Ecomodal transportation hubs

San Francisco’s Transbay Terminal (2015) – Source: urbika.com

This post summarizes several ideas that could be employed to facilitate the establishment of sustainable transportation hubs where intermodal cross-movement between multiple green (or active) transportation options takes place with ease. In a nutshell, these facilities are described by using the term “Ecomodal Hub.”  Strategically placed on a brownfield, adaptable, or vacant site within the urban area, it is believed such hubs would establish the necessary infrastructure and coordination to accelerate the conversion of more commuters from single-occupant automobiles to clean and green commuting alternatives.

At the heart of the Ecomodal Hub would be a solar-powered and/or green-roofed hub station for commuters/travelers who are transferring between transportation options to wait and relax in a safe, environmentally efficient, and sheltered environment. Most Ecomodal Hubs would not need to be as enormous or complex as San Francisco’s  Transbay Terminal which is shown in the photo above. Much smaller and less expensive and less complex versions could be developed in cities of varying size. In some instances a vacant parcel or parking lot could easily be transformed into an Ecomodal Hub given the right parameters.

The building’s interior would have appropriate conveniences such as seating, free wi-fi and computer/laptop recharging sites, restrooms, changing/shower facilities, ATM, coffee shop/snack bar/newsstand, storage lockers, security, ticket terminals, intermodal arrival/departure display monitors, and similar resources. Outside of the hub station would be a solar-lighted/heated transit/intercity bus shelter for each direction of the adjacent route(s); a minimum of six sheltered solar-powered EV charging/plug-in stations; sheltered bicycle parking racks; a quick-fix bicycle service station; a taxicab stand; and a minimum of 50 carpool/vanpool parking spaces.

Alternative energy vehicles shall be given priority parking locations along with those for the disabled nearest the hub station. Throughout the site, appropriate and native landscaping would be utilized for cooling/shade in the summer months and to deflect winter winds whenever practical. Recycling and waste containers will be located throughout the interior and exterior of the site and all exterior lighting would be solar-powered, as well. Gray water from the hub station will be used for the trees and plantings.

For those cities fortunate enough to have commuter rail or light rail, every attempt should be made to link the Ecomodal Hub to a railroad passenger station. Otherwise, it should be situated in close proximity. Ecomodal Hubs should also be located adjacent to or very close to important transit routes and major bicycle commuting corridors/trails.

Any other thoughts and ideas on this topic are most welcome. Thanks!

“Jetson’s cool” EV charging service stations

Source: postcarbon.org

At the bottom of this post are several conceptual designs for EV (electric vehicle) charging stations. Needless to say, many resemble something out of the futuristic 1960s cartoon series, The Jetsons. Each has its own unique twist on the concept of a service center designed specifically for recharging electric vehicles. This urban planner will not be at all surprised to see such facilities popping up at an intersection or interchange near you soon, especially in Europe and America’s West Coast where the most early adopters of this amazing technology reside.

I particularly like the fact that most of the designs shown below employ solar power for generating the electricity. Such facilities would hardly be clean and green if their primary power source was a coal-fired power plant.

I am a bit surprised (and very pleased) that none of the Big Oil players have not dipped their toes into this realm (at least here in the states), but that may change over time. To this eco-dude, the longer they stay out of this niche, the better.

My hope is the bulk of the profits will not come from the electricity for recharging, but instead from the conveniences sold and/or repair services. If swap-out rechargeable batteries become the norm, then a fair share of the profits may come from that service, as well. Either way, EV charging service stations are a new land use that planners will need to start formulating and/or updating codes to properly address.

Tesla design – Source: ukerc.ac.uk

Source: green.autoblog.com

Source: knoxnews.com

Source: knoxnews.com

Source: inhabit.com

Source: green.autoblog.com

Source: ecofriend.com

Leading the charge – states with the most EV charging stations

thedallassocials.com

Below is a list of the 25 states with the most electric vehicle charging stations installed and operational as of April 25, 2013 according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center. This data does not include single-family residential charging stations.

It is interesting to note that the only state without any charging stations is Wyoming – a major fossil fuel producing state. But on the other hand, Texas does have the second largest number of stations.

To this author, probably the most surprising statistic in this list is Tennessee being ranked sixth with 782 charging stations. Though after more thought, I remembered that Nissan is situated in Smyrna, Tennessee and produces the all-electric Leaf there.

Congratulations to all those states that made the Top 25, especially those in the Top 10 – very happy to see Michigan among that elite group and well ahead of any other state in the Great Lakes Region.

1. California – 4,245
2. Texas – 1,464
3. Washington – 1,162
4. Florida – 880
5. Oregon – 850
6. Tennessee – 782
7. Arizona – 755
8. Michigan – 678
9. New York – 524
10. North Carolina – 505
11. Illinois – 500
12. Massachusetts – 473
13. Maryland – 441
14. Hawaii – 343
15. Virginia – 317
16. Pennsylvania – 259
17. Georgia – 219
18. Colorado – 212
19. South Carolina – 210
20. New Jersey – 207
21. Wisconsin – 200
22. Connecticut – 176
23. Indiana – 170
24. Minnesota – 159
25. Ohio -153

Total nationally – 16,936

Source: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/stations_counts.html

Source: solarfeeds.com

American as baseball, hot dogs, and vodka – Spy towns of the Cold War

en.wikipedia.org

I always find it interesting how certain blog post ideas come to me. This one was totally on a lark. I was watching NCIS Los Angeles Tuesday night and near the end of the episode, Hetty and Callen were in a discussion where she referenced a Soviet-era Cold War city in the Ukraine named VinnytsIa. Near this city, the KGB designed, built, and operated as a typical American suburban town for the sole purpose of training and educating deep cover spies. While this historical factoid was not entirely new to me, it did create the spark of an idea for writing this post – so here we are.

Needless to say, in 2013 it is rather hard to imagine replicating a slice of Americana in the middle of the Soviet Union, but sure enough, it was done. It also begs the question as to whether the United States did the exact same thing here or in one of our allied counties as a way to train spies for their deep cover work behind the Iron Curtain. I have never heard of replicated Soviet-style communities here, but give the politics and fear-factor(s) of the time, it would not surprise me in the least.

After some research using the internet it appears that the amount of verifiable information written on the topic is limited, other than by conspiracy theorists. However, I did find a 1959 Time magazine story about Vinnytsia which confirms the existence of the spy training town located there. I also found 2010 articles from both the New York Post and New York magazine when Anna Chapman (alias Anna Kuschenko) and 10 other Russian spies were caught, that describes one of these towns closely resembling Chevy Chase, Maryland and other American suburbs. Apparently, these towns include everything from a replica McDonald’s or 7-eleven, to American television programs. Here is a weblink to video on YouTube of an old Cold War-era CIA film on the topic.

If anyone has more information on other such artificial communities, in the former Soviet Union, the United States, or elsewhere around the planet, please feel free to pass the information along. As an urban planner, it would be fascinating to learn what communities aside from Chevy Chase, Maryland were used as role models for a typical American town and how many there were/are. It’s an unusual aspect of urban planning history that certainly deserves more documentation and an historical record to be established and preserved.

The places in-between

Source: voices.washingtonpost.com

As the world continues to become more urbanized, the places in-between these pulsating urban areas are often overlooked as just blips along the expressway or dots 30,000 feet below us. While some of these places are hanging on with some sense of vigor, others are wasting away into dust. Far too often, most of us only see these places on a cursory level, never really understanding their history, culture, sense of community, or place in society. We dismiss them as the boondocks, the boonies, podunk, hicktown, nowheresville, and many other disparaging terms. Sadly, before long, many smaller places in between may no longer be economically sustainable and will rendered to the dustbin of history. Considering how many of us actually have roots in such communities, that would be the equivalent of allowing very own our ancestry to disappear.

Personally, I have ancestors from in-between places called Mount. Joy, Palestine, New Hebron, Fortville, Dansville, and Bancroft. None of these towns are household names, but that does not make them any less important – it just means they exist underneath the radar, going about their business without making a fuss or commotion. Of these, Mount Joy is certainly the healthiest as a suburb of Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Fortville is a growing suburb of Indianapolis. The other communities…who knows their long-term outlook? None of them appears to have benefitted from geographic good fortune. I am certain many of you reading this post have relatives or ancestors who live in the places in-between, whether you are from India, Canada, the United States, Australia, England, Russia, Brazil, or anywhere else on this planet.

In some instances, the places in-between consist of entire regions. Regions which were once vibrant, now lack the panache of a digital society or are no longer in vogue and have fallen out of favor. In the United States, portions of Appalachia, the Rust Belt, and the Great Plains are nearly treated like pariah. Certain regions of the many other nations face the same disdain from the modern populace.  While regions certainly will not disappear from the map, they suffer a death all the same – not physically, but of the spirit and the vitality once known.

I am not advocating for the wholesale redistribution of the population back to its rural roots. That would be an unwise move on a number of levels. But, I am saying we need to be conscious of the fact that the entire legacy of multiple generations is fading away right in front of our eyes. Once it is gone, it will be gone forever. Perhaps, just perhaps, we should be a little less condescending towards those small places in between the bright lights of the big city. Perhaps, we should strive to build and/or enhance the oral and written history of these places before they are swept away by time. And perhaps, we should occasionally take the road less traveled now and then to patronize the places in-between versus the chain store schlock routinely found along expressways and in the big city. Our individual actions could spell the difference between a community’s ultimate survival or its demise. And we all know, that’s already an obituary that is too often being written.

“Bad” can be good

Source: badbrewing.com

I recently made a short trip south to a newer craft brewer located in the Ingham County seat of Mason, Michigan. The Bad Brewing Company opened in mid-2012 in a handsome historic building just off Courthouse Square. I’ll be honest from the start and say that I think the brewery’s name is a “bad” choice and something more enticing or thought-provoking could have and should have been chosen – something like Sycamore Creek Brewing, Mason Esker Brewing, or Courthouse Square Brewing. It also seems to me that you put yourself at a branding and advertising disadvantage right away by calling yourself “bad.”

However, beyond my quibbling with the name, the building interior has been tastefully renovated and restored with a very pleasing décor that successfully showcases the original brick work. While the brewery does not serve meals and is one of the smaller brewing establishments I have visited (maximum capacity of 49), they have a steady local clientele, serve some snacks, and allow guest to bring in their take-out meals from the nearby restaurants to enjoy at the brewery while nursing one of their beers (exactly what we did – deli sandwiches from The Vault).

One of my favorite features of the Bad Brewing Company is the way the taps are connected to a beer barrel placed atop the bar (see photo). With all the breweries, brewpubs, pubs, and bars I have visited in my quest for great craft beers, this is the first time I had seen such an intriguing and creative design. Well done! In addition, the staff is very friendly and there is a variety of crafted beers to choose from that should satisfy most taste buds.

Next time you are in Mid-Michigan, try following the road less traveled to the Bad Brewing Company in Mason. The brewery’s chosen name belies its status as quite a nice addition to Michigan’s growing plethora of craft brewers.

The price we pay for our disposable ways

Source: blog.preservationnation.org

If you are an urban planner and have not listened to the Tuesdays at APA podcasts, you really should. A number of these have been superb presentations that provide valuable insights.

The podcast I listened to over the past Easter weekend is one of best of all. Entitled, The Greenest Building: Quantifying the Environmental Value of Building Reuse, Patrice Frey from the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Green Lab pinpoints dirty little secrets of our disposable society regarding buildings. Among the key points made by Ms. Frey were:

If current trends continue, approximately 27 percent of the 320 billion existing buildings in the nation will be demolished by 2030.

Forty-one percent of all energy usage in our nation is from buildings (commercial, office, residential, etc.).

New single-family homes (even energy-efficient ones) take at least 35 years to offset their carbon impacts from construction and less efficient ones can take up to 50 years.

While an improvement over homes, commercial buildings still take a minimum of 20 years to offset their carbon impacts from construction.

Meanwhile, a retrofitted building’s carbon impacts can be offset in as little as three years.

Until the 2000s, new homes from every prior decade were less energy-efficient on a per square foot basis than those built before 1930.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, commercial buildings have improved their energy efficiency on a per square foot basis over time.

The improved carbon impacts from just one retrofitted home compared to a new house may appear small, but when scaled for the number of demolitions and new construction taking place each year, represents  a significant energy and environmental savings.

These blunt findings were startling to me and should give great pause to all planners, environmentalists, builders, and communities worldwide.

Cities are alive with the sound of music!

Source: 500days of night.com

Thursday evening I had the chance to attend a seminar entitled, Music’s Impact on the Community. This superb and fascinating event was held at Michigan State University’s Center Community and Economic Development in Greater Lansing.

Not only did the program present useful research by Professor David Sheridan, but also a firsthand account from a local hip-hop performer.  The latter added exceptional insight into the promises and pitfalls of the music industry from the perspective of an emerging artist, Jahshua Smith.

Source: jahshuasmith.bandcamp.com

Among the key points noted during this event were:

Music is:

• an Industry, as it has a product, deliverables, technologies, and a distribution network;
• an Attractor of tourists and human capital (talent, creative, knowledgeable, and skilled);
• a Brand, as it can become synonymous with a community and its very identity – examples include:

Detroit (Motown and Techno)

Nashville (Country)

Seattle (Grunge)

Cleveland (Rock n’ Roll)

Austin (live performance)

Owensboro (Bluegrass); and

• a Nurturer of Creativity that has economic development benefits

• Budding artists need places (venues) to hone their craft. Open microphone nights are an excellent opportunity for this, but helps if there is “buy-in” from established musicians.  Smaller markets like Lansing are great locations to learn, improve, practice, receive feedback, and become established, as there is less competition and less of a music establishment.

Elliot Street Lunatic

• The internet has made it easier to be a musician but harder to stand out from the crowd.

The Verve Pipe – lastfm.com

• Music is a great way to get people together from various backgrounds in one place for a common goal.

The Hard Lessons – capitalgainsmedia.com

• Michigan State University provides Greater Lansing with a revolving door of fresh music talent to enjoy.

Source: ced.msu.edu

• Greater Lansing has excellent small venues and large venues that allow music to grow from the bottom up, but what it really needs is a mid-sized (approx.. 1,000 seat) venue.

A trek to Eagle Monk Brewpub

Last Friday afternoon, my middle son and I decided to partake the food and  craft beers at a newish brewpub in Greater Lansing called Eagle Monk. It is located on the west side of town along Mt. Hope Highway and just opened for business approximately seven months ago. While perhaps not as dazzling as other brewpubs I have visited, Eagle Monk has excellent beer (we both really liked the flavorful Irish Red), and very tasty Panini sandwiches, as well as pizza. In addition, the interior is quite inviting and friendly – I particularly like the beer mugs hanging from rafters and the carved woodwork displayed for sale on the walls.  According to our server, the pub rotates artists each month.

When asked about the origin of the name, the server indicated the owner wanted to represent both American patriotism (hence the Eagle) and beer brewing tradition (hence the Monk). All in all, it is very nice to have another craft brewing choice in the Greater Lansing marketplace. Both Eagle Monk and yet to be visited Bad Brewing in Mason opened during 2012 and have added new options to the surprisingly limited home-grown beer options here for being the site of a major university like Michigan State.

All the best to Eagle Monk as they build their regular clientele – given the number of mugs hanging from the rafters, it appears they have a great base to build from.  Kudos on some terrific beers and dining options!  We definitely plan to return for more.

Are we there yet? – Destination retailers on “Holiday Road”

Source: odesseyroad.com

Last weekend (March 23-24) I joined  the hordes of shoppers visiting America’s newest Cabela’s store in Grand Rapids (Grandville), Michigan. Needless to say, the place was absolutely packed. This did not surprise me in the least, as the Cabela’s name can instantly bring recognition and tourism dollars to a community, as well as a good helping of economic investment to spur spin-off establishments.

Over the past couple of decades, destination retailing has grown from a few individual outposts along the Holiday Road (see music video above) like Wall Drug in Wall, South Dakota and the original Cabela’s in Sidney, Nebraska to a competitive economic development battleground across the country. Cities and states vie for destination retailers much as they do professional sports teams, airline service, tech firms, and corporate headquarters.  Today, there are Cabela’s in 25 states and three provinces (see map below), Bass Pro Shops in 31 states and two provinces. Ron Jon Surf Shops with 12 locations in four states (see photo below), and an IKEA in 37 countries.

Source: cabelas.com/stores/stores_home.jsp

These four are among the most recognizable destination retailers in the country, but certainly not the only ones. Often, individual states will have a destination retailer that everyone knows about. Examples include:

• Bart’s Watersports in the North Webster, Indiana
• Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth, Michigan
• Jelly Belly in Fairfield, California and Kenosha (Pleasant Prairie), Wisconsin
• L.L. Bean in Freeport, Maine
• Precious Moments in Carthage, Missouri
• Vermont Teddy Bear Company in Shelburne, Vermont
• Waccamaw Pottery in Myrtle beach, South Carolina (ceased operations in 2001)
• Wall Drug of Wall, South Dakota

Source: images.businesswekk.com

Some destination retailers are completely emblematic of their entire home community, such as Wall Drug where you cannot hardly drive 50 miles without seeing a Wall Drug billboard in the Upper Midwest and Great Plains. Upon visiting this Western icon, one quickly notices there are few other choices in this windswept Badlands town of 766 residents.

An excellent example of the economic development spin-off potential of a destination retailer can be seen in Dundee, Michigan, which is home to one of the largest Cabela’s stores anywhere. Since the store’s opening, a number of ancillary land uses have popped up around the store and the adjacent U.S. 23 & M-50 interchange. These include hotels, a water park, many restaurants, stores and shops, and gas stations/convenience stores. Given Dundee’s 2010 population of 3,957, there are many more shops and services than the town itself could possibly support on its own. Similar examples can be seen anywhere a destination retailer places its footprint.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Sooner or later, some of the more geographically dispersed destination retailers will become limited on the number of new, viable locations to choose from without adversely impacting existing stores. However, that won’t reduce their vast draw on holiday travelers, avid customers, and tourists alike, from stopping and shopping there on a regular basis.

International expansion and specialized stores in smaller markets are other options the larger destination retailers can consider. For single-site destination retailers and those with smaller geographic footprints, risks include expanding too quickly (a.k.a. Waccamaw), reductions in travel from higher fuel prices, and not keeping up with ever-changing consumer tastes or technological advancements.

Source: roadsideamerica.com

As Dundee, Michigan and similar locations can attest, the arrival of a destination retailer can bring about a commercial development boomlet in the community and create stresses on infrastructure such as roads, school, and utilities. For urban planners this means getting a grasp on the development pressures as soon as possible by updating the master plan, zoning regulations, and other codes. In some cases, if growth is outpacing the ability to effectively review plans, a moratorium might be in order, where it is permitted by law.

For many travelers and tourists on the holiday road (including this blogger), destination retailers are a fun, entertaining, and enjoyable place to take a break from many miles of driving. For other holiday road warriors, they are “the vacation destination” in itself. Either way, these stores and shops can be an engine of community growth, investment, and economic development which generate a variety of employment opportunities. Provided these rapid changes are addressed in a professional and insightful manner, the destination retailer can be a positive addition to the local economy with minimal negative land use impacts.