OK, I've done some more testing and all appears to be working now: I've posted a sortable chart of data about daytime (i.e. commuting and living/working) population trends in Mass. cities and towns, based on U.S. Census data.
The chart is at www.pedestrianfriendly.com/data1.php
Some tidbits:
Almost one-third of employed Framingham residents also work in town. Marlboro is very close to that. Maynard, once the home of Digital Equipment. Corp., is now at 17%. And Bellingham is just 8.3%.
Framingham's daytime population rises 14% compared to its full-time residential population, while Marlboro's is up 37%. Bellingham's slips 2.1%, while Northboro's drops 10%.
November 30, 2005
Cars, Pedestrians Co-existing: Beacon St, Brookline vs. Rte 30, Framingham
As I was walking and driving on Beacon Street in Brookline today, I again marvelled how a street with 3 and 4 lanes of traffic in each direction - a pretty major east-west thoroughfare in that area, in fact - manages to be so pedestrian friendly. Especially when later in the afternoon, I was both walking and driving on Rte. 30 in Framingham, disheartened that on a stretch of roadway with fewer lanes than Beacon Street, it was unpleasant to walk and much more difficult to cross.
Here's why.
Here's why.
Center City Sensibilities
Warrenton, Va. resident describes describes going for coffee at a local (not chain) shop, going to the bank, returning a library book, mailing some letters, getting a haircut, and generally "wandering around" town where he can "can window shop to my heart's content and admire the classic architecture of Old Town. Not once did I get into my car.
"It is this very mix of private and public uses I encountered that are, by definition, center city sensibilities. They are what make Warrenton as authentic a place -- dare I say 'rural urban village' -- as one will find anywhere."
Alas, he points out in the Fauquier Times-Democrat, most suburban communities around Washington, D.C., "are built around the calculated separation of venues and complete reliance on the automobile. "
Sound familiar? There are pockets of walkability in Boston's western suburbs as well, but we've got way too much housing where residents can't walk to destinations; and retail centers that no one can walk to from anywhere except a parking lot. And the newer the development, the more likely it is to skew auto-only, unless a conscious decision is made by planners to encourage mixed-use neighborhoods and walkability. Mixed-use doesn't always have to mean apartments over stores, but it does mean blocks where stores and homes are well integrated, as opposed to having strip malls surrounded by asphalt oceans.
"It is this very mix of private and public uses I encountered that are, by definition, center city sensibilities. They are what make Warrenton as authentic a place -- dare I say 'rural urban village' -- as one will find anywhere."
Alas, he points out in the Fauquier Times-Democrat, most suburban communities around Washington, D.C., "are built around the calculated separation of venues and complete reliance on the automobile. "
Sound familiar? There are pockets of walkability in Boston's western suburbs as well, but we've got way too much housing where residents can't walk to destinations; and retail centers that no one can walk to from anywhere except a parking lot. And the newer the development, the more likely it is to skew auto-only, unless a conscious decision is made by planners to encourage mixed-use neighborhoods and walkability. Mixed-use doesn't always have to mean apartments over stores, but it does mean blocks where stores and homes are well integrated, as opposed to having strip malls surrounded by asphalt oceans.
November 27, 2005
The Key To Successful Lifestyle Centers
"In 20 years, lifestyle centers will be the failed malls," predicts Eric Fredericks at Walkable Neighborhoods. Why? He believes "they are no different from regular malls. The key to successful lifestyle centers is to integrate with the existing neighborhoods, or to incorporate the right balance of housing and activities for residents to make it sustainable."
I couldn't agree more about the importance of integrating "lifestyle centers" into the surrounding neighborhood, so nearby office workers as well as residents can walk there. That's the crucial component in creating a community with sense of place instead of soul-less suburban sprawl.
Outdoor malls are nothing new. In fact, we had outdoor malls before the indoor enclosed ones - locally, open-air Shoppers World was built before the enclosed Natick Mall. The key to "lifestyle centers" is that there's supposed to be attention paid to making an attractive pedestrian streetscape and ambiance, instead of simply having open-air space for getting from one indoor location to another.
By definition, a walkable streetscape should include a way to walk to and from various destinations - the "park once, walk-to-multiple locations" ambiance I believe suburbs should be striving for. It's an admirable but long-range project to get more suburbanites out of their cars altogether so they go from home to work & shopping by foot, bike or public transit. But it's a much easier task to have them park at one mall and let them then walk to nearby stores, hotels and restaurants. You don't have to change density patterns much, but rather re-think how buildings and parking are designed and sited.
I'd add that it's equally important to integrate enclosed malls with the surrounding neighborhood. That's been done successfully in malls like CambridgeSide Galleria, on a city block, where the food court includes both indoor and outdoor sitting, and the outdoor seats are along a very nice walkway with waterview; as well as Copley Place in Boston, where it's at least reasonably possible and appealing to walk between the mall and neighboring Back Bay retail district. It's how malls and local business districts can not only co-exist, but enhance each other; and it's how you make a livable, pleasant streetscape. And it's why I'm so disappointed with current plans for the Natick Mall expansion, where new condos may be well integrated with enclosed shops, but residents will be effectively cut off from the surrounding community unless they get in their cars. They won't be able to walk to nearby office buildings and other destinations such as the cinema. What a missed opportunity to improve the Golden Triangle.
I couldn't agree more about the importance of integrating "lifestyle centers" into the surrounding neighborhood, so nearby office workers as well as residents can walk there. That's the crucial component in creating a community with sense of place instead of soul-less suburban sprawl.
Outdoor malls are nothing new. In fact, we had outdoor malls before the indoor enclosed ones - locally, open-air Shoppers World was built before the enclosed Natick Mall. The key to "lifestyle centers" is that there's supposed to be attention paid to making an attractive pedestrian streetscape and ambiance, instead of simply having open-air space for getting from one indoor location to another.
By definition, a walkable streetscape should include a way to walk to and from various destinations - the "park once, walk-to-multiple locations" ambiance I believe suburbs should be striving for. It's an admirable but long-range project to get more suburbanites out of their cars altogether so they go from home to work & shopping by foot, bike or public transit. But it's a much easier task to have them park at one mall and let them then walk to nearby stores, hotels and restaurants. You don't have to change density patterns much, but rather re-think how buildings and parking are designed and sited.
I'd add that it's equally important to integrate enclosed malls with the surrounding neighborhood. That's been done successfully in malls like CambridgeSide Galleria, on a city block, where the food court includes both indoor and outdoor sitting, and the outdoor seats are along a very nice walkway with waterview; as well as Copley Place in Boston, where it's at least reasonably possible and appealing to walk between the mall and neighboring Back Bay retail district. It's how malls and local business districts can not only co-exist, but enhance each other; and it's how you make a livable, pleasant streetscape. And it's why I'm so disappointed with current plans for the Natick Mall expansion, where new condos may be well integrated with enclosed shops, but residents will be effectively cut off from the surrounding community unless they get in their cars. They won't be able to walk to nearby office buildings and other destinations such as the cinema. What a missed opportunity to improve the Golden Triangle.
November 24, 2005
Beta: Sortable Database of Daytime Population Changes for Communities in Massachusetts
Which communities have an influx of people during the day? Which "bedroom communities" empty out during working hours? In between cooking side dishes for Thanksgiving, I've been working on posting a sortable database of the numbers from Massachusetts. I haven't finished testing and checking it yet, but if you want to take a look at the beta, it's at Daytime Population Data for Massachusetts Communities. Click on a column heading to sort by that stat.
Data is from the U.S. Census Bureau's recently released Daytime Population Analysis for communities throughout the country. A number of local media outlets reported on the results (see for example Globe West's Some Towns Empty Out During Day and MetroWest Daily News's Many Area Communities Serve as Daytime 'Home' to Workers). But what fun are Census numbers online if they're not sortable and interactive?
Data is from the U.S. Census Bureau's recently released Daytime Population Analysis for communities throughout the country. A number of local media outlets reported on the results (see for example Globe West's Some Towns Empty Out During Day and MetroWest Daily News's Many Area Communities Serve as Daytime 'Home' to Workers). But what fun are Census numbers online if they're not sortable and interactive?
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