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Eric Miller on 01.31.06 @ 05:50 PM PST [link]  

Old city neighborhoods are thriving while middle-aged suburbs decline. Tomorrow's Cities, Tomorrow's Suburbs, published by the American Planning Association (APA), analyzed metro areas and found that by 2000, older neighborhoods (pre-1940s) have made comebacks, while many suburbs have sunk lower in relative income than poor cities like Detroit. The 337-page book is by William H. Lucy and David L. Phillips, professors of urban planning at the University of Virginia. The two have spent more than 20 years studying city and suburban trends.

Of the 2,586 suburbs and 35 large metropolitan areas analyzed, the authors found that 155 suburbs were worse off than Detroit, with per capita incomes of less than 60 percent of their metropolitan area's income. Detroit was used as a benchmark for cities with problems because it had the lowest ratio of city residents' per capita income to metropolitan income in 2000.

Additionally, the authors report that more than 50 percent of suburbs in the study had declined faster, or increased slower than their central cities in relative per capita income.

Suburban malaise measured by suburban income decline was especially severe in the Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Miami, Orlando, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, D.C., metropolitan areas, where 50 percent or more of the suburbs lagged behind their central cities relative income performance between 1990 and 2000.

Neighborhoods built between 1940 and 1990 were much more likely to decline in relative family income than were pre-1940 neighborhoods. Approximately half of pre-1940 neighborhoods were going up in relative family income during the 1990s in the six metropolitan areas (Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Richmond, and Washington, D.C.) where the authors analyzed income changes in census tracts. In contrast, more than 75 percent of neighborhoods built substantially during the 1960s were going down in relative family income during the 1990s.

The authors partially attribute city revival to the ability to attract more middle- and upper-income households. Faster revival of old neighborhoods is likely within the next decade because cities have been good at attracting empty nesters, middle-aged neighborhoods dominated by small houses are now considered obsolete, and fewer people believe the best neighborhoods are formed from isolated detached houses in an auto-dependent suburban development.

In the book, the authors attribute suburban decline partially to the size of available housing, citing the increase in the median size of a new house from 1,100 square feet in 1950 to 2,000 square feet in 2000. The authors theorize that suburbs dominated by housing built between 1945 and 1970 will likely have trouble attracting and retaining middle-income households since larger housing stock became more readily available in the 1990s.

Another reason for future suburban decline may be increasing awareness that the exurbs are proving to be more dangerous than the central cities. "Our research in 10 large metropolitan areas shows that in each area, one or more exurban counties had more deaths associated with leaving home, mainly traffic deaths, than occur in central cities from the combination of traffic deaths and homicides by strangers."

Additionally, the authors caution that when parents realize the perceived safety of cul-de-sac neighborhoods is in fact "bogus," support for families preferring suburbs may erode further.

While the authors' book focuses on analysis of the 2000 census data, Lucy and Phillips did analyze data from the new American Community Survey of the U.S. Bureau of the Census. Early data analysis for 20 large cities indicates cities continued to experience revivals between 2000 and 2003.

The authors argue that opportunities for condominium ownership have influenced middle-income residents' location decisions. Increased availability of condo ownership is partially a result of changing consumer preferences, but also partly a belated adaptation by developers to provide a housing ownership opportunity that has been underserved in many metropolitan housing markets. According to Lucy and Phillips, where developers respond to this condo market demand, as many more have done since the 2000 census, central cities are more likely to make comebacks that can be measured by increases in relative income.

The book is a celebration of city revivals, and a cautionary tale about the continuing decline of middle-aged suburbs. The authors offer detailed census analysis for cities and suburbs, and suggestions and applications to help continue city revival and stabilize declining middle-aged suburbs.

Eric Miller on 01.31.06 @ 05:02 PM PST [link]  

For the fun of it, we've set up a new poll in our NewColonistNews group. In the spirit of football we ask, which is the better city, Pittsburgh or Seattle? Vote

Eric Miller on 01.25.06 @ 11:48 AM PST [link]  

I met some neighbors for a pre-dinner drink Friday. They were hosting someone visiting from Japan here to learn about affordable housing programs in the U.S. Pittsburgh is of course filled with affordable housing (to get an idea, visit link. So with so much housing available, why are condos, priced significantly higher, selling so well. My neighbor wondered at what point the market would be saturated with condos. With three thousand scheduled to come online in the near term, how many would remain unsold? "All those and more will sell and be occupied," I responded.

This morning's paper had some information that helps explain why. "Allegheny County has 12,000 people turning 60 this year, according to the 2000 census, with another 354,000 boomers to follow in their wake over the next 18 years."

Some might want to spend the golden years mowing lawns in distant suburbs, but countless others want a more convenient life in a place where someone else takes care of the building. And hey, you can walk outside and get a bite to eat or see a show.

At least in Pittsburgh, the condo boom is in its infancy.

Eric Miller on 01.22.06 @ 08:43 AM PST [link]  

Great cities to live in are supported by great transit systems. These transit systems are centered on extensive netwoks of light-rail and subway lines rather than buses. These notions are supported by a recent Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article that outlines increases gained in Port Authority (Allegheny County) ridership following sustained higher gasoline prices.

The gasoline prices, the article concludes, have lead to increased transit ridership. More, rail ridership in Pittsburgh and elsewhere had an increase more than twice that of transit ridership over-all (which means buses had an even smaller percentage increase).

This reaffirms two of my already held notions.

1. Imposing gasoline tax's (as roadway user fees rather than subsidies) will serve to boost transit ridership (and thus help clean the air and slow co2 emmissions that cause global warming).

2. Those who would otherwise drive much prefer rail over buses.

Eric Miller on 01.21.06 @ 04:09 PM PST [link]  

A citizen¡¯s group recently filed a petition with the Town of Weare, New Hampshire for the purpose of seizing by eminent domain U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter¡¯s property for the development of a hotel. The petition warrant article will be considered by the citizens of Weare in their Deliberative Session February 4, 2006, and will be followed by a town ballot on March 14, 2006.

In a now-famous 2005 Supreme Court decision, Kelo v. New London, Conn., Justice Souter voted with the majority of the Justices to allow eminent domain to be used to seize privately-owned property, and turn that property over to a private developer for the purpose of building a hotel.

The Committee for the Protection of Natural Rights, a citizens group in Weare (www.Natural-Rights.org), is sponsoring the movement for Weare voters to support seizing Souter¡¯s property for a similar purpose. The group collected the required number of signatures of Weare citizens, and these signatures have been verified by the Town of Weare.

Similar court decisions have been popping up around the country allowing private property to be taken by local governments and given to other private individuals to develop projects that would provide greater property tax income for the municipalities involved.

The Committee for the Protection of Natural Rights is a Weare-based grass roots non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of natural rights as defined in the New Hampshire State Constitution of 1784, ¡°All men have certain natural, essential, and inherent rights ¨C among which are, the enjoying and defending of life and liberty; acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; and, in a word, of seeking and obtaining happiness¡­.¡±

The group is holding a campaign awareness rally at the Old Town Hall on John Stark Highway on January 21 and 22. The rally will include several guest speakers, as well as Solomon, who is a candidate for Selectman in the Town of Weare. He is also one of the founding members of CFPNR.

Eric Miller on 01.21.06 @ 08:52 AM PST [link]  

Statistics from Saturday's paper reveal the amazing opportunity that exits for the center City of Pittsburgh. According to the article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,more than 180,000 suburbanites flow into Downtown, Oakland and other city neighborhoods each day to work, boosting Pittsburgh's population by 41 percent, the fourth-highest proportional "day surge" among large cities in the nation.

This is amazing in itself. Center-city employment is actually higher now than in the past when many jobs were at steel mills along the rivers. A large number of these come by public transit, but a majority come by car. The number has also increase over the past decade from about 300,000 in 1992 to 320,000 in 2001.

These trends run counter to much of what has happened in cities in general over the past half-century. They also spotlight two areas of opportunity.

The first is to get some of these commuters to move into the city. This is already happening to some degree. Empty-nesters, boomer retirees, childless couples and singles are already moving into downtown and other areas, attracted by new housing opportunities. This is great news, but the numbers we saw Saturday reveal much greater opportunity.

The second area of opportunity, which should serve to booster the first, is to improve transportation within the city. This should be done using surface light-rail and streetcar lines that can be built in short amounts of time. The lack of such systems will keep the downtown housing boom from moving into other neighborhoods. New housing thus far has been concentrated in areas in very close proximity to downtown and Oakland, including South Side, North Shore, Squirrel Hill and the lower Hill District. Improving the time it takes (and ease of use) of transit systems will allow, in essence, other neighborhoods to become closer and "transit villages" to emerge.

In the more immediate term, city housing advocates should focus attention on selling city living to these commuters. More increasing the variety and quantity of in-city housing will serve to insure something more than a day-time population boost, a real reversal of suburban flight.

Eric Miller on 01.16.06 @ 06:31 AM PST [link]  

Testifying before the first field hearing in New Orleans held by a Congressional committee following Hurricane Katrina, James R. Kelly, chief executive officer of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, today called on Congress to ensure that mixed-income neighborhoods are an essential part of the city's rebuilding efforts

Prior to Katrina, 20 percent of New Orleans' citizens lived below the poverty line, including 30 percent of the children and 47 percent of African Americans. Sixty percent of the residents of New Orleans were renters and only 40 percent were homeowners -- the opposite of the national average. In the wake of Katrina, two-thirds of the city's housing units were flooded, approximately 120,000 out of 180,000. There were an estimated 327,000 flood victims, 77 percent of whom were African American.

In addition to calling for mixed housing, Kelly also offered some recommendations to address the immediate housing concerns facing the city by calling for:


-- fast-tracking the rehabilitation of offline public housing units;


-- increasing the number and value of HUD housing vouchers;


-- transferring all housing responsibility from FEMA to HUD; and


-- strongly encouraging HUD to work with state and local municipalities in the development of comprehensive long-term plans -- that ultimately will call for more low-income housing tax credits, more HOME funds, and more vouchers for our impoverished and vulnerable neighbors.

Eric Miller on 01.14.06 @ 08:53 AM PST [link]  

Planners and property rights activists recently weighed in on the first high court hearing on eminent domain since a landmark Supreme Court ruling on eminent domain.

The American Planning Association (APA) urged the Ohio Supreme Court to affirm the City of Norwood's use of eminent domain for addressing what it called deteriorating conditions within the city.

APA points to the public planning process that was used to create Norwood's urban renewal plan and that eminent domain was used as a tool of last resort after negotiations with a few holdout property owners failed.

Property owners and the Institute for Justice see things differently. They contend Jeffrey R. Anderson, asked the Cincinnati suburb of Norwood to condemn the homes and small businesses so he can expand his complex of private offices, condominiums and chain stores. They say Anderson asked and paid for a ¡°study¡± Norwood City Council used to declare ¡°blighted¡± the 99 perfectly fine buildings bounded by Edwards and Edmondson Roads¡ªa move that enables the City to condemn any and all land in the neighborhood. IJ reports the Norwood ¡°blight study¡± itself admitted that none of the 99 homes or businesses in the area was dilapidated or delinquent on taxes.

This is the first eminent domain case to be heard in a state supreme court since the U.S. Supreme Court decided Kelo v. City of New London last June. In that case, the High Court declined to second-guess the city's development plan.

A recent report found that Ohio is one of the worst states for eminent domain abuse, with at least 400 properties condemned or threatened with condemnation for private profit in just five years.

Eric Miller on 01.13.06 @ 02:11 PM PST [link]  

An historic coalition of civil rights groups, religious leaders, trade associations, concerned citizens, and officials from Minnesota¡¯s major political parties will gather at the Capitol today to announce legislation reforming the State¡¯s eminent domain laws.

The coalition, called Minnesotans for Eminent Domain Reform (MNEDR), was formed following the U.S. Supreme Court¡¯s infamous decision in Kelo v. City of New London, which allowed the government taking of private property for private uses because of the possibility of generating more jobs or taxes. It includes representatives from the Institute for Justice, NAACP, Urban League, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Hmong Chamber of Commerce, Farmers Union, Farm Bureau, Teamsters, Minnesota Family Council, Minnesota Automobile Dealers Association, National Federation of Independent Business, other trade associations, ministers from local black churches, former Independent Party gubernatorial candidate Tim Penny, and individuals who have been threatened with or currently face takings of their property. (For a list of all the coalition members and a copy of the eminent domain abuse reform bill they support, visit www.mnedr.com.)

Legislators in 40 other states have or will consider similar legislation in response to the U.S. Supreme Court¡¯s Kelo decision. The proposed legislation in Minnesota restricts the use of eminent domain by defining the constitutional requirement of ¡°public use¡± after decades of state courts allowing it to morph into ambiguous concepts such as public ¡°benefit¡± and public ¡°purpose.¡±

In response to the Kelo decision, the proposed legislation prohibits the use of eminent domain to take properties solely for private economic development.

The proposed legislation also limits municipalities¡¯ power to declare a property blighted to circumstances in which a building has structural building code violations or where the building owner has failed to address the structural deficiencies within a reasonable time not exceeding one year.

Eric Miller on 01.13.06 @ 02:07 PM PST [link]  

I stopped by the Priory Bakery today to pick up some Strudel when I noticed a woman drop off a new issue of The War Street Journal, the publication of the Mexican War Streets Society. A little more than a year ago the bakery was a welcomed additional location to pick up a cup of coffee in the neighborhood (the pasteries are a bonus).

On my walk home I browsed the WSJ (War Streets for those of you just tuning in at the second paragraph) and noticed an additional Java destination would be opening soon.

Apparently Beleza will be a small, community-oriented coffee house at 1501 Buena Vista Street. The coffee house is the brainchild of a few Michiganites who moved to the city. The article says that the shop will have outdoor seating and wireless access, so I assume it will have indoor seating.

Great! Here we go! If they succeed, we'll have a Starbuck's across the street.

Eric Miller on 01.06.06 @ 11:18 AM PST [link]  

"Oregon schools are using groundwater for heating and cooling; employing skylights, clerestory windows and light shelves to reduce or eliminate the need for artificial lighting; and using natural ventilation to lower heating and cooling bills.

District building managers report energy savings of as much as 50 percent in the new buildings. Ross Cain, facilities manager for The Dalles School District, said the energy-efficient middle school built two years ago is saving the district about $50,000 a year in energy costs."

Read the complete article in The Oregonian

Richard Risemberg on 01.04.06 @ 10:38 PM PST [link]