from the Abell Foundation, the Bancroft Foundation, the Clayton Baker Trust, the Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment, the Roswell Foundation, and the Town Creek Foundation for their generous support of our work.

The report is part of an continuing campaign called "Keep Farmers Farming". I am a member of the Board of Directors of 1000 Friends of Maryland.

Thanksgiving graphic design: Jane Polanka.
Photos: Kelly Carneal
Research: Justin Haas, Jennifer Bevan-Dangel
Review of statistical data: Agriculture Statistics Office at Maryland Department of Agriculture

CivicLAB, a new Program at Baltimore AIA

2011-11-21T20:52:00.001-05:00

CivicLAB

Program Abstract

Message from Session Leader Klaus Philipsen, FAIA

Session Descriptions

Program Details

Apply Online: CivicLAB Application (PDF Form)

Download complete informational PDF

CivicLAB
to advance leadership development

AIABaltimore introduces CivicLAB (Leadership. Architecture. Baltimore), a series of participatory educational sessions that will help to mobilize members interested in taking on or expanding leadership roles in their communities, their professional lives, and in academia in order to help guide and implement public policies that ensue healthy, livable, sustainable, and high quality built environments for future generations. These sessions will introduce participating architects to opportunities for civic engagement across the full spectrum of their careers. We invite the chapter's emerging leaders to expand their role in learning how to respond to critical issues facing our communities and the profession.

The goals of CivicLAB are to promote opportunities and skills for civic engagement by architects and to build a network of leaders. The program will explore core topics that affect our profession and the region within which we practice. During monthly sessions, participants will learn about approaches to advocacy from proven leaders who have impacted communities at local and national scales. Participants will learn tools of engagement and the impact of architects in multiple areas of advocacy. Group activities and assignments will illustrate how we can make a positive change within our community. AIABaltimore’s membership includes leaders who have been successful at leading initiatives through the AIA and other institutions, and who are valuable assets to CivicLAB.

The Importance of Training New Architect Leaders

Thanks to the increasing awareness of environmental and social justice concerns, as well as a general realization that the built environment, indeed, plays a huge role in the well-being of both the planet and its people, architects are presented with a huge opportunity and responsibility. As professionals who are trained to coordinate many disciplines and solve problems holistically through the integrated approach of design, we are uniquely positioned to address these concerns. But even for us generalists, truly integrated design requires that we move out of our comfort zone and into areas which are adjacent and outside our fields of training. Learning to engage community and achieve acceptance; to influence legislators and the regulatory framework; how our designs fit into the bigger picture; how to reform established methods and procedures for better outcomes -- these skills are not only essential for progress in our society, but are increasingly necessary for personal advancement in our industry.

AIABaltimore has stepped up to this challenge and offers a program that teaches these very skills to our young, promising emerging professionals. This new and unique program, which is partly funded by a grant from The American Institute of Architects, relies upon local business leaders to nominate and sponsor promising young architects. AIABaltimore is one of the leaders in the nation in its level of committee activism and involvement in a wide range of topics relevant to the profession. We can only remain successful if we foster and support new talent. Please think of the talent you have discovered and nominate one or several people. Please support them with your encouragement and tuition. All sessions involve several architect leaders and are interactive.

- Klaus Philipsen, FAIA, CivicLAB Session Leader

CivicLAB Session Descriptions

1. CITIZEN LOBBYING
Tuesday, January 24: Chris Parts, AIA, LEED AP

We will build on the many avenues for citizen lobbying and ways to navigate the regulatory process. Whether your goal is to create focus on a specific local issue, or to pursue a greater cause, your voice can have a powerful impact. Like architects, legislators need to be generalists, so your assistance with specific, well-founded information will enable them to make informed decisions and policy. We will provide an understanding of the legislative process and share strategies that have been effective in creating policy and affecting regulations. We will discuss opportunities to advocate, make connections, build support, create an effective message, and stay engaged. These opportunities enable us to lead by example and be proactive in our aim to create better buildings and communities.

2. ECONOMIC BENEFIT
Thursday, February 16: Jim Determan, AIA

We will identify the realms of economic benefit for which architects have been and continue to be called upon to advocate. These include benefit to the profession, community, nation and planet. Economic benefit is the wheelhouse of legislators. If they understand that good design is good business, elected officials, media and corporate leaders become allies. This session will present successful strategies and practices that have resulted in positive economic impact. We will discuss how to identify opportunities to engage, organize, and enlist change agents, as well as the many avenues of effective advocacy.

3. THE ART AND PRACTICE OF URBAN DESIGN:
THE MESSY PATH TOWARDS DESIGN EXCELLENCE
Tuesday, March 27: Gordon Ingerson, AIA, LEED AP

We will discuss the methods used to generate, and then realize, urban design concepts in the real world quest to achieve a sense of place. We will cover the general principles and goals of good urban design at all scales, from the private to the public realm, and from the point of view of different participants in the process -- developers, politicians, public officials, and community representatives -- as well as designers. Case studies will illustrate positive and negative outcomes in the real world. Participants will create their own urban design process which will then be compared with both a theoretical idealized process and the real world methods as they were actually applied – in response to the needs of constituents, funders, and authorities. Participants and panelists will discuss how their proposals might be improved, and how their suggestions might have improved the real world process. Emphasis will be on discovering how the designer can accept and use an untidy formula to achieve superior results for the entire community while elevating the profession.

4. SUSTAINABILITY, SMART GROWTH AND PRESERVATION
Tuesday, April 24: Klaus Philipsen, FAIA

We will learn through best practice examples why sustainability needs to be achieved, both on the building level as well as the community and regional level. We will discuss how the skills of urban design and place-making can be employed to achieve sustainability, and how smart growth and historic preservation are elements in this quest. We will not focus on the extremely broad field of green design tools, but rather on how new “design thinking” can help us reach a full integration of the many fragments. We will discuss the various arenas in which sustainability, preservation and smart growth are significant, and how to become an active player instead of an observer. We will learn how sustainability and preservation actually result in smart growth, and how these requirements are not added nuisances for architects but the very gateways to Design Excellence.

Civic Lab Program Details

Application and Selection Process

Participation in CivicLAB will be limited to a maximum of 20 participants: AIABaltimore members recruited from the emerging professional demographic within the chapter (Associate AIA or AIA members within their first 10 years of licensure). Participants will be selected on the basis of a nomination and statement of interest. Criteria for acceptance to the program will include prior involvement in community organizations or expressed interest in increasing one’s involvement. Each participant should be sponsored by a member firm, as evidenced by a signature below from a representative of the firm; however, scholarships will be available for members who are unemployed or employed by non-member firms. Architects may self-nominate.

Time Commitment
The monthly sessions will be held from 5pm – 7:30pm January -- April 2012 in the AIABaltimore Gallery. Applicants are expected to attend all four meetings:

Tuesday, January 24; Thursday, February 16; Tuesday, March 27; and Tuesday, April 24.

Light supper will be provided.

Additional meetings and opportunities may be suggested after the program begins.

Tuition and Funding

Tuition is $100 per participant and covers food, administrative fees, and other miscellaneous meeting expenses. Scholarships are available to participants for whom funding is a challenge. Tuition is due after applicants are selected for the program and prior to the first session in January.

Further Information

If you have questions, please contact executive director Karen Lewand, Hon. AIA, at 410.625.2585 or klewand@aiabalt.com.

Deadline

Completed applications and nominations are due by 3 p.m., Monday, December 12 to:

AIABaltimore
11 1/2 W. Chase St.
Baltimore, MD 21201

Fax to 410.727.4620
Email: klewand@aiabalt.com

Each applicant will be notified of selection results in early January 2012 or before.

Download the CivicLab Application here, and submit a paperless application.

Open Space Protection Through an Urban Land Trust

2011-11-17T20:42:00.001-05:00

This week's Tuesday morning bright and early, tucked away from the main arteries in the Towson University Field House, Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz was honored by NeighborSpace for his support and bills as a councilman which created NeighborSpace.

What is NeighborSapce?

NeighborSpace (NS) is named and modelled after a Chicago land trust which seeks to preserve open spaces in developed areas (urban land trust). In the case of Baltimore County, where 77% of the population live on about 30% of the County land area, NS tries to protect open spaces inside the URDL, the urban rural demarcation line which Baltimore County adopted in 1967 (!). Back then, in the middle of a period when new-towns, urban renewal and urban expressways were all the rage, concerns about the environment and the protection of rural areas were already flaring up. Concerned citizens in the green valleys of northwest Baltimore County formed already 1962 the Valleys Planning Council and found out through studies of the development patterns how threatened these beautiful landscapes were.

Baltimore County government listened and created the line which became famous as the URDL. The 1967 growth boundary puts Baltimore County 13 years ahead of Oregon and its famous Metro boundary around Portland.

Land outside the URDL was protected through revolutionary zoning of 1 unit per 50 acres. Back then this was considered to be almost undevelopable (the era of McMansions on huge lots had not yet begun). And it worked. The County, compensating for the fact that it had taken so much land away from developers, created three towncenters in which new development was encouraged to happen: Owings Mills, White Marsh and Security Square. The latter was later decommissioned as a designated center (although some signs that call the Security Square Mall area a towncenter still remain). At the same time similar towncenter concepts took root in Howard County (Columbia) and in Fairfax County (Reston).

The focus back then was clearly on protecting the rural valleys and just like in Oregon, there was less consideration for what should happen inside the development boundary. As it turned out, there was still plenty of space inside the URDL allowing sprawl, large lot development on well and septic and many less than well designed subdivisions. The town centers of White Marsh and Owings Mills were nothing but huge malls in a sea of asphalt (in the case of Owings Mills eventually even with a subway connection which was kept in a safe distance from the mall) surrounded by standard vinyl suburbia, so drastically disconnected from the malls that the whole notion of town seemed outright frivolous. While all this went on, the older established historic communities of the County aged without much investment. It took a good while (around 1994) until under Executive Dutch Ruppersberger (now Congressman Ruppersberger) an understanding set in that the "inner ring suburbs" would follow the fate of "inner city neighborhoods" if there wouldn't be a push for "renaissance", investment and increased quality of life. It was in this period that the idea for NeighborSpace was first bounced around, then became part of the County Comprehensive Plan and was eventually implemented as a resolution-bill (sponsored by County Councilman Kamenetz) which established a County funding mechanism to allow a non-profit land trust to buy easements or land inside the URDL. The correct thought here is that the concept of concentrating development in already established communities needs to be complemented with measures that increase the quality of life. Good accessible open space for playgrounds, active or passive recreation or just as an environmental restoration area is a key component of this quality of life strategy.

Today NS is nearing its 10th year of existence and has protected nine green spaces with a total of 26 acres for about $625000. Some sites are less than a 1/3 of an acre small, some are up to 7 acres large. At least two more sites are in the immediate future. All sites are cared for by local "stewarts". Efforts are underway to create criteria for evaluating sites regarding the value they offer from environmental to recreational with special emphasis on networking and creating a system of spaces. With the new stormwater regulations in effect that put stringent nutrient reduction protocols in place to protect the Chesapeake Bay, small open spaces in built up environments have value from yet another perspective.

Thus urban green space protection and smart growth can not only co-exist but are actually conplementary to each other.

Gwynn Oaks green space dedication

I am Vice President of NeighborSpace, a 501c3 non-profit organization.
Links:
NeighborSpace
Slide Presentation at the Honor's Breakfast
History of Baltimore County land protection
Rural Land Preservation facts, Baltimore County
National Statistics on Land Trusts

Bicycling in the City

2011-11-13T21:11:00.001-05:00

This year I bicycled in Denver, San Diego, Toronto, New York City, Richmond and Baltimore. In Baltimore I use my old sixties Euro bike with fenders, hub shifter and coaster brake which works well in bad weather and is really good for riding in traffic. In the other places I used a variety of bikes, mostly hybrids with 18 gears or more, no coaster brakes. The fixed gear direct drive fad is still a puzzle to me. I tried that once but didn't see the charm.

Bike accommodation in NYC, Broadway near Times Square

I have biked also in Muenster, Germany, which is sort of a bike capital there. I watched bikes in Copenhagen (link), the Danish bicycle Mecca and I admired complicated bike lane arrangements in DC. So how does it all compare?

First, across the US there is really a trend towards bicycling. No longer is one the lone rider among all the cars. In New York you find yourself among bikers of all descriptions, although Latino delivery guys with front baskets seem to dominate. In Denver I saw mostly office workers and what could have been students. In Toronto tons of people ride to work. In San Diego it was weekend and I saw mostly recreational riders. In Baltimore we seem to have a really diverse mix. So the good news is, nowhere are you alone and the car and bus drivers are more used to seeing somebody on a bike.

How about the accommodations? As a member of the Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee in Baltimore I am used to long debates about laws that protect bicyclists and the many variations of accommodations from marked lanes to sharrows and bike boxes at intersections to the full blown bike boulevards. Near Takoma Park ArchPlan designed bike solutions on Carrol Avenue for the Maryland State Highway Administration. Baltimore, like many other cities, has added hundreds of miles of bike lanes and installed dozens of racks to show businesses how to do it. (Bike Master Plan) New York as revamped entire streets to let the bike have some designated space. (New York Bike Plan).

Somehow expecting that the Canadians would be right up there with the Danes when it comes to providing space for bikes, I was a bit disappointed about Toronto's lack of lanes. (Toronto bike plan)Yes, there are some, but the new mayor, an arch conservative, has started to take some out again. (Jarvies Steet bike lanes). The downtown area is incredibly crowded, pedestrians are so numerous that they block at most intersections anyone who wants to turn right for the entire green phase. The effect is that cars are queuing endlessly on the curb lanes forcing the bicyclists to weave in between the stopped cars and the moving ones one lane out. Nevertheless, I found car drivers accommodating and courteous. I had a blast riding around until a hotel lift boy stepped into my path to flag down a taxi and I found myself flying over the handlebar breaking a toe in the process due to one handed (front only) reflex breaking since I had just removed my right hand from the handlebar to adjust a shoulder bag.

In New York and in Toronto the Taxis are the biggest problem. Even without lift boys they dart in and out of lanes at all times, always their eyes on the potential fare and never on the bicyclist. In Baltimore the biggest problem is the horrible pavement with all its potholes and buckled asphalt. Plus bus drivers like to sneak up from behind in their new rather quiet hybrids and then honk at you just for good measure. The three foot rule now in place in Maryland is probably unknown to most, certainly it is consistently ignored.

Bike racks are common in Toronto along most sidewalks

Even with the trend towards using the bicycle in everyday settings, the infrastructure is only skin deep. In Toronto even the GreenBuild conference didn't set up any secure bike parking inside the convention center. In DC the RailVolution conference, taking place in a hotel didn't even have bike racks in front of the hotel. The funniest thing happened in the Marriott Courtyard in Toronto where I stayed when I asked about bike parking. Since I had the bike initially in the trunk of my car they suggested to keep it there and everytime I would need it they would drive the car up with a valet. Only after some protest did they find a spot on an emergency stairway landing. Even for this, I needed the valet each time for access. The MTA office building downtown Baltimore doesn't allow bike parking in their underground garage (the rack was removed for whatever reason) but the AECOM office tower across the street has a nice rack in their parking garage securely in view of the attendant.

There is also a backlash to bike accommodation. Transportation planners have avoided bike lanes in many poorer DC neighborhoods because of a persistent perception by neighborhood leaders that those bike facilities are just for white yuppies and don't serve their community. A similar sentiment brought down the recently striped bicycle lanes on Monroe Street in Baltimore. (Link). "Nobody asked us" was the response of community leaders and removal appeared to be the only option. In Brooklyn affluent folks along Prospect Park took up a fight to request removal of a bike lane that had killed a car lane but lost. (More). It sure remains to be seen if the bicycle really remains an accepted mode of transportation in US cities.

Aside from the griping and the definite dangers (ironically, the broken toe forced me to abandon walking in favor of biking), I find the bicycle by far the most convenient and enjoyable way of exploring a city or getting around for destination in the 1-3 mile range. Not as exhausting and slow as walking, yet you can see everything, stop anytime and ultimately don't have to worry much about parking. Beats being trapped in a box any day except for pouring rain.

Bike parking in Denmark (Copenhagen)

The Stuttgart (Germany) cog rail with a bike trailer in front
Stuttgart's Mobility Plan

AIA Convention 2012, architects from six US cities will present how they help to shape the city of tomorrow

2011-11-07T21:47:00.001-05:00

Thanks to increasing awareness ofenvironmental and environmental justice concerns and a general realization thatthe built environment plays a huge role in the well being of both, theplanet and its people, architects are presented with a huge opportunity. As professionals who are trained tocoordinate many disciplines and solve problems holistically through the integrated approach of design we are uniquelypositioned to address these concerns. But even for generalists, trulyintegrated design requires to move out of the comfort zone and into areaswhich are adjacent and outside the fields of training. Learning to engagecommunity and achieve acceptance, learning to influence legislators or theregulatory framework, learning how designs fit into the bigger picture,learning how to reform established methods and procedures for better outcomes,these skills are not only essential for progress in our society butincreasingly are a must-have to advance in our industry. This is the idea of the"Community Architect" as a change agent in the rebuilding of our cities towards a healthy and sustainable future.

To this end the Baltimore Urban Design Committee proposed a two track presentation for the National AIA Convention in 2012 in Washington DC. Those presentations were accepted. They

will showcase initiatives of community leader architects in Boston, New York, Baltimore, Detroit, Seattle and Los Angeles.

Stock Photo

The National Convention will be running under the slogan "Design Connects". AIA explains the motto in this lofty manner:

Design Connects impliesthat in a world of individuals we are stronger as a collective and design holdsthe power to make these connections. The architect works at the intersection ofart and science and sees these not as antagonists, but each components of thesolution. They are connected. They are the same. It is in this connection thatthe power of design is revealed. Design Connects celebratesthe uniqueness of design as the synthesis of theory and practice, therelationship of the built and natural environments and the aspiration ofarchitecture to serve the broader goals of humanity. See this somewhat annoying Convention Link YouTube clip.

Below the description of the accepted presentations:

Howcan the interdisciplinary and holistic knowledge of the architect be leveragedto solve urban problems? What do local AIA chapters contribute? Learn howarchitects and AIA components have been effective in their community in threecities across the nation as:

· activists for thecommunity,

· advocates for gooddesign and

· ambassadors fortheir profession.

Inthis session learn how architects in Baltimore, Detroit and Los Angeles tackledhuge urban problems such as shrinkage, disinvestment, post industrialrestructuring (Baltimore, Detroit) or the lack of an urban planning culture ina sprawling metropolis (Los Angeles). See how issues of health, sustainability,place making and the value of good design are common issues from east to west.See how local chapters through volunteer activities have shaped their citiesand regions in the process and built credibility for the profession withgovernment agencies and the public alike.

Thepresentations will stress the importance of the profession's collective effortsin supporting the ongoing renewal of communities, the advancement of gooddesign, and the value of the design profession. The presenters will demonstrate mechanisms to build socialcapital for the community as well as the profession. They will show the importance of public policyand the value of long range planning which is based on professional principles.

Thepresenters will show how all these things can be done and what successful toolsthey have used in their communities such as research, best practice analysis,white papers, concept plans, editorials, podcasts and public forums to name afew techniques.

Baltimore architects intheir Urban Design Committee have created plan concepts, conducted publicworkshops and organized best practice conferences to push new concepts andideas for over 20 years. Their scope ranges from a second Baltimore waterfrontplan to complement the legendary Inner Harbor, to the opportunities of leveledurban expressways to sound urban policies in zoning, transit orienteddevelopment, inclusionary housing and sustainability.

Detroit architects formedan Urban Priorities Committee to “right-size” their drastically shrinking cityand capture opportunity from the loss of population and industry. The committeeorganized “Detroit: By Design”, a series of exhibits and symposia to deal withshrinkage head on through public engagement, dialogue and creative, sustainabledesign.

InLos Angeles, William Roschen, FAIA, the first architect in 90 years to head the Planning Commisson, assistsMayor Villeraigosa in making LA greenand healthy with transit, bike plans and a lively civic discourse about thevalue planning and helps other architects to become part of the process.

Boston architects intheir urban design and other committees have helped to shape the dialoguearound the development of the South Boston Seaport/Innovation District, RoseKennedy Greenway (Big Dig), and future of Government Center/City Hall Plaza.

Thelocal chapter has cultivated a cultureof civic engagement through interplay with organizations such as Common Bostonand programs geared to engage the many academic institutions that infuse ourregion with fresh ideas (Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, Wentworth, BostonArchitectural College, MassArt, etc.).

InNew York the AIA Metro Chapter Planning and Urban Design Committee tookan active role in PlaNYC, an unprecedented effort to prepare the city for onemillion more residents by 2030, strengthen the municipal economy, combatclimate change, and enhance the quality of life for all New Yorkers. The Planbrought together over 25 City agencies to work toward the vision of a greener,greater New York. The Chapter'ssupporting role in NYC's transportation renaissance will also be examined, frommajor projects like the long-delayed 2nd Avenue Subway to smaller initiativessuch as the establishment of bicycle lanes throughout the City.

TheSeattle chapter's Urban Design Committee and other ad hoc AIA membercommittees such as the Central Waterfront Task Force have been playing the roleof community urban design conscience to the city for many years. The UDC is currently working with the City'splanning department on a multi-year initiative to add an urban design elementto the municipal Comprehensive Plan, Seattle's top tier planning and policydocument. The Central Waterfront TaskForce has been extremely active in advocating for the removal of earthquakedamaged elevated freeway that cuts downtown Seattle off from theshoreline.

Thepresentations will address typical issues of the contemporary American City andwill show how intervention can be organized thorough local chapters, committeework or participation in government commissions, task forces and advisorypanels. The presenters are seasoned professionals who as “citizen architects”apply the skills they have acquired in their practices, as teachers and aslecturers to their cities either as committee chairs (Baltimore, Detroit) or ashead of a Planning Commission (Los Angeles).

Collaborationwith the community, with developers, politicians and public agencies isessential in fulfilling the civic mission of design professionals. Urban designcommittees and participation of architects on commissions and bodies ofgovernance play a vital role inproviding professional know how to the community and city government and ingetting architects out of their professional “silos”. See how such involvementpositively feeds back into the professional practice or the university designstudio.

Topicsaddressed will include sustainable design, smart growth, economic development,adaptive reuse, transit oriented development, value capture, economicdevelopment, community development, capacity building, social capital, formbased zoning, rehabilitation codes and how the built environment influenceshealth and welfare.

The presentation will show the importance of connection among architects, the connection between architects and their community, the connection with local officials and government and will show the importance of holistic thinking that manifests itself in connecting across various disciplines to link architecture, urban design, zoning, transportation and land use with preservation with communication and visualization.

Integrated Transit Design

2011-11-04T16:40:00.002-04:00

Buildingacceptance through an integrated design approach and making a difference in thecommunity.

Whatcreates community support?

Flawless operations, good engineering and costefficiency are must-have ingredients of any transit project. However, publicperception, support and ultimately use and relationship to a transit project israrely measured by those core criteria. Ratherwhat matters for community acceptance is how riders and non riders experiencethe system. How attractive and convenient the system is, how transit “behavesin the community”, how it fits into the community day in and day out with allits hard (trains, guideways, stations etc.)and soft elements (operations,mobility and equity enhancements, community improvements, place making) and howit has leveraged positive change. Many of these aspects which were onceconsidered tangential are now central in the evaluations of the federal government for funding. (LivableCommunities Initiatives).

Modern light rail lines have a lot in common and are also different inmany ways. They share that, they run for large parts onthe surface and often in existing communities and public right of ways. Once inplace, they will become part of the public realm. This makes them not onlyhighly visibility but also requires mitigation of potential conflicts withexisting circulation and existing use of the area and a grasp of what areasmight look like many years from now. Systems that will mostly be placed into anexisting built environment need to not only “fit in” but also contribute topositive change where the existing settings are disinvested, characterized byunderutilized land or visually less than desirable.

To achievethis, the process of designing and engineering the preferred alignments must be organized around the principles of IntegratedDesign (ID).

"Place Making" could be a component of Integrated Design such as an intermodal transit plaza
which also acts as a community center and catalyst for new development

What does Integrated Design (ID) mean?

Generally, ID can be applied to design in many cases (buildings,cars, transit etc). The constituting element is interdisciplinary collaborationand inclusion of a multitude of consideration and goals early in the project.Integrated design is not a cumulative linear process in which layer is placedover layer. Instead it is an interdisciplinary approach where many performanceand outcome objectives are considered concurrently and early. Thus, a projectevolves in optimization loops rather than in a linear way. In the case of light rail transit integrated design means that the core engineeringaspects and the soft community concerns need to be comprehensively evaluated atevery step of the design process and across all specialties. Fully integrated design also means that designand engineering do not stop at the limits of transit construction or at property linesbut go seamlessly deep into the communities along the corridor. Integrateddesign means full and consistent collaboration between the community, propertyowners, stakeholders, jurisdictional agencies, all transit providers and theMTA with the goal to transform communities sothat they become better through the proposed transit.

Truly integrated design is more complicated initially but savesmoney in the design process itself, possibly also in the construction andcertainly for operation and maintenance. Fruitless battles and conflicts aswell as dead ends due to lack of information can be avoided. Seamlessintegration of transit into the community will enhance ridership, operationsand community support of the system. Integrated design will leverage land useand allow aspects of value capture to be channeled back into construction oroperations.

How can integrated design be accomplished?

In spite of many participatory efforts of transit agencies and local jurisdictions with the objective of better understanding community needs and creating community acceptance, transit designand engineering processes are still predominantly driven by single disciplineconsiderations and linear processes (one step after another) rather than acomprehensive integration of design and performance standards. Speed, initialcost and engineering functionality tend to outweigh the “softer” and often lessquantifiable benefits, especially long-term benefits, even though thesebenefits might well outweigh short term cost benefits in the long run. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has signaled that they would like to soften up their rigid cost effectiveness formula for federally funded "New Starts" projects, yet, so far these formulas are still in effect.

An effective way towards integrated design would be collaboration between the transit agency, the design team, community stakeholders and jurisdictionalrepresentatives on the creation of designguidelines early in a project process. This would establish criteria for integrated design are early on from which future steps can be measured and evaluated.

A key component of design guidelines would be a succinct project description that goes beyond the “Purpose and Need”statements required by FTA. The project description would be a short synopsis that tries to encapsulate what kind of project a transit project wants to be and what its aspiration are in terms as community game changers.

Guidelines could be developed with a system or corridor wide "universal" component ("system branding") and a location specific set of guidelines for specific geographies within the planned corridor.

“Universal” design guidelines establish goals and standards forthe full transit system and its relation to the community and for all elementsthat are visible or affect the appearance or “behavior” of the proposedtransit. The guidelines are not only numeric or expressed in details but theyexpress holistic urban design performance and include benchmarks and comparables derived from already built systems that would provide a baseline standard.

Specific guidelines addressing conditions that are unique to the spatial and functional qualities andsettings of corridor segments or station locations and their geographies.

Whatshould be addressed by Integrated Design Guidelines?

1. Description of the transit systems goals in terms of branding,transit rider experience, interaction of the system with the community andurban design.

2. Branding of transit systemidentity in terms of system design and interaction with its surroundings

a. Elements of continuity corridor or system-wideversus elements of local idiosyncrasy

b. Way-finding and signs

c. Visibility versus mimicry of the system

3. Rules for full integration of station areas for seamlesscirculation and access from surrounding areas and all other modes of movement

a. Walking

b. Bicycle access

c. Car parking and drop off

d. Bus access

e. Other rail transit access

f. Access to and from attractions

4. Integration of land use around station for and enhanced activity(eyes on the street), convenience safety and security and transit supportiveland use through optimal “place-making”

a. Retail

b. Workplaces

c. Attractions

d. Housing

e. Outdoor uses

5. Guidance for tapping into economic development opportunities

a. Use of publicly owned land

b. Better use of vacant or underutilized property

c. Transformation of car oriented uses to transit supportive uses

d. Services for community and transit riders alike

e. Value capture (leveraging the transit investment for land use)

6. Guidance for street-scaping and design of the corridor in terms ofvisual and functional integration of the system between stations

a. Guideway design, traction power design

b. Transformed opportunities for adjacent public ROW

7. Criteria for (environmental) sustainability of all proposedtransit components

a. Guideway, pervious/impervious surfaces (stormwater, heat island)

b. Power consumption, water consumption

c. Natural ventilation

8. Criteria for Art Inclusion

9. Guidance for efficiency and maintenance for sheltering, weatherprotection, services and conveniences necessary for the transit user

10. Guidancefor understanding and reflecting the social, economical, ethnic and functionaldiversities of the specific geographic areas and the future plans and visionsdeveloped for those areas for the time of the expected transit service (5-50year horizon).

Related to Integrated Design are the topics of "Whole Building Design" and "Integrated Project Delivery". See below links for more information.

Link for "Whole Building Design"

Link for Integrated Project Delivery

Perpetual Halloween at the Inner Harbor?

2011-10-26T20:35:00.003-04:00

Baltimore was a leader in reclaiming downtrodden industrial waterfronts. It was an early adopter of the "festival marketplace" concept incarnated at Faneuil Hall in Boston. It has added attractions, one after the other, a National Aquarium, an extension to it, a science center and an extension to it, it has its own World Trade Center (as State property), it has converted a defunct Power Plant into an entertainment venue with a giant guitar on the roof (Hard Rock Cafe) it has added a splashy visitors center and extended the waterfront promenade for miles in each direct from point zero: Harborplace.

Yet, controversy keeps surrounding the tourist Mekka. Earlier this year the Baltimore Development Corporation requested proposals for "new attractions" and received proposals for zip lines, Ferris wheels and cable cars which were quickly ridiculed by local leaders. The Greater Baltimore Committee and the local architecture firm of Ayer Saint Gross countered the set of carnival ideas with a much more serious and sustainable approach and a couple of creative suggestions: A new footbridge traversing the water and a new design for Rash Field. It was not even clear yet how this tempest in the harbor pond would settle, then the next idea started cropping up: Placing the nationwide entertainment concern Ripleys (Trademark exhibit: "Odditorium") in one of the pavilions and drape Chessie over the entrance, or a sunken pirate ship, or both.

Original Proposal for Harbor Pavillion Defacement

The designs were presented by the Baltimore firm Brown Craig and Turner and reviewed by the Baltimore Urban Design and Architectural Review Panel (UDARP). They were not exactly received with enthusiasm but the panel did, incredibly, also not reject them outright. So the ship was deleted but the monster kept creeping over the well designed pavilion.

General Growth, the owner of the ever less well performing pavilions (they have vacancies, a long time an impossible thought) apparently is groping for a solution and is scraping the bottom in the process. The pavilions might need a make-over and they might need some serious re-thinking, but turning them into a gateway to carnival rides is not the right answer.

October submission to the Design Review Panel

Making the city facing rear sides more attractive, opening them up to the envisioned world class urban boulevard on Pratt Street, bringing in local merchandise that appeals to residents and tourists and enhances and complements the meager downtown retail mix, those would be better answers and more in keeping with a location that wants and needs to be Baltimore's "living room", or as architect David Benn put it in an editorial about the waterfront promenade, Baltimore's "Central Park." Either way, the placement of junk entertainment along the water's edge has run its course (Chicago's Navy Pier) and 21st century solutions are classier and better (Chicago's Centennial Park). As we know from the freedom of speech debates at the Inner Harbor, the area is subject to many controls and regulations. The areas around the pavilions are public parks and it should be not too hard to control excessive signs and adhere to the original spirit of the Inner Hrabor Masterplan which was based on celebrating the water. (see also my SUN op-ed, Best Theme: The Water from July 2011.)

October submission to the Design Review Panel

An article on the proposed Ripleys will be in tomorrows Sun Paper. See article in this Link.

Commuter Rail and the Creative Class

2011-10-24T21:02:00.002-04:00

Baltimore's self confidence is still so shaky that several Baltimore based organizers of the RailVolution conference which was held in DC this year doubted that one of the "Mobile Workshops" should showcase Baltimore. Well, the doubts were overcome and the tour for Baltimore named "Commuter Rail and the Creative Class" was reportedly the one that sold out first.
45 people signed up, hailing from Honolulu, Seattle, Denver, Los Angeles, Portland, Salt Lake City and many other places. They came on a MARC commuter train to Baltimore's Penn Station and were welcomed by a group of Baltimore guides, including me who guided them first on foot and later by Charme City Circulator bus.

The tour was geographically limited to the area around Penn Station also known as the Station North Arts and Entertainment District. The guests walked south on Charles Street, saw on their way the new University of Baltimore (UB) law school under construction (architect Stephan Behnisch, Stuttgart), the new University of Baltimore student housing also under construction and finally entered Baltimore's first Transit Oriented Development (TOD) project: Symphony Center, a project resulting from the construction of Baltimore's initial light rail line.Tony Rogers explained the concept of urban housing and offices with suburban amenities and how the large parking garage is built right over top of the historic Howard Street freight tunnel in which famously a hazardous material tanker car caught fire a few years ago and brought all of downtown to a standstill. It was noted that the large garage is not easily to fill and that structured parking represents a large "stranded cost". Next the group walked over to the new "Fitzgerald" apartments developed and managed by the Bozzutto group. Toby Bozzutto explained how he as an English major picked the name in honor of the writer who lived in adjacent Bolton Hill. The Fitzgerald shows how far Baltimore has come in the last decade. Here no longer the attempt of bringing the suburb to the city, rather an attempt to bring New York style to Baltimore. The market rate apartments fetch top rents and boast a very stylish amenity and community area on the entry level. The project just garnered the top design award of the local AIA. Since the project was constructed on UB's former main parking lot, it too, features a huge parking garage that is partly empty. The garage well hidden from Mt Royal Avenue is quite visible from the Johns Falls Expressway and Penn Station.

Mobile Workshop participants duly noted that, remarkably, two developers in a row had stated that they had built too much parking. That in itself illustrates the cultural shift that is currently occurring from cul de sac to walkable and transit connective with bike racks and Zip Cars in front of dense living on top of Barnes and Noble and a pizza joint.

The latest model Charme City circulator bus (the hybrid Orion) took the group to a trip down memory lane at the Baltimore Streetcar Museum with its open air tram rides. Stops and tours of the Charles Theatre, ArchPlan's Printers Square Apartments (market rate and affordable housing in rehabilitated former industrial building and a historic firehouse showcased by developer Bill Hazlehurst) and the spanking new Artist Housing on Greenmount Avenue, City Arts, developed by Jubilee Baltimore, concluded the tour. At City Arts a art student from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) explained what artists want in housing and how students from near and far were attracted to this cool facility, no matter that it is located smack in the middle of a heavily disinvested area. Video clip of City Arts.

The tour showed that Baltimore is grasping the concept of the creative class as well as the idea of transit oriented development and building from strength to such a degree that this tour could even impress people from those cities like Portland, Seattle and LA that attract young people in droves. All projects are rental apartments and all were fully occupied, the Printers Square, Fitzgerald and City Arts filled in record time. (Tour guide and City Arts developer Charlie Duff addressing the workshop participants: "When you people from Portland come to see Baltimore, I imagine it is like going to the zoo". lots of laughter). Well not anymore. People come to see Baltimore thriving, however not everybody here has gotten the message yet.

Printers Square Apartment explained

After the open ride at the Streetcar Museum

The Fitzgerald: Transit Oriented Development in Baltimore
From the Mobile Workshop program

Growing or Shrinking - The US "Legacy" City in the 21st Century

2011-10-16T21:48:00.001-04:00

As co chair of the AIA Urban Design Committee I helped organize this year's urban design lecture during Architecture Month. The topic: "Shrinking/Growing, Baltimore's Future." The two speakers were David Dixon, FAIA from Boston and Tom Murphy, former Mayor of Pittsburgh and now senior ULI fellow in Washington DC. The event hit a nerve with the Baltimore community and was standing room only. Both speakers and I had participated in the WYPR Midday talk show with Dan Rodricks earlier the same day under the same topic. Download audio.

Tom Murphy, drawing heavily from his Pittsburgh experience but also from the research in his current position at the Urban Land Institute postulates that cities find themselves in a similar revolution as when the automobile became the prevalent mode of transportation. Now it is the knowledge revolution that changes cities just as radically as industrialization or the automobile has done it before. The most prominent representatives of the knowledge industry are "meds and eds", large hospital complexes and their associated research and the universities and colleges. Murphy pointed out that Johns Hopkins is the largest employer in the State and together with the University of Maryland at Baltimore bring about $2.4 billion into the city. He challenges the city to utilize this money to grow development and keep talent in the city and multiply it. Murphy pointed out that San Diego which used to be a sleepy Navy outpost now receives also $2.4 billion in research dollars at its universities but it also has about the same number of dollars as venture capital investments which puts in in the #1 spot in the country in that category whereas Baltimore with only $225 million in venture capital puts it on a bottom rank.

David Dixon pointed out, population growth might not be a good measure for success. For one, it is rather a household that is the economic unit and in terms of households Baltimore today has almost as many as in its heydays due to the shrinking size of households and the ever increasing spatial needs per household. Dixon and Murphy both had assisted New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina and both pointed out that the matter of growth and shrinkage should not be measured quantitatively but qualitatively in response to the question of what creates value. Dixon showed how Baltimore stands in the growth of college educated 25-34 year olds living in or near the metro core (6th in growth and 8th in absolute numbers) and stated that the new features young people are looking for are not the cul de sacs and large yards their parents liked but walkability, transit and urbanity. As a result, "walk scores" result in lots of value added. Older cities such as Baltimore have good walks scores almost built into their DNA, although pedestrian safety, bike amenities and good connections to transit will require continuing investments.

Both agreed that cities like Baltimore have an enormous opportunity to capture the young generation currently looking for attractive knowledge city urbanity, especially when they are like Baltimore located in a growing region.

Dixon presentation: Baltimore in the age of the Walk Score
Murphy presentation: Building on innovation (currently a ULI text by Murphy shows up, the actual presentation will be linked shortly).

Baltimore: From industrial port city to knowledge community with urban vibe

The Green Revolution: GreenBuild in Toronto

2011-10-08T09:37:00.002-04:00

The Green Building Council (GBC) is supposedly the fastest growing non-profit worldwide. It's annual conference in Toronto drew 23000 people to the Canadian metropolis. Toronto is an apt place for the conference, an economically healthy metro area, growing with dense new housing in all parts of the City (not only along the water), located right in the center (the coats looking down their noses), competing maybe with Chicago, both having turned from bland gritty metropolises to ones that shine with green roofs, biking and waterfront parks. Indeed, SOM just put forth a proposal to include Canada and the US, Toronto and Chicago into a multi-state Great Lakes regional masterplan.

I recall well a speech of one of the GBC founding members maybe 15 years ago at the National Building Museum in DC in which the idea to measure buildings for their environmental performance was laid out and with this in itself not very unique or revolutionary idea he explained the beginnings of the LEED process, something that seemed complicated and almost non-doable back then. Since then the requirements have sprawled, the acronyms are countless (a favorite right now EB-OM, pronounced ebom, meaning "Existing Buildings- Operation and Management).
GBC does not only draw the cooks of the granola and Birkenstock scene who want to be one with nature, not only the green-washers who sell the same old stuff with a new label (although they were numerous on the exhibition floors) it draws engineers, contractors, landscape and building architects, even artists and it also draws developers, building managers, owners and municipal and state agencies who oversee or plan the building process. Thus, this conference was a really good cross section of all the parties involved in building something. GBC is not only a certification process, it is also a movement full of activists who want a better world. In this quest it attracts intellectuals and creatives of all kinds. Mayor Bloomberg of NYC as well as the NYT journalist and Pulitzer Price winner Thomas Friedman (Hot, Flat and Crowded") lend their names and keynote speeches to this conference. So did cutting edge thinkers and explorers such as Neri Oxman who heads up the MIT materials lab in which they try to grow materials that self adjust from their own "DNA" just like nature. Or Natalie Jeremijenko from NYU's Environmental Health Clinic who has found super creative ways of visualizing environmental issues in her dirty metro turf of Brooklyn, the Bronx and Manhattan. Or Lisa Strausfeld of Pentagram, a revolutionary in the visualization and representation of data, obviously a key issue for environmental building performance or any other performance, for that matter. These three women impressed me the most because they presented their creative and cutting edge thinking in a funny, modest, self deprecating and thus enormously subversive manner while the men laid down a lot of bombast and chest pounding, especially the architect John Picard who presented himself as a self appointed leader that will help the rest of us to see the light and the fantastic profits coming from well performing real estate assets. Krugman as well, he actually told the assembled crowd in the Canada Air downtown arena that (in spite of all the bad trends out there in society) "you are too dumb to quit". Among the men presenters who did chest pounding was also John Picard who got never tired of referencing himself as a "rocket scientists" (as an engineer he worked on rockets) and triathlon fighter who wants to win and transferred this mindset to the quest for the best performing building.

Neri Oxman's presentation was one of the most brilliant intellectual performances I have seen in a long time, particularly noticeable when she responded to questions from the audience in the way how she paraphrased the questions and put them into context. Not only did she fully "get" the questions and remembered them, she had to repeat them for the audience (for recording purposes and so all could hear them) and she did this with such brilliance that even dull questions started to shine and be brought to the level in which the question became relevant and a foil for her to explain her thinking. Her quest fro bio-mimicry is a long way from becoming reality, her horizon was over a thousand years at which time our cloths grow with us like our skin and mere eye contact will download information (well, it does today, but maybe in a less controlled way she has in mind). Still, even with the tiny "cultures" of materials she has created in her lab she has created unexpected beauty that made it all the way to a MoMa art exhibit. (pictures). Oxman, who also studied medicine, probably illustrates best how creative thinking emerges from the interesting of various disciplines culminating in "design" in the broadest sense and in the sense of problem solving.

The LEED edifice of prerequisites and requirements, of charts, tabulations and metrics seems trite and even counter productive in light of some of the brilliant thoughts expressed about "what is NEXT" (the theme of the conference. However, as Bloomberg pointed out, "what cannot be measured, cannot be managed". I suppose that the power of the LEED certification process which is now applied in 21 countries worldwide is that it appeals to the number crunchers and that the green benefit can actually be translated right into dollars and cents. Words like "value added" and marketability of your assets ring in the ears of building managers and developers all over the globe and without them, the transformation of buildings as the largest contributor of global warming gases will never happen. So, let's put up with the cumbersome work sheets and the point chasing for the time being until "green becomes the new normal" as Krugman put it.

Maroon 5 concert after the Krugman speech at the Air Canada Center


Global reach: Reprsentatives of different countries talk about LEED	and beyond

The low tech streetcars are everywhere, just like they used to be in Baltimore

Toronto, city of scale and style contrast

Libeskind in Toronto, ROM

An urban farm and petting zoo right in the central city (Cabbagetown)


Toronto's glistening Towers at dusk. It is not architecture that sets Toronto apart but density and central growth

Denver Thriving

2011-10-01T11:34:00.001-04:00

Not that Colorado was spared from the everlasting Great Recession. The same transit authority RTD that has with Fastrack the nations largest transit expansion project underway is currently planning to cut 10% of their servicesfor lack of operating funds. Colorado stocks are down along with the rest of the nation, homeless people abound downtown.

Yet, the city is full of energy and large projects. Fastrack, the largest transit project. Stapleton, the nations largest redevelopment project. Population growing. Forbes naming Denver the 9th best place in the US to do business in 2011. The city is full of young people on bikes, new brew pubs open, cranes tower over the city. For an impressive list of projects see Cityscape.

Right next to the still pretty new Libeskind Art Museum the Clyfford Still Museum for art will open its doors later this year. Still, an abstract expressionist painter, bequeathed his work to a city that would show all his art under one roof. It took almost 25 years for a city to step up, but in 2004 Denver was selected as the place to show this Still's important opus, an important testament to a strong will to be a cultural center.

Denver skyline, mountains from City Park and the Science Museum

New Housing in downtown near Union
Station

Brandnew Museum for Coloroado History. Not opened yet

Clyfford Still Museum

New Court House

Massive mixed use redevelopment of the Union Station area
with new rail station for regional trains to Boulder and
Stapleton

The Denver Fastrack project is similarly proof that the leaders of Denver don't think small. The transformation of the Union Station area in itself is an impressive and courageous urban transformation with transportation as the catalytic element. A similar feat is envisioned for the end of the Stapleton line with massive development near the iconic tent airport terminal crowned by a train station designed by Calatrava. However, Calatrava just resigned from this project and the architectural future of the station and hotel complex is currently in limbo.

Denver, which has formed a political union with the surrounding county, has reached almost the same size as Baltimore. The metro region, depending if Boulder is included or not, is with 2 million residents also comparable to the Baltimore metro region.

Although Denver's main attraction, the Rockies, are miles away and nothing but a scenic backdrop when in the city and although the South Platte River and its tributary the Cherry Creek are not particularly impressive bodies of water, planners have begun to maximize the water's value and created "waterfront" property. Denver was much more ransacked by accommodation of the automobile than Baltimore or DC (freeways, downtown surface parking lots and suburbanization of the city are still visible everywhere), the City has embarked in a massive re-tooling of the City from re-zoning to transit and a systematic recalibration of thoroughfares such as Colfax.

As a result Denver has completely remade its once staid image and moved way up the food chain among the great American Cities.

New "waterfront" hosuing along the Cherry Creek

Calatrava's Stapleton train station concept. He
resigned from the project in September 2011

Do Cities need to grow or can they shrink to be healthy and prosperous??

2011-09-27T20:46:00.002-04:00

In an effort of turning necessity into a virtue, the term "shrinking cities" has not so much become a cry of fear and horror but a battle cry of massively disinvested cities such as Detroit (USA) or Dessau (Germany) which try via shrinkage to make the city sustainable. "Where buildings fall landscapes arise" is one of the slogans of a German exhibit about shrinking cities. Kent University created an Institute for Shrinking Cities. Detroit has engaged creatives of all stripes to seek benefits of extra space.

However attractive the idea sounds for those who have long doubted that growth can be an everlasting pattern (The Limits of Growth, 1972), can shrinkage coexist with prosperity?

Is a shrinking city the truly sustainable city or is urban farming and landscapes springing from abandoned neighborhoods an anti-urban aberration ultimately promoting sprawl?

Comment here and express your opinions, we will use them at the AIA event on October 12 at RTKL's office on 910 Bond Street in Fells Point.
Urban experts David Dixon, FAIA and Tom Murphy will explore the topic. Dixon most recently racked up plenty of experience in massively shrunk New Orleans when he was instrumental in the rebuilding schemes there. Murphy is a Fellow at the Urban Land Institute and has rescued Pittsburgh as mayor from the brink of irrelevance to become the destination for one of the international G-9 summits.

Hallo Tomorrow (Hello Demain!)

2011-09-25T18:24:00.001-04:00

The French appear much less shy to say hello to the future. Progress, innovation and technology is usually embraced. This line of thinking brought about the Parc de Villette in Paris and in it this summer the exhibit Hello Future, hellodemain. This contrasts from the much dimmer view that the Germans often take in consideration of the future, for example in the most recent German TV piece on Smart Cities in which a rather pessimistic static future is predicted because the smart city can read all the trends and desires of its populace and programs itself accordingly.

Parque de Villette

While I have visited the Parque de Villette a few years ago and found Tschumi's work quite intriguing I didn't have the opportunity to see this summer's future exhibit there. Instead, I took the virtual tour after seeing the fabric structure that houses part of the exhibit in the latest edition of Fabric Architecture. The orange structure designed by Jacob and MacFarlane architects might be interesting enough but inside the future is reduced to futuristic cars and flickering electronic screens, yet another reminder how poorly we usually do in imagining the future. Most of the time we extrapolate one trend and forget about all the others and "mutations" (paradigm shifts) are all but absent from most predictions.

Things that really determine the future are often social in nature and not technological. This is also why Marx' description of the future did not come to pass, the near crash of the international financial system notwithstanding.
Progress is often just a re-cast of what we know already in a different way. In this sense Madrid, Spain started a very different future this year when it finished its own version of the Big Dig and buried a motorway under a river, created a park and opened a futuristic new pedestrian bridge that connects parts of the city that had been separated for too long.

The shiny new Pasarela-del-Arganzuela is a testament less of a car free city than of a city where priorities have shifted and the car has been de-throned from its dominant position in urban planning. Still there, but relegated to the underworld where until recently pedestrians had to go if they safely wanted to cross. See this blog to appreciate what a scar the expressway along the riverbed had created.

The new bridge is not only a symbol for what shifts we see in urban planning worldwide (for current US freeway tear-down see urbanland.uli.org), it is also an apt expression of architecture that embraces structural engineering to express itself. The tubular steel construction opened up to allow views, air and light but closed enough to create protection from the sun. Designed by Dominque Perrault, who also designed the US headquarters of the the firm that produces the wire meshes that he likes so much and that he helped make a fashionable architectural object. The firm is GKD AG and their building is in Cambridge, Maryland.

Although the recent Baltimore mayoral campaign did not offer sweeping views of a bright future for this city, change is already here, the future can be felt in many places and artists, architects and engineers are an important part of it. Being open to the future (hello demain!) is an important beginning predicting it is another story. Which is Baltimore's bridge? I think I know which our freeway is that needs to disappear, or maybe I know two!

Dumb Growth in Catonsville. Even Dumber!

2011-09-18T21:43:00.000-04:00

Early creation of breaches when it still looked like there
might be some tree protection and only selective cutting.

Clear Cut in December

Clear Cut in December. The tress were not even used for anything,
just a big pile of mulch

UPDATE 12/12/11: The Development is Approached Even Dumber than Envisioned!

The situation now looks much worse than back in September when the earlier pictures were taken. The developer clear-cut practically the entire development site plus felled all the larger trees along the roadway, presumably to create turn-lanes from what was a very narrow rural forest drive. It makes one weep to see this level of devastation so close to a State Park and in one of the important watersheds feeding into the bay. It is probably safe to say that an individual chicken farmer could hardly be as damaging as a development that mows down acres of trees for suburban lawns which will be fed with fertilizers.
The villages of Columbia, Howard County, some built in the seventies, showed how houses and subdivisions can be nestled among wooded areas without cutting every single tree. They looked instantly mature and pleasant, no need to wait for 40 years for the new little broomstick trees to grow. Why did developers forget how to do this in a time when stormwater management requirements are more stringent and more urgently needed?

By the way: The "product" (real estate lingo) that will go up here is precisely the one we have already too much of. Precisely the product that created the financial disaster when worthless derivatives based on worthless mortgages based on a superfluous product brought the whole house of cards down. Precisely the non walkable not mixed use "subdivisions" consisting of isolated vinyl boxes that do not create a community and require everybody to drive everywhere. Even if the development is located inside the rural urban demarcation line, it is wrong. Super wrong!

See also SUN paper 12/6/2011

Original Entry based on September visit:

These pictures speak for themselves even if one doesn't know the gory details: Big machinery among big trees, concrete pipes and large logs lying flat on the ground, wood slaughter is obvious. The details are worse: This is a property right adjacent to the Patapsco State Park and on the watershed of the Sawmill Branch, a tributary to the Patapsco River which is struggling and adding considerably to the pollution of the Middle Branch and the Chesapeake Bay.

A local land owner filed a development plan in 2006 and got it approved in spite of the fact that under State law this certainly should be considered a sensitive area and should never be developed. 32 houses, 32 acres of destruction, three cul de sacs. The recession put this atrocity on hold for a few years but now the bulldozers are knocking down the trees and turning the earth. This type of destruction is the main reason why in every large rainstorm thousands of tons of sediment wind up in the Bay and smother the vital underwater grasses there.

From the early stages when there was still a forest
(also below)

The benefit? A small number of expensive single family homes sitting in isolation on curvy roads looking at the surviving trees which, in their new edge position, will probably fall over in the next big windstorm since they were never exposed like this before.
No amount of buffers, mitigation or stormwater ponds will be able to undo the damage.
It is this kind of local decision that makes it so necessary that there is some State oversight. Those always concerned about local rights and who lament that we are squandering the assets of our children and grandchildren should not only talk about property rights, local zoning and the deficit but also the environment. There is simply no justification for this type project particularly considering how much already developed land sits fallow, especially in commercial areas.

The B. property adjacent to the beautiful State Park is a glaring example of why private greed, property rights and the market cannot be the only guideposts for how we organize a community.

Negotiated Design

2011-09-04T18:28:00.000-04:00

This excellent article in the New York times today How the 9/11 Memorial Changed Its Architect, Michael Arad made me think about "design by committee" (or "negotiated design" as Arad calls it) and the role and image of the architect on construction teams or at the community at large.

If the architect is suspected to be an egomaniac, a lot is Ayn Rand's fault who burnt into the public's mind this image of Howard Roark as the heroic architect. In the "Fountainhead" Roark embodies Rand's image of the entrepreneur and creative maker of things and her idea that those leaders know better and need to force their will on the masses. Consequently Howard Roark fights with everybody to maintain his ideas of design and despises compromise. Thankfully Ted Loos who writes about Arad in the Times never mentions the Fountainhead or Howard Roark.

The Rand book, widely read in high schools and by many remembered as a film with Gary Cooper as Roark, has somehow struck a nerve within the public which has long harbored a love-hate relationships with architects.

On the love side, architects seem somewhat glamorous and this led to many movie makers choosing architects as their protagonists (Brady Bunch, Indecent Proposal). On the hate side, architects appear as narcissistic egotists who think of nothing than their own fame who want to build a monument to their own greatness via the client's money.

Some of the celebrity architects fuel the negative image as they use a lot of "archi babble" (the unitelligable insider language of architects which used to be cultivated in the glossy design magazines) to sell their designs as context-sensitive and unique solutions to unique problems while every child can easily recognize the branded design that appears to be recycled from project to project across continents and different uses.

Michael Arad is not such a case. When he won the 9/11 memorial design competition he was unknown and young. And the design of a memorial is clearly a more artistic undertaking than the design of a building which can be rather understood as "problem solving" through design. Arad, as a designer who deeply cared about his design, got defensive when aspects of the design were challenged. Be it by bureaucrats, be it by celebrity architects or by the sheer cost constraints. However, and that is what the article is about, unlike Roark, he learned to compromise and even see value in it.

The red line on one side is the one where the essence of a design gets lost. On the other end of the spectrum is a line where intransigence prevents learning and the improvement of a design. An architect always has to move between those two lines which are not at all "red" in daily life and which, in fact, might move several times during the long process towards implementation of a project.

It has been my experience that the first cast of a design, no matter how heartfelt, creative, genial and thorough, is almost never the best that can be done. The complexer a problem, the less likely a lone designer can find the all encompassing solution. Architects almost always work as part of a larger team, even when they design something as small as a single family home. There are engineers, there are contractors and most importantly, there are owners, users or funders. Each will contribute essential aspects that even a genius architect might have overlooked.

Thus, design by committee doesn't need to be bad or lead to inferior results. If an architect is the team leader she has a wonderful opportunity to guide the process of obtaining all the facts and data that are needed for a complete design. But even in a subordinate position, the architect can help to install a process that teases out good design. A great approach is to build consensus on the design problem as such (why are we doing this? Surprisingly often one finds solutions in need of a problem) then find consensus on the objectives (what is it that we want to achieve?) and only then focus on a particular set of design solutions. The problem definition and the goals and objectives will be invaluable tools in evaluating possible solutions and finding the best one.

This process seems tedious and seemingly unworthy of the great artist whom we imagine to "create" out of his gut and spirit. But in a society in which acceptance and consensus is a must for almost any change to the existing environment, it is almost always necessary to "design by negotiation". It is this particular aspect, which is a key ingredient to the definition of "Community Architect".

Greatness Rising

2011-08-31T20:38:00.001-04:00

Rising from what was way too long just an irregularly shaped parking lot is quickly Baltimore’s latest architectural masterpiece, the new University of Baltimore law school. With $450/square foot most likely one of the most expensive educational buildings in town it also promise to be one of the greenest and in many ways exotic. Like very few others it is the result of a true international design competition that brought the first price to Stefan Behnisch of Stuttgart; a victory over Foster + Partners of London, Dominique Perrault Architecture of Paris, Moshe Safdie and Associates, Inc. of Somerset, Mass., and SmithGroup Companies, Inc. of Washington, D.C.

Seen from the fabulously restored Railway Express building on St Paul Street, the new law school rises just like any other building, concrete floor slab over concrete floor slab. Nothing points yet to its singularity, at least not from this distance and angle.

Yet, what will make this building special is already in these bones. For example, the underside of these slabs will remain exposed. No ceilings will be hung to hide electric wires, ducts and the other nerves of the building. The floor is the ceiling and all the “stuff” is already incorporated in the concrete. One would not know from looking over to the skeleton rising. And it is somewhat comforting to know, that greatness can start out looking so normal.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/media/photo/2008-11/43399194.jpg

I started my professional career in the same two story building in which Guenther Behnisch, Stefans' father had his Stuttgart-Sillenbuch office. Working in one of the off-shoots that great offices often not only tolerate but nurture, I was always taken by the Behnisch architecture which celebrated lightness, airiness and elegance. After having been in the early discussions about the design competition for this very project, I often regret that it was not me who brought Stefan to Baltimore. At the time I mistakenly thought that European firms would not participate in a competition that was not organized according to their strict competition standards in which design professionals have the last word in the jury and thus determine who gets the commission not owners. Still, has a Stuutgarter I feel a kind of homepride seeing "a Behnisch" go up in Baltimore.

Plan Maryland: The alternative is more dumb growth!

2011-08-23T13:39:00.003-04:00

Plan Maryland is a planning tool that the State of Maryland is currently preparing and debating that brings together local land use planning and the bigger state view. In Plan Maryland one can for the first time see how local plans and thye State programs AG-Print, Green-Print and the "Priority Funding Areas" add up or where the conflicts are. The result are newly defined "designated places". Official State website

Needless to say, that all those who want government to do nothing or that hold private property rights over everything else are going nuts over this attempt to bring some rhyme and reason in the way how land in this state is developed. The state has developed more land since 1970 then in the entire history before and the pace is ever accelerating.

Fiscal conservatives and conservatives of any stripe should see Plan Maryland as what it really is, a tool to conserve resources, both, fiscal and environmental. SUN editorial

Below see my open letter to the Secreatry of Planning with suggestions how to make Plan Maryland better, stronger and more accepted.

Dear Secretary Hall,

I want to commend your work and commitment to undertaking the very difficult task of

PlanMaryland. I have long believed that there is a need for a statewide plan that coordinates all

state investments, transportation and land policies and coordinates also local comprehensive plans.

Such a state plan would be needed even if local plans were perfect which, of course, they are not.

The plan especially needs to address the problem that local governments, in responding to previous

State smart growth efforts, have cast the net of Priority Funding Areas far too wide.

Therefore, I fully support this effort to align state agencies goals and efforts with each other and

with key policy goals embraced by the state. I believe this will help to achieve much more efficient

and coherent smart growth policies, monitoring, and eventually bring results. This statewide view is

also a valuable tool and resource for local government to assist them in avoiding conflicts between

their policies and those of the state or neighboring jurisdictions and generally see a bigger picture.

With the introduction of the “Designated Places” the Plan also begins to address the need for
a tighter definition of the areas suitable for development. However, these core tenets of the plan are not clearly spelled out in the Plan’s current draft form.

Convincing local government and the public about the utility and need for this plan is made

unnecessarily difficult for the following reasons:

1. The document needs a much more concise “narrative arc” that goes from analysis of trends

and data to a determination where these are in conflict with state policies. Then to metrics
that would be effective in describing these conflicts and in implementing and monitoring
change.

2. As it is, the document does not document the insights and conflicts that the overlap of the

policy layers of green-print, ag-print and growth-print have brought to light as the result of
mapping these layers into an overall plan. Instead, the maps are simply shown.

3. Further, the document does not clearly spell out how well the overall plan fares relative to the policies and goals in place, i.e. how far is the current “plan” away from the goals and targets?

4. Designated places consist of areas suitable for development and places to be protected. This

is confusing especially for people used to thinking in the category of PFAs.

For the work done to date to be as effective as possible I have the following suggestions and
recommendations:

1. To be truly a plan for

Maryland’s future the metrics need to be clearer . The draft suggest a slew of metrics, probably too many to be effective. The metrics should be grouped into core metrics and derived metrics (derivates of the core metrics). The metrics need to be clearly derived from current trend failures.

2. The most important metrics must be accompanied by benchmarks, ie. numerical targets

which are developed from existing “baseline” data. Only with benchmarks can we see if we are at least moving in the right direction and when unfavorable trends will be reversed. Targets have to be achievable. More time might be needed to develop solid target figures for key metrics.

3. PlanMaryland would be strengthened by making a stronger fiscal argument for Smart

Growth. The fiscal argument should include also demographics trends toward urban living in “smart communities” and how higher energy cost supports compacter development.

4. Transportation polices hold the key to more efficient land use and that, therefore, the full
gamut of passenger rail, freight rail, roads, trails and navigable waterways needs to be
included in the plan. This is even more important since transportation is widely controlled
through state funding and state policies.

5. The plan element of “designated places” currently lacks clarity and probably instills fear in local government. As it is refined it needs to be done in a collaborative process between state and local governments. Such collaboration will take time. The plan will likely not be “final”or complete during 2011. It is more important to build acceptance for the purpose and framework this year than to have a “final” plan.

6. Additionally designated places should not be just quantitative and the result of data

collection but they need to reflect are clear qualitative geo-spatial concepts in which place
making features of the built environment and landscapes are considered on all scales. Not

spatial or place making goals are set forth in the plan although these clearly are important for

quality of life.

7. The plan should be clear about how it will be used and enforced. Clarity of its intent and

transparency about its implementation and enforcement strategies will be essential for

building acceptance and support for the plan. Only with acceptance and local support will

the plan create real change for

Maryland’s future.

In summary, I see great potential and utility in the concept of a State Plan and am impressed with

of Maryland, Baltimore County NeighborSpace and in other venues, I am eager to work with you in

making this plan gradually and over time ever more effective and a truly efficient tool in the quest

for real Smart Growth in Maryland.

Regards,

Klaus Philipsen,

The Uplands - Baltimore's Stapleton

2011-08-20T22:10:00.002-04:00

Approved Uplands Masterplan as shown on the STV website

In Denver planners point to Stapleton as the nation's largest urban infill community. In Baltimore the Uplands are the largest urban infill. However, with 12000 dwelling units and 4700 acres the former Denver airport area is 12 times the size of Baltimore's Uplands in terms of housing units and 47 times in terms of land area. http://www.terrain.org/articles/17/leccese.htm

Still, the Uplands (100 acres) is redevelopment on an impressive scale and currently especially eye popping: Everything that used to be there is gone and nothing new is built. Instead, earthmovers, backhoes and bulldozers crawl over the bare soil of an area that reaches as far as they eye can see from Edmondson Avenue. http://www.viewatuplands.com/overview.html.

There is something uplifting in the fact that such a large construction site is active in the middle of this recession and inside the City of Baltimore. Over 1000 dwelling units are planned here, many single family, many home-ownership, some rental and some mixed use along Route 40.

The Uplands, once a proud community of lower income and subsidized rental housing with three story walk up garden apartments built solidly in brick and concrete, had fallen into disrepair and bad management in the early nineties. Soon the neighboring historic communities of Ten Hills, Hunting Ridge and Edmondson Village complained about crime and grime emanating from the Uplands and casting a pall over the entire area. The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) finally took all 1000 units back from the management company whose boss was sent to the federal prison in Allenwood Pennsylvania for embezzlement of federal funds. His open roof Mercedes (License plate: "Sunlovr") was taken from him and one after the other 1000 units were vacated and boarded up. Clearly, this neither helped the nearby Edmondson Village Center nor the new Giant supermarket across the street and added a huge eyesore to a city in no needed of additional boarded housing. A murder in front of the remaining liquor store along Edmondson Avenue highlighted the misery further.

Finally, negotiations between Baltimore Housing, begun under Mayor O'Malley, succeeded and in 2004 HUD turned over the land of Uplands areas A and B (52.6 acres) to the City of Baltimore for $20 but with a costly provision: All buildings had to be demolished in continuation of the curious belief that badly managed and crime ridden public housing has to be razed for a better future. As if the brick and mortar themselves were the culprits of past failures. This may have been somewhat plausible in the case of the drug infested public housing highrises that had a choke-hold on downtown's east and west sides, but it seemed superstitious for these nice hilly and tree studded streets of the Uplands with its innocent but solid looking low housing stock. In fact, back in 1996/97ArchPlan once investigated options for upgrading these 1948 apartments to modern standards and found possibilities of vertical and horizontal connections to make larger units. The old units were heated by block plants via steam that was piped around, i.e. district heating, certainly a green solution, yet, it didn't include air conditioning.

But rehab wasn't on the table any more once the really big plans took shape in true urban renewal fashion. Still in 2004, the renowned Boston architecture and planning firm of Goody Clancy was tasked with creating a masterplan that would find community acceptance and still make good use of this piece of land right next to the planned Red Line transit line. The result is, in fact, de-densification of an already low density development if one takes into consideration that the 1100 new dwelling units actually happen on a larger site. The redevelopment area grew through a side deal with the New Psalmist Church, who occupied a good chunk of land in the lower part of the area which had always caused traffic and parking problems. New Psalmist moved to the City's languishing Seaton Business Park, and alas, the new Uplands would yet again have 1000 housing units in spite of all the new single family homes. As recommended by the AIA Urban Design Committee in talks with Baltimore Housing, the marginal businesses along US 40 (the liquor store, a gas station and a few other buildings) were condemned (a court battled ensued in which the city won) and also included in the new plan as well as some of the vast parking areas next to theWestern Skill Center, a public school vis a vis from the Edmondson Shopping Center. This allowed the new development to grow even further to have a face on US 40 and also allowed some of the much needed density right next to the planned Red Line station.

Looking today across the freshly turned soil, one can see what "big plan" means: Not a single street, not a single tree and no building has been left standing. All utilities, all grading, all roadways, everything brand-new and in a new configuration. Years after the Goody Glancy plan had been adopted, a master development team was selected consisting of Pennrose and Bozzuto, Uplands Visionaries, Cryor Development L.L.C., Harrison Development L.L.C., Scientia Uplands L.L.C., and the Southwest Baltimore Community Development Corp.
It is hard to see how this is contextual or context sensitive design or how this would comply with green site design standards under LEED, yet this is what it is, and in a strange way, it is deliberating, refreshing and so very full of promise.

Judgment on the architecture and buildings needs to be withheld until the replacement structures of the now approved phase 1 (761units) will come out of the ground with all the compromises and cheap materials (vinyl siding) that modern builders typically use. Likely the "stick-built" wood framed structures will neither match up to the solid brick walls and concrete floors of the past Upland buildings nor to the modern often well designed creations in Stapleton in which stylistic experiments pair up with surprising artefacts from the airport's past.

All compromises and delays notwithstanding, the new Uplands is a beacon of hope for Baltimore, a huge shot in the arm for the west side of the City and offers to a large extent what Baltimore needs: New urban housing that is not all rowhouses, that is rich with amenities and has good access to transit.

see also:
http://www.multihousingnews.com/news/238m-mixed-use-residential-project-takes-a-big-step-forward-in-baltimore/
http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2011/07/15/uplands-wins-approval-for-development-plan-phase-i-funding/
http://www.baltimorehousing.org/wgo_detail.aspx?id=412

Above: Standard fair: The retro design of new-urbanist builders
Below: Partial view of the Uplands development near Old Frederick Road when buildings were boarded

Same view after demolition. The initially saved trees are gone now as well

Stapleton housing

National Endowment of the Arts supports Station North and D Center

2011-08-13T00:10:00.000-04:00

Station North , Baltimore's premier designated Arts and Entertainment district, was awarded a $150,000, 12 month grant to support programs in the district.
D center is one of the partner organizations and hopes that this grant will lead eventually to a permanent headquarter for D center in the Station North District.

Recently D center had been successful in obtaining a "storefront grant" from the Downtown Partnership enabling the design oriented group to occupy the former Maryland Art Place Gallery space at 218 West Saratoga Street. The opening exhibit showed the results of a design competition in which entrants were asked to develop ideas how the construction of the planned Baltimore Red Line can be turned into a positive experience.The 9 months grant period on Saratoga Street represent the "training wheels" for D center's larger presence in Station North.

D center's partner organizations are the architecture departments of Morgan State University and the University of Maryland, the professional studies program of Coppin State University, the Maryland College of Art, Baltimore AIA and the Baltimore Museum of Art.

ArchPlan's Klaus Philipsen is currently chairman of the Board of D center. For more info about D center see dcenterbaltimore.com.
The Board welcomes anybody interested in design to become a friend and collaborator of D center. Start out by friending D center's Facebook page to receive updates. http://www.facebook.com/groups/dcenterbaltimore/

This is the Mayor's press release about the NEA grant:

Mayor Rawlings-Blake Congratulates the Station North Arts and Design Coalition for Receiving Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

Our Town Grant will support “Revitalizing Station North through Art and Design” project.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake congratulated the members and leadership of the Station North-based Arts and Design Coalition for winning an Our Town grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). This award is one of only 51 grants awarded nationwide. The Coalition will receive $150,000 to support a $800,000 investment to revitalize Station North through art and design.

The Our Town grant is the NEA’s latest investment in creative placemaking, through which partners from both public and private sectors come together to strategically shape the social, physical, and economic character of a neighborhood, town, city, or region around arts and cultural activities. In Baltimore, the grant will support an effort to enliven vacant lots and storefronts with creations by local artists, and monthly event to celebrate art and cultural events that take place within the Station North communities.

“Station North is a nationally recognized as the central hub of Baltimore’s arts and entertainment community,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “With the NEA’s support, the work of local artists will supplement the important investments already being made by local universities, community leaders, and small business owners to ensure the sustainable revitalization of this crucial district.”

“Communities across our country are using smart design and leveraging the arts to enhance quality of life and promote their distinctive identities,” added National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman. “In this time of national economic upheaval, Our Town provides communities an opportunity to reignite their economies.”

Located in the heart of Baltimore, Station North was the first area in the city to receive the state designation as an Arts and Entertainment District in 2002. Spanning the communities of Charles North, Greenmount West and Barclay, Station North is a diverse collection of artist live-work spaces, galleries, row homes and businesses - all just steps away from Penn Station and the light rail. A diverse coalition of nonprofits, government agencies, academic institutions, business and property owners, and community associations have been working together to establish the district as a regional destination for the arts and design, capitalizing on the district’s existing artist community, proximity to multiple transportation options including Penn Station, and adjacency to several universities.

“As a leading partner in Station North, MICA couldn’t be more thrilled about the NEA’s support of this transformational area,” said Fred Lazarus IV, President, Maryland Institute College of Art. “Fueled by the energy of MICA students, alumni and faculty and supported by the College’s Graduate Studio Center, Station North has become Baltimore’s artistic center, attracting creative individuals from across the country to take part in its development. Station North, with its galleries, performance spaces, eateries and shops, is an economic engine for the city, and with this grant, can continue to grow as a nationally recognized hub of emerging music and art.”

“The leadership of the Station North Board has recently developed a strategic plan in collaboration with the community, City, local artists, designers, business owners, and developers, and the Our Town grant will create additional momentum for Station North to continue to evolve into a center of creative energy for the Baltimore region,” said Mike Molla, Board Chair, Station North Arts & Entertainment, Inc. “With NEA support, Station North is poised to begin its second decade as a State-designated arts district on an extremely positive foot.”

“The Our Town grant enables us to accelerate the growth of arts and entertainment venues and opportunities for artistic expression within the Station North Arts and Entertainment District as other major in the redevelopment projects progress,” said Joseph McNeely, Executive Director, Central Baltimore Partnership. “In recent years, there has been nearly $500 million of development in the central Baltimore area. The artistic and cultural development has been a catalyst for that momentum. It is important that opportunities for art and design grow with the area.”

The Station North Arts and Design Coalition consists of the following partner organizations:

Station North Arts & Entertainment, Inc. manages the Station North Arts & Entertainment District by supporting artists and designers so they can thrive personally and professionally; attracting and retaining local businesses; and welcoming others from across the city and beyond to experience all the District has to offer.
Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), founded in 1826, is the oldest continuously degree-granting college of art and design in the nation. Redefining art and design education, MICA is pioneering interdisciplinary approaches to innovation, research, and community and social engagement.
The Central Baltimore Partnership marshals the talent and resources of neighborhood organizations, non-profits, educational institutions, private businesses, and city government agencies.
D: center Baltimore increases awareness and expectations for quality design in the region and facilitates connections among Baltimore residents, design professionals, artists, universities and institutions, who believe that design has the power to revitalize individuals, institutions, and communities.
The Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts produces high-quality special events, festivals and arts programming that stimulate communities economically, artistically and culturally.

The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $4 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector.

Monte Carlo in Baltimore?

2011-08-05T21:18:00.002-04:00

If you think that the Inner Harbor area has recently changed dramatically, you are right. Concrete walls and chain link fences and the cutting of hundreds of trees are signs of "great" things to come. Indy car racing downtown. "Putting Baltimore on the map" (Councilman William Cole), "Game changer" (Mayor Rawlings Blake) and "this weekend will be for hotels and restaurants like no other" (Cole again). Generally, the consensus of those in power appears to be the same as for all other mega investments that are subsidized by taxpayers: It will be good for Baltimore, it will line the pockets of business and in some kind of trickle down the city tax coffers as well as all Baltimoreans will somehow benefit form all the money that will spend by visitors. This way the millions of taxpayer money seem like a real investment, right?
Some people wondered right away what such a race weekend would do to Baltimore's newly found image as the "Greener and cleaner Baltimore", to its image of a city that loves art and music and just recently was discovered as a darling of the creative class. Then a seemingly never ending series of road construction lane closures made commuters wonder about the wisdom of spending all this money for two days of racing. Then concrete walls and chain-link fences went up in the middle of summer and make our urban "living-room" at the Inner Harbor look like a prion courtyard right in the middle of the summer travel season when the bulk of visitors come to Baltimore. Then, just last week, somewhere between 80 and 130 trees went down for grandstand construction. This seems to be the straw that might have broken the camel's neck. How many people really love Indy racing that much? Compared to the tens of thousands that are inconvenienced not just for a day or two but month after month and who find car racing repulsive, no matter where and especially downtown, a place that the same tax dollars for years have subsidized to foster walking, biking, shopping and eating, all activities totally at odds with car racing.

Not even the Indy race organizers who are the result of a merger between the original Indianapolis Speedway oval races ("Indy") and CART who like city courses are in agreement if downtown races really work for cars designed for high speed oval races. "But the American public has made it very clear they will not accept European-style road racing. It's not even an arguable point. It's a fact. I'm telling you that would be a big mistake" says one of the racing veterans. Of the 17 venues for the 2011 season only a few are downtown street races instead of races on a dedicated oval racecourse. Street races take place in Long Beach, CA and in Sao Paulo, Brazil. However from checking online, one doesn't get the impression that these course are in no setting that is nearly as sensitive as Baltimore's Inner Harbor, Convention Center and Camden Yards area. Lon Beach accommodates the race for a long time, yet official statements are somewhat subdued such as this printed in the Gazette (Montgomery County) on 8/5/2011:
In Long Beach, Calif., where organizers have hosted a Grand Prix race through the streets for nearly 40 years, the event has had a hand in turning the city from a seedy Navy town to a tourist destination where new condo buildings tower over the course.
“These events can be very providential in terms of deliverables to a city,” said Jim Michhaelian, president and CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. “That's not to say that there are no downsides or issues that arise because they're big events that take part in the (heart) of a city. Whether that enhances the redevelopment or showcases what has always (been there), all of those things are positive.”

And in regards to the comparisons to European road racing: The Grand Prix de Monaco (Monte Carlo) in business since 1929, is raced with much more civilian looking Formel 1 race cars at much lower speeds.

Thus the great event might even be casting its shadow the mayoral race in Baltimore. Although none of the candidates has yet denounced the race as foolishness. But even if everybody would agree after labor day that this was a singularly bad idea, the contract goes to 2016, one year after the new mayor's first term will have been completed.

This from organizer's webpages and Wikipedia:

The 12-turn, 2.4-mile circuit incorporates two downtown Baltimore landmarks -- the Inner Harbor and Oriole Park at Camden Yards -- and features a hairpin turn, a couple of chicanes and a long straight leading into a hard right into Turn 1 on Pratt Street.

For spectators, there are great grandstand locations in addition to a Family Fun Zone and a Sports Action Zone.

On May 5, 2010, the event was announced thus: http://www.indycar.com/news/show/55-izod-indycar-series/37225-baltimore-race-moves-closer-to-green-flag/

A plan to bring the IZOD IndyCar Series to the streets abutting Baltimore’s Inner Harbor cleared its final city hurdle May 5 as the Board of Estimates agreed to a five-year contract with Baltimore Racing Development Corp.
The panel unanimously approved $8 million in state and federal funds to prepare 2.4 miles of roads for the potential race weekend. The promoter, which must donate at least $100,000 every year to local non-profit organizations as part of the agreement, is seeking to have the sanctioning Indy Racing League add the venue to its 2011 schedule.
“We are very pleased with the outcome of the Board of Estimates’ unanimous vote as it is a key step in bringing the Indy Racing League to Baltimore in 2011,” said Terry Angstadt, the Indy Racing League’s commercial division president. “We will be working with the promoter to finalize a sanctioning agreement in the coming weeks and will announce more details regarding the future race at that time.
“Baltimore is a great fit for the Indy Racing League as it gives us a presence in the Mid-Atlantic region. Baltimore Racing Development, as well as the city of Baltimore, has been very enthusiastic throughout this process and we are confident they will put on a first-rate event to showcase the stars and cars of the IZOD IndyCar Series.”

Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake, City Council members and representatives from Baltimore Racing Development Corp. made the announcement at a news conference outside City Hall.
The promoter group estimates an influx of $250 million to the city through ticket sales, hotel stays and restaurant business over the five years as well as $11 million in direct tax revenue.
"This, my friends, is what we call a game-changer," Rawlings-Blake said.
Baltimore would join Long Beach, Calif., Sao Paulo, Brazil, St. Petersburg, Fla., Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta, as street circuit events on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule. This year’s 17-race schedule also includes road course events at Birmingham, Ala., Watkins Glen, N.Y., Sonoma, Calif., and Lexington, Ohio, plus eight oval events.
A loop of streets surrounding the scenic and busy Inner Harbor entertainment district and Oriole Park at Camden Yards (where pit lane would be located) will compose the racetrack. City transportation workers will begin preparing streets later this month – a process expected to take a year.
"This event could put Baltimore on the map for all the right reasons," Council member William Cole IV, whose district would play host to the race course, told The Baltimore Sun. "The festival atmosphere will bring people into the city who have never been here before, and the restaurants, hotels and businesses are going to have a weekend like no other."

from Wikipedia:
The 2011 Izod IndyCar Series season is the 100th season of American open wheel motor racing. The season will consist of seventeen events over the course of a seven-month season. Its premier event was the 95th Indianapolis 500, run on Sunday, May 29. The events will take place in twelve states of the United States, as well as in Canada, Brazil, and Japan.

ArchPlan TOD Projects part of National Conference Workshop

2011-08-04T22:02:00.001-04:00

The 2011 national transportation/land use conference "Railvolution" will take place in Washington DC. I worked with conference planners on the goal to make Baltimore the destination of one or several "mobile workshops".
A tour of Station North was proposed that would highlight the Arts and Entertainment District and its new investments and developments that are in part fueled by the proximity to Penn Station and its access to DC. The program was accepted and is now part of the official program as described below. The mobile workshop will include the ArchPlan designed projects of the Station North Townhomes (Somerset Development) and Printers Square (Osprey Development).

Printers Square Courtyard

Station North townhomes on Calvert Street

Printers Square as seen from Mt Royal Ave

Baltimore: Commuter Rail and the Creative ClassTuesday, October 18, 10:00 am–5:00 pm

Baltimore’s TOD story is a truly urban tale of successes, challenges, creativity, partnerships and opportunism. Ride the MARC Penn Line commuter rail which carries approximately 21,000 passengers per day to and from Baltimore. Arrive in Baltimore and explore the Station North Arts and Entertainment District including tours of adaptive re-use projects and mixed-use TOD around the transit station. Experience the area’s history at the extensive Baltimore Streetcar Museum, which includes examples of almost every major type of streetcar that ran in Baltimore until the 1960′s, and hear from neighborhood groups and developers about recent efforts to stabilize the neighborhood and reclaim status as the cultural heart of the City through community festivals, artists housing, historic re-use and rehab, mixed-use TOD, new development, and targeted public investment. Cost $60.

http://www.railvolution.org/conference-program/mobile-workshops

Post Industrial Baltimore or Rebirth of Industries with New Technologies?

2011-07-28T21:54:00.000-04:00

I have used the term post industrial city a few times myself usually thinking of Bethlehem Steel or other industrial giants that used to fuel and pollute Baltimore and give tens of thousands good paychecks. Bethlehem's sprawling peninsula jotting into the Patapsco River beyond Baltimore's Harbor is certainly the posterchild of old industry with its smoke belching blast furnaces, its flows of liquid iron and blackened factory shacks. Yet, even steel making is still alive in Baltimore and, actually, with only a tenth of workers, and in the hands of Russian steel giant Severstal, almost as much steel is made on Sparrows Point as in Bethlehem's heydays. http://www.makingsteel.com/sun.html.
But then, can and should Johns Hopkins Hospital (now Maryland's largest employer) or MICA (Baltimore's "coolest" college) really replace manufacturing? Should knowledge, creativity and ideas be a substitute for making actual physical things? In the virtual age, can people really exist without products that take up actual three dimensional space? Should what is made really always be made in China?

The SavWatt Building, housing the University of Maryland, Offices and manufacturing


Wicomico Street at Carroll Camden is testimony of a glorious past where industrial products came				and went by rail right to the door

SavWatt, a new company in the market of the emerging technology of LED lighting (light emitting diodes) doesn't seem to think that manual labor or assembly is dead in Baltimore. http://savwatt.com/. Today they opened their corporate headquarter in Carroll Camden, an old industrial area just south of Pigtown. On Wicomico Street is a wonderfully sturdy concrete building with 8 floors. It was made for manufacturing with heavy columns and thick floors and its own rail track entering the first floor.

The company employs only 30 people to date and certainly enters a crowded market. Nothing is really made here in Baltimore, diodes are just assembled to become modern light fixtures. Yet, this company shows that there is use for these old industrial buildings, that there are jobs for making things and that made in the USA doesn't have to be just nostalgia, not in the country and not in Baltimore. And that the product being made here can be a product with a bright future. Literally.

The Stuttgart Station Saga Continues

2011-07-24T22:03:00.002-04:00

Protest around the station last year

Some discover their love when it comes to saying good bye. So it is with the Stuttgart main rail station (Hauptbahnhof) lovers. Its 16 tracks teaming with arriving and departing trains day and night, it was never considered a particular jewel until Deutsche Bahn decided that it should change the head in station into a through station. Now some consider it even a world historic monument (Weltkulturerbe).

Through movement had been already accomplished for the regional commuter trains (S Bahn) by putting those underground and running them under downtown and up steep hills until they surface miles away in Vaihingen. But the high speed rail (ICE) trains still pull into the station and then back out in a big Y movement, naturally not conducive to speed and expediency even though these modern ICE units have no engines and are reversible like streetcars.

The envisioned station would run the tracks and trains perpendicular to the current platforms and free the entire rail mumbo jumbo that is needed for the current in and out operation for new inner urban development. However, since the new underground alignment has to miss all kinds of obstacles in its way it is rather shallow which in turn requires that the north wing of the current horse shoe shaped station building has to come down. Its demolition set off all the grand protests of last year that made even the German Chancellor comment in far away Berlin and seemed to shake the very foundation of German democracy. Now in the light of the Euro crisis and the financial woes all around, things look a little less dramatic except for the green governor of Baden Wuerttemberg (Where Stuttgart is the capital) who was swept into power in part thanks to the nuclear question brought back to the top of concerns after the Japanese earthquake and in part thanks to Stuttgart 21.
He has to preside over this project now that he never wanted to proceed. "Pacta sunt servanda" says German Rail and especially so after the station plans passed the "stress test" for capacity that came out of an arbitration process. Stress tests are all the rage in Europe, not only this station had to pass one, so had all major European banks and all nuclear power plants. It remains to be seen how Governor Kretschmann (Ministerpraesident) will deal with the stress that this causes him.
A poll published in the local Stuttgart paper on 7/25 finds that public opinion has markedly shifted and that now more people (43%) want the new station than not (34%). The love for the old station wings seems to be fading.

The main concourse of the station which will remain

The south-wing and tower. The wing beyond the tower will be demolished

Stuttgart 21 passes test as opponents balk

Published: 21 Jul 11 15:39 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20110721-36455.html

The conflict over the Stuttgart 21 railway project flared up again on Thursday when opponents to the plan said they would not take part in the presentation of a ‘stress test’ report on how it would function, branding it nothing more than a show.

Opposition representatives Brigitte Dahlbender and Hannes Rockenbauch said they would boycott next Tuesday’s presentation of the test's result, which apparently is set to green-light the controversial revamp of Stuttgart's main train station.

The crucial section of the long-awaited report of Swiss engineering firm SMA was leaked to the press on Thursday – and it supports the claim of railway operator Deutsche Bahn that the project could result in at least 30 percent increased capacity.

“Our review of the simulation results has shown that the required 49 arrivals in Stuttgart main station during the busiest hours, and using the provided timetable, with economically optimal quality of operation, can be achieved,” said the report’s decisive sentence.

“We are happy with the result,” said Wolfgang Dietrich, the project’s spokesman.

But Stuttgart 21 opponents said the report was worthless as it did not examine how the new underground station would perform in the case of problems or emergencies. “A stress test without any stress does not deserve the label stress test,” said Rockenbauch.

They have now also walked out of the arbitration talks, chaired by Heiner Geißler, which were started after weeks of protests in Stuttgart last year. The rail project controversy contributed to the election of a Green-led coalition for the state of Baden-Wüttemberg in March.

Deutsche Bahn, the state government, Geißler and opponents had met three times in the last weeks to prepare for the presentation of the report, but opponents have been complaining about a lack of information from the side of the railway.

They also criticized Geißler, saying he was not as neutral as they had thought. He in turn said they were making a mistake by leaving the forum.

Stuttgart 21 consists of a massive construction effort, involving rebuilding the city’s main train station underground and turning it around 90 degrees, as well as laying 57 kilometres of new tracks. The aim is to make the city a major European rail hub.

The official price tag is capped at €4.5 billion but some media reports suggest the true cost may be higher. Opponents have continued to mount protests against the project over the past year, calling it too expensive and unnecessary.

Bürgerumfrage der Stadt Mehrheit der Stuttgarter für Stuttgart 21

StZ, vom 25.07.2011 12:11 Uhr

Die relative Mehrheit der Stuttgarter ist für das Projekt Stuttgart 21 - Details und weitere Ergebnisse der Bürgerumfrage 2011 (Quelle: Statistisches Amt der Stadt Stuttgart) erfahren Sie in unserer Bildergalerie. Foto: Visualisierung: Aldinger & Wolf

Stuttgart - Vier Tage vor der auf Freitag verschobenen Präsentation des Stuttgart-21-Stresstests hat die Stadtverwaltung am Montag im Rathaus den ersten Teil der jüngsten Bürgerumfrage vorgestellt - mit durchaus überraschenden Ergebnissen. Demnach ist in der Landeshauptstadt ein "bemerkenswerter Stimmungswandel" bei den Bürgern zu dem umstrittenen Bahnprojekt Stuttgart 21 festzustellen. "Das Meinungsbild hat sich gedreht, die positiven Äußerungen überwiegen mittlerweile deutlich", erklärte Stuttgarts Ordnungsbürgermeister Martin Schairer am Montag.

Bei der letzten Umfrage im Jahr 2009 hatten noch insgesamt 47 Prozent der Befragten eine negative (schlecht oder sehr schlecht) und nur 29 Prozent eine positive Meinung (gut oder sehr gut) über Stuttgart 21 abgegeben. In der aktuellen Statistik hat sich dieses Meinungsbild nun gedreht: So haben insgesamt 43 Prozent der 4300 Befragten, die den Fragebogen an das Statistische Amt der Landeshauptstadt zurückgeschickt haben, erklärt, eine "sehr gute" oder "gute" Meinung von dem Gesamtprojekt zu haben. Nur noch 34 Prozent äußerten eine schlechte Meinung.

Auf die Skala des sogenannten Kommunalbarometers umgerechnet ergibt sich für Stuttgart 21 damit bei hundert möglichen Punkten ein Ergebnis von 53, dem höchsten Wert seit 1995 (57 Punkte). Seinen schlechtesten Wert hatte das S-21-Barometer, in dem aus den abgegebenen Meinungen ein Mittelwert berechnet wird, im Jahr 2009 mit 41 Punkten angezeigt. Die höchste Zustimmung hat das Projekt nun bei der Gruppe der 18- bis 25-Jährigen erreicht, die geringste bei den 45- bis 65-Jährigen. Fast die Hälfte der insgesamt 8600 ausgewählten Stuttgarterinnen und Stuttgarter haben sich an der jüngsten Umfrage beteiligt, so viele wie noch nie in der Stadtgeschichte. "Das ist die bisher höchste Teilnahmequote bei einer Bürgerumfrage", betonte der Leiter des Statistischen Amtes, Thomas Schwarz. Die Erhebung entspreche damit in hohem Maß allen wissenschaftlichen Ansprüchen an Repräsentativität.

Positive Grundstimmung gegenüber neuen Planungen

Wie schon bei der vergangenen Bürgerumfrage hat die Stadt erneut neben der Gesamtbeurteilung des Projekts auch das Meinungsbild zu den drei Teilaspekten von Stuttgart 21 abgefragt: dem Umbau des Hauptbahnhofs und dem Bau der Schnellbahntrasse, dem neuen Stadtviertel auf dem frei werdenden Areal sowie der Erweiterung von Rosensteinpark und Schlossgarten. Bei allen drei Vorhaben sei die Bewertung gleichermaßen deutlich positiver ausgefallen als noch bei der vergangenen Umfrage, so Bürgermeister Schairer.

Die Gründe für den vollzogenen Meinungsumschwung liegen für den Ordnungsbürgermeister einerseits in der "Aufklärungsarbeit und der intensiven Auseinandersetzung mit dem Projekt", etwa während der Schlichtungsgespräche. "Die Bürger haben sich informiert und überzeugen lassen." Allen voran führt Schairer den Sinneswandel aber auf "die gute Stimmung in der Stadt gegenüber Großprojekten" zurück, die positiver denn je sei: "Die Stuttgarter Bürger zeigen sich offensichtlich sehr aufgeschlossen gegenüber städtischen Vorhaben. Wir fühlen uns dadurch bestätigt."

Tatsächlich ist das Kommunalbarometer in der jüngsten Umfrage bei ausnahmslos allen abgefragten Großprojekten, vom nach wie vor umstrittenen Rosensteintunnel bis zur Bibliothek 21 und dem neuen Stadtquartier auf dem ehemaligen Messegelände am Killesberg, teilweise deutlich gestiegen. Spitzenreiter in der Wertung geplanter Projekte ist der "Ausbau des Stadtbahnnetzes" mit 78 Punkten, aber auch der Neubau des Klinikums auf dem Gelände des Katharinenhospitals hat mit 74 Punkten eine breite Zustimmung erfahren, genauso wie die Weiterentwicklung des Neckarparks. Am schlechtesten abgeschnitten hat der Umbau der Mercedes-Benz-Arena in ein reines Fußballstadion. Das Jahr 2009 sei durch die Wirtschaftskrise geprägt gewesen, verbunden mit Sorgen um die Finanzen, so Schairer. Das habe sich negativ auf die Bereitschaft zu Investitionen ausgewirkt. Die gute wirtschaftliche Entwicklung habe nun wieder zu einer positiven Grundstimmung gegenüber neuen Planungen und Vorhaben geführt.

Rowhouses Reincarnated

2011-07-20T21:52:00.001-04:00

Even after having surveyed over a hundred Baltimore rowhouses and designed the "full gut" rehab plans for them, there always new experiences.

In the latest twist ArchPlan designed rowhouses for homeowners in the EBDI area which want to return to their homes after the work is done and who get the work paid by the East Baltimore Development Inc. at the same tune as those who moved away received "relocation funds". After up to nine months in temporary quarters and after reviewing the construction process a couple of times these homeowners recently returned ecstatically to the fully refurbished places. In one case we combined two narrow houses horizontally for an artist studio in a former corner store and expanded living quarters upstairs. The result is stunning!

In West Baltimore's National Register Historic District we tried out the use of the Homeowner Historic Tax Credits offered by the State. The twist: These were used in the "developer option", i.e. by the Druid Heights Community Development Corporation for a group of ten. ArchPlan prepared the plans, filed for the tax credit and oversees the construction. Once completed these homes will be sold to individual first time home buyers as affordable units. It is the home-buyer who will actually get the the tax credit, effectively a write down of the full purchase price.

However, we learned that this is not a simple process, especially when these houses start out as unstable devastated shells that one cannot even enter due to their poor condition. Yet, careful documentation of the historic features, room by room is a prerequisite by the Maryland Historic Trust who oversees the tax credit program. When floors have fallen into the basement and there is no roof then room by room documentation is hard to do. Yet, the rehabs must have historically correct wood windows, wood floors, casework and base boards and cornices. Stairs need newel posts and balusters matching exactly whatever damaged elements are visible on the photos taken of the initial wreckage. Over and over we had to send amendments and additional documentation to the Trust trying to establish what was there and what not. But now, with the houses about finished, the result seems well worth it. Unlike the cheap vinyl ersatz "town"-houses out in the boonies, these houses have stature and character with their marble steps, marble wainscots in the vestibules, parlors with sliding doors brick fronts and double entry doors.

Now the development corporation has to find buyers who can qualify for funding and are willing to move into blocks with still many remaining vacant houses and are able to maintain their new property. Another challenge.

Yet, only if we are willing to have the patience and endurance to fill the city back block by block with folks that prefer urban living over suburban townhouses without towns will we be able to contain sprawl, stabilize once glorious neighborhoods, bring services back into "food deserts", reduce the tax rates and bring Baltimore back as a great city.

Condition of a house before rehab: Where are the historic features?

No roof, no floors

EBDI rowhouse: two houses connected

EBDI double: Second floor hallway

Restored newel post in rehabbed West Baltimore home