Do chain stores kill off a neighborhood's "sense of place?"
Clearly, strip malls do, if they're surrounded by huge parking areas that make for a pedestrian-hostile environment. So do "big box" retailers.
But what if a nationwide retailer moves into an already-existing space?
That's been the debate in places like Harvard Square in Cambridge and New York's Times Square, where critics say centers that were once truly unique have been turned into the equivalent of outdoor shopping malls, with many of the same chain stores you can find in malls around America.
Now, San Francisco officials are trying to institute an ordinance that would protect some neighborhoods from major corporate retailers, the Los Angeles Times reports.
April 7, 2004
April 5, 2004
What Use Rooftop Gardens?
Amidst all the talk about mixed-use, apartments, hotel rooms, parking and traffic in the recently approved Arcade project for downtown Framingham (see story), one of the less-publicized features of the project will be rooftop gardens.
If you're not living, working or staying there, should you care what's growing atop the buildings? Oh, yes, says a blurb in the Atlanta Journal-Consitution (via the American Planning Association). Besides a pleasing space for those around them, rooftop gardens help cool down hot buildings in the summertime as well as improve air and water quality (plants that soak up water help prevent runoff).
Another article in the same paper notes that Atlanta has launched "a pilot program that the city hopes will improve urban air quality, assist with storm water management and in general improve the environment." This piece has some details about the 3,500-square-foot City Hall roof garden.
If you're not living, working or staying there, should you care what's growing atop the buildings? Oh, yes, says a blurb in the Atlanta Journal-Consitution (via the American Planning Association). Besides a pleasing space for those around them, rooftop gardens help cool down hot buildings in the summertime as well as improve air and water quality (plants that soak up water help prevent runoff).
Another article in the same paper notes that Atlanta has launched "a pilot program that the city hopes will improve urban air quality, assist with storm water management and in general improve the environment." This piece has some details about the 3,500-square-foot City Hall roof garden.
April 4, 2004
Investing Beyond Highways Makes America Healthier
"The Congressional sponsors of the 'Cheeseburger Protection Act' are probably right about the obesity epidemic: We shouldn’t be suing fast food marketers. Instead, we should prosecute the transportation engineers and suburban developers who have made it nearly impossible to walk in most neighborhoods built since World War II," writes David Goldberg, one-time member of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution editorial board and now communications director for Smart Growth America.
"Thanks largely to the shift to auto-only design, incidental daily exercise – the kind that melts fat and helps ward off high blood pressure without a trip to the gym – has dropped like a stone over the last 50 years. Certainly, if more of us could stroll to the store or bike safely to work, we could easily burn enough calories to offset the odd Super Slurp or Boffo Burger. "
The piece goes on to highlight some of the absurdities in current planning, the need to return to walkable comunities and the urgency for the current federal transportation bill "to support what has become a nationwide clamor for communities that encourage more walking and bicycling."
Great quote from Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer: “Let’s have a moment of silence for all those Americans who are stuck in traffic on their way to the gym to ride the stationary bicycle.”
"Thanks largely to the shift to auto-only design, incidental daily exercise – the kind that melts fat and helps ward off high blood pressure without a trip to the gym – has dropped like a stone over the last 50 years. Certainly, if more of us could stroll to the store or bike safely to work, we could easily burn enough calories to offset the odd Super Slurp or Boffo Burger. "
The piece goes on to highlight some of the absurdities in current planning, the need to return to walkable comunities and the urgency for the current federal transportation bill "to support what has become a nationwide clamor for communities that encourage more walking and bicycling."
Great quote from Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer: “Let’s have a moment of silence for all those Americans who are stuck in traffic on their way to the gym to ride the stationary bicycle.”
April 2, 2004
Cochituate Rail Trail Update
With spring comes increased activity on the Cochituate Rail Trail, a proposed walking and cycling path that will hopefully go from Saxonville in northeast Framingham to Natick. The section from Saxonville to Cochituate State Park is currently under development. When finished, it should be a great recreational addition to the area.
The proposed additional piece is crucial, though, because it would extend to the Natick Mall and train station in downtown Natick. This is a major issue for creating a less car-dependent community -- people could use it to get to shopping and commuting destinations. The Framingham Cochituate Rail Trail Committee and the Natick Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee want a trail extension to the mall to be part of the proposed Natick Mall expansion plans -- a super idea!
The Framingham Cochituate Rail Trail Committee's next meeting is Thursday, April 15 at the Framingham Police Station's conference room.
There's also a Cochituate Rail Trail Clean-up Day Saturday, May 1 -- participants are asked to park at 500 Old Connecticut Path, Framingham, and then walk across the street to the sign-up table. More info on the group's Web site.
The proposed additional piece is crucial, though, because it would extend to the Natick Mall and train station in downtown Natick. This is a major issue for creating a less car-dependent community -- people could use it to get to shopping and commuting destinations. The Framingham Cochituate Rail Trail Committee and the Natick Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee want a trail extension to the mall to be part of the proposed Natick Mall expansion plans -- a super idea!
The Framingham Cochituate Rail Trail Committee's next meeting is Thursday, April 15 at the Framingham Police Station's conference room.
There's also a Cochituate Rail Trail Clean-up Day Saturday, May 1 -- participants are asked to park at 500 Old Connecticut Path, Framingham, and then walk across the street to the sign-up table. More info on the group's Web site.
Spotlight: Saxonville
Saxonville Studios is having its annual spring open house this weekend, April 3 -4, 2004, 11 am to 4:30 pm, free for the public to stop by.
Update/additional Saxonville happenings: The Friends of Saxonville annual meeting is Tuesday, April 7, 7:30 p.m. at the Stapleton School, with a social starting at 7.
The artist studios in the old mill complex are a great addition to the neighborhood. Note: If you missed it, the Boston Globe magazine had an article about Saxonville's shopping appeal. And in fact, there are a number of wonderful features to this area in northeast Framingham.
But some changes could make the area even more pedestrian -- i.e. shopper -- friendly, and truly a regional destination to spend an afternoon.
Update/additional Saxonville happenings: The Friends of Saxonville annual meeting is Tuesday, April 7, 7:30 p.m. at the Stapleton School, with a social starting at 7.
The artist studios in the old mill complex are a great addition to the neighborhood. Note: If you missed it, the Boston Globe magazine had an article about Saxonville's shopping appeal. And in fact, there are a number of wonderful features to this area in northeast Framingham.
But some changes could make the area even more pedestrian -- i.e. shopper -- friendly, and truly a regional destination to spend an afternoon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)