Sprawl Repair: Fixing the Mess We Made

A handful of good articles in the November issue of the American Planning Association (APA)'s Planning magazine. Here's one:

Edited excerpts from an article by Emily Talen, AICP
APA Planning Magazine
November 2010

In the 1950s and '60s, the "next big thing" was urban renewal. In the 1970s and '80s, it was environmentalism. In the 1990s and early 2000s, it was smart growth. And today? Think of sprawl repair: retrofitting abandoned chain stores, dead malls, disconnected apartment complexes, and segregated housing pods.

In the short term, sprawl repair, or suburban retrofit, is driven by failing malls, widespread housing foreclosures, and the need to stimulate new forms of investment. But there is also something more principled at work: Americans' realization that it makes sense to reduce energy consumption, to reuse existing infrastructure rather than to build new, and to provide denser, more walkable housing options in response to demographic change.

Sprawl repair requires both big thinking and political moxy. Unlike simple technological fixes that we think of as "sustainable," it will take substantial behavioral change, the need for which is indisputable. That means:

• Accepting the loss of automotive dependence
  
• Making walking (and biking) the main mode of travel
  
• Being willing to live more compactly
  
• Tolerating far more social diversity and varied land uses.

We know that detached, single-family housing has a higher carbon footprint than apartment buildings and high rises, a fact thoroughly documented in David Owen's recent book, Green Metropolis. Compact neighborhoods, he makes clear, allow us to drive less, to lower our energy costs, and to strengthen social and economic connections. They have intrinsic environmental, social, and economic benefits.

Three steps to sprawl repair:

• Locate strategic, structural potential - areas near commercial intersections and potentially good connectivity e.g. shorter blocks, with substantial assets to build on, and where corners are occupied by buildings, NOT a parking lot
  
• Pockets of density and diversity - socially, economically, physically, e.g. land uses, housing types
• Begin implementation right away - stimulate investment by changing rules and codes, investing in public space, offering incentives for development.
  

The idea of sprawl repair has caught the attention of the national media. Time magazine in March gave "recycling the suburbs" number two ranking in its list of "10 Ideas That Are Changing the World Right Now." And newspapers around the country regularly report on efforts to revitalize failed malls and derelict industrial sites. Design magazines see retrofitting projects as a way to feature the work of architects. Dwell recently sponsored a suburban design competition called "Reburbia," devoted to "envisioning different scenarios for the future" (www.re-burbia.com). In part, this interest is spurred by investors seeking new development opportunities and by local governments looking for creative ways to revive the shopping districts that were once their major revenue generators.

Ultimately, true sprawl repair will require macro-level change — with new financial tools and new government policies. And those things are generally beyond the scope of planners' jobs. But there are specific things planners can do to motivate sprawl repair. One is to make sure that existing rules and regulations facilitate repair. For suburban planners that means stimulating investment in targeted locations by reforming codes, making improvements in public spaces, and encouraging private investment.

Until recently, planners have mostly focused on restricting sprawl, not on repairing it — two distinctly different approaches. Restriction involves putting the brakes on development, sometimes in the form of urban growth boundaries and wetland protection programs. Yet these are not always the best tools for rejuvenating our suburbs.

Repair, on the other hand, requires vision and a proactive approach. It encourages targeted planning and investment: tax breaks, for instance, and the creation of civic space, sidewalks, and street trees in locations where they might stimulate retrofitting. Allowing single-family suburbs to intensify by adding accessory units or small buildings to accommodate family-run businesses is another important strategy.

31st Street Green Street Demo Project - One to Call My Own!

Three-and-half months later and life Keeps Moving On, here in the Berkeley/Oakland/San Francisco home front. Still working on water issues, with exciting news on my project with Urban Releaf, a grassroots tree planting organization. The 31st Street Green Street Demonstration Project officially broke ground today, October 21. It's the same site I blogged about before here.

31st Street is located in the Hoover neighborhood of West Oakland, a neighborhood with a median household income of ~$20k and faces serious lack of tree canopy and greenery, high asthma rates linked to air pollution from nearby freeways and diesel truck serving the Port of Oakland, and many, MANY other environmental, social and economic disadvantages. Urban Releaf is bringing The Greens (federal, state, and local dollars) to this community in the form of Greens (jobs, youth development, environmental education, and of course, trees!). We are also contributing to science by designing and implementing innovative tree wells that will help retain storm water and reduce storm water pollutants.


The groundbreaking/media event went really well! In attendance were the media, many of our long-time government, community and business partners and supporters, including CA Dept of Forestry & Fire Protection (CALFIRE), CA Dept of Water Resources, California Releaf, City of Oakland, retired Senator Don Perata, Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan, the Black Repertory Group, St Mary's Senior Center, UC Berkeley's urban forestry guru, Prof Joe McBride and his PhD student Lara Roman, our board members Pam Wallace and David Ralston, etc etc. Thank you everyone who pulled serious weight to make this event happen and help the 31st St green street move forward!

UC Davis' Dr. Qingfu Xiao is the lead scientist on this project, designing a monitored experiment to quantify water flowing into and out of the tree well and get a grasp on the retention capacity of our innovative tree wells. The tree wells will contain special soils that save water in two ways:

• First, the mix of red lava rock and soil helps retain storm water that would otherwise run off directly into the City's storm drain, relieving burden off of the City's infrastructure system in the future.
• Second, trees and soil help filter out pollutants in storm water and prevent them from entering our precious Bay habitat.

According to the USDA Forest Service Center for Urban Forestry Research, trees in urban areas mitigate air pollution, beautify the neighborhood by adding greenery and shade, save on heating and cooling costs, build a sense of community, and provide opportunities for green job training -- all in addition to saving water. Trees also address global warming by making streets safer and more attractive for walking and biking, as an alternative to driving, and by sequestering carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.

Construction for a pilot test tree well is targeted for November 13-19, pending our permit approval from the City of Oakland. We will then apply the prototype tree well to and come up with other innovative designs for the rest of the two-block project area. In a couple of years, fingers crossed, insya allah, 31st Street will be transformed into a pleasant walking environment, a community asset, and... a national demonstration bringing together the myriad benefits of our city's trees!

Cities all over the world are facing water crises and are seeking water-sensitive tree well design and approach to urban forestry. The CA Department of Water Resources Urban Drought Assistance Program provided funding for this project to educate local residents on California's water shortage and the importance of conserving water. The project also received funding from the West Oakland Project Area Committee Neighborhood Projects Initiative Program.