Sprawled Out: The Search for Community in the American Suburb

The Great Desprawling Experiment - Emerging Ideas - Utne Reader

The very epitome of "the geography of nowhere" -- targeted for transformation.

Next up: Trying to get Robin Williams to go 30 days without doing a Popeye impression. Equally challenging.

It’s hard to conceive of a less likely poster child for the livable-communities movement, which prizes dense urban-style neighborhoods where residents can live without cars. Yet developers and county leaders in Fairfax County are close to finalizing a radical multibillion-dollar plan to “desprawl” Tysons. The proposal, aimed at attracting a total of 100,000 with the texture and energy of city life, involves tearing up large swaths of the existing town and constructing a series of urban villages, with buildings up to 25 stories high.

“Tysons Corner is a leading example of a suburb trying to transform itself into something else,” says Christopher Leinberger, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution and a top thinker on the future of America’s suburbs. “The people there see walkable urban areas and say, ‘We want that here.’ They want that kind of urban excitement.”

Read the rest at: The Great Desprawling Experiment - Emerging Ideas - Utne Reader

"My favorite posts of 2010" | Kaid Benfield's Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC

Kaid Benfield is a familiar name to SPRAWLED OUT readers; I frequently link to his excellent posts at Kaid Benfield's Blog, which is part of the Natural Resources Defense Council website. In his year-end roundup of his favorite posts from his own blog, Kaid was kind enough to mention me and fellow Milwaukee-area blogger Dave Reid:

Props are due also to an amazing bunch of urbanist and environmental Facebook and real-life friends who keep me informed on all sorts of subjects from the amusing to the profound, and thanks especially to the fabulous blog writers whose work on these subjects continually inspires me, including Steve Mouzon, Chuck Marohn, Dave Reid, Chuck Wolfe, Daniel Nairn, Aaron Renn, Jon Hiskes, Richard Layman, Sam Newberg, Justin Horner, Deron Lovaas, Mary Newsom, Jason King, Chewie, Randy Simes, Payton Chung, Warren Karlenzig, John Michlig, Karja Hansen, and some I am probably forgetting.  Keep up the great work.

After you read some of Kaid's entries at the link below, you'll understand why I'm so gratified to be in that list.

Read the rest at: My favorite posts of 2010, from the very personal to the very cosmic | Kaid Benfield's Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC

Next American City: Little to Celebrate

ABOVE: Celebration’s small town AMC cinema. Credit: flickr user bobafred

Celebration, Florida just might represent everything that used to be right with America, and everything that is currently wrong with America. Celebration, for those unaware, is a master planned community that was built by the Disney Corporation, and incorporates various Traditional Neighborhood Design (TND) features with a touch of Disney magic. Recently, though, Bad Things have been afoot in Celebration—murder, suicide, and foreclosure. Could real city problems be invading this fake city? What would that mean?

Read the rest at: Next American City » Columns » Little to Celebrate

$5 for a gallon of gas in '12; luckily, we'll have the train alternative... oh, wait ...

The incoming governor of Wisconsin chose ideology and bald-faced patronage over common long-term fiscal sense.

No train for us. The citizens of Wisconsin will be paying Scott Walker's benefactors in the asphalt spreading business for years and years to come. 

Bonus points: Did you know asphalt uses petroleum?

Read the rest at: $5 for a gallon of gasoline in 2012 - Dec. 27, 2010

Glutton for punishment: My alderman announces re-election bid

ABOVE: Alderman Kristen Wilhelm at this summer's Walking Workshop

Elections this coming April in Franklin will put on the ballot aldermen from districts 3, 4, and 6 as well as office of the mayor. My district's alderman, Kristen Wilhelm, has decided to run again for the seat.

This is good news: As a resident of the 3rd District -- as well as a volunteer on various city committees and commissions -- I can say without hesitation that her energy and efforts have resulted in positive change for Franklin. And, as an attendee at various common council meetings, I can also say that she has changed for the better the character of what was once an insular "old boys club."

Perhaps the best endorsement for Ms. Wilhelm is the fact that, at the beginning of her term,  a few of the "old guard"  aldermen had been observed expressing frustration that she'd "slowed" certain meetings by asking questions and seeking clear explanations. You only have to see that once to realize that her presence has required complacent members to step up their  game -- AND made them put away the rubber stamp.

On a personal note, Alderman Wilhelm worked with me to write a successful Safe Routes to School grant for the city, was instrumental in getting the grant that made the sidewalk on 51st Street possible, and helped make our Walking Workshop a huge success. She makes sure the residents of the 3rd District are the most well-informed in the city via regular email updates and notices.

Let me put this in bold, because I mean this emphatically: Kristen Wilhelm's hard work, creativity, attention to detail, preparation and accessibility has, without a doubt, raised the bar for the entire common council. We are lucky to have her working on behalf of the city, and fortunate that she is a glutton for punishment and has decided to continue.

So, yes, this is an endorsement.

I've pasted below her candidacy announcement.

 

December 22, 2010

Dear Neighbors,

I am officially announcing my candidacy for 3rd District Alderman this spring.  It has been a privilege to represent you and serve the city of Franklin. 

Since 2008, I have worked hard to represent you and be responsive to your needs in a timely manner. By informing and connecting people to city government, a stronger voice on city decisions has been achieved and this has strengthened our sense of community. On that topic, I’ve endeavored to support local businesses and make you aware of issues and events as often as possible.

It is not easy making progress given the pace of government. There is more to accomplish, including finishing several tasks requested by constituents that are in process. I fully intend to continue my tenacity to bring the results you expect and that best serve our city. 

Looking to the future, I’ll continue to provide Real Representation, maintain Effective Communication, create more Process Transparency, and remain Accountable to you!

This means: 
•    Continuing to engage in meaningful dialogue.
•    Being available to hear your concerns. 
•    Following through on issues that matter to you. 
•    Getting the word out to as many of you as possible in these busy and trying times.

I ask for your support so that I may continue representing you as your Alderman in this great community!


Best Wishes for the Holidays!
Kristen Wilhelm 

NOTE: 
Please add wilhelm4district3@gmail.com to your address book to be sure future emails are recognized by your email allowed list.
I am required to separate campaign items from city business. This gmail address is to be used for all campaign related business.


Authorized by Kristen Wilhelm, Delene Hanson Treasurer

Study: Walkable neighborhoods have happier people - Green House - USATODAY.com

Sidewalks and trails make you happier?

I can tell you that I was certainly a happier person when I went for a run the other day and was able to use a sidewalk on 51st street rather than the slush-clogged shoulder of the road I'd braved before the new sidewalk was installed. We're making slow but steady progress.

And, of more import to the bottom line:

If the residents of these walkable neighborhoods are homeowners, they benefit in yet another way, notes the Sierra Club's Green Life blog. It cites a 2009 study by CEOs for Cities that founds homes with an above-average Walk Score sold for up to $34,000 more than their sidewalk-less counterparts.

Read the rest at: Study: Walkable neighborhoods have happier people - Green House - USATODAY.com

A talk with Galina Tachieva, author of ‘The Sprawl Repair Manual’ | Grist

Q. You talk about the economic opportunities that the foreclosure crisis has created. At the same time, it seems like people have less and less money to do big projects. Financing has become very difficult for a lot of developers. How do you see those things balancing out?

A. Of course, right now it's very difficult to even think about any large project. However, there is a whole range of tools which are prepared for very different economic conditions and for very different scales. That is why the whole method is structured from the bigger picture of the region going all the way down to the community scale and all the way down to the block or the building, to be able to respond to different economic conditions.

It might be a government, regional organization, or municipality thinking about their future development as a larger place, as a region. Or it might be a developer who can maybe intervene in one block, who can actually take advantage of some of the foreclosures -- maybe acquire a block of some of these foreclosed properties, and do something on a much smaller scale. And all the way down to the single building. People are thinking about the second generation of some of these suburban building sites coming through the next cycle.

Read the rest at: A talk with Galina Tachieva, author of ‘The Sprawl Repair Manual’ | Grist

Plan Commission Meeting materials for 12-9-10

As promised, I'll be archiving online all meeting materials related to the Franklin, WI Plan Commission.

Here's the agenda and materials for my first meeting on 12-9-10, which, with a light agenda, lasted under 10 minutes. Until I find a way to shrink large site plan documents, they will not be included.

So, now I'm a plan commissioner ...

Back in June of 2006, I started this blog as a research exercise upon learning that the neighboring cities of Franklin (where I live) and Oak Creek would somehow cooperate on developing 27th Street, which acts as a border between the communities.

That led me to the discovery of a book called THE GEOGRAPHY OF NOWHERE by James Howard Kunstler, a reading experience that utterly changed my view of the world around me. 

Haven't read it yet? Take a break and GO ORDER A COPY. I'll wait.

Anyway, attempting to follow the 27th Street drama led to my attendance at many Common Council and Plan Commission meetings, where, combined with my outside reading, I learned "how the sausage is made" in terms of suburban development. I discovered that our suburban built environment will continue to be bleak and uninviting (with precious few exceptions) unless citizens and stakeholders step up and voice their opinions. So very often, bad planning was a result of simply continuing with policies that "worked" in the past, without regard to our present reality or the long term effects of, for instance, making it impossible for kids to walk to school or sporting events.

So my blog became a voice in the suburban wilderness, introducing terms like "walkability" and "smart growth" into the public debate (I think I can take credit for the recent proliferation of the phrase "sea of asphalt" in local media). I began speaking at public meetings -- and, after a period of attracting little more than quizzical stares, I think the economic and social sense of what I was advocating began to take root.

I did my time on the Economic Development Commission; continue to work on connectivity issues while serving on the Trails Committee (including helping to capture a Safe Routes to School Grant); and kept plugging away at the Sprawled Out blog.

Recently, a vacancy appeared on the Franklin Plan Commission, and I threw my name in for consideration. Last night, the Common Council voted unanimously to endorse my nomination, so I am now a Plan Commissioner -- first meeting is tomorrow night.

I'm grateful for the opportunity, and hope to bring something of value to Franklin's overall vision. I also want to use this blog to increase transparency of the planning and development process in Franklin, so you can look forward to seeing, whenever possible, pdfs of the materials Plan Commissioners .have access to for each meeting and decision.

Onward ...

... And we wonder why my community seems stuck in reverse

Prepared a nifty little presentation on Digital Visualization for city planning and development at the request of Franklin's  (deep breath) "Mayoral Ad Hoc Development Process Review Committee."

Spousal negotiation to free up time for prep and presentation/discussion? CHECK.

Projector? CHECK.

Quick tutorial by city engineer on how not to break the projector's $400 bulb? CHECK.

PowerPoint? CHECK.

Adapter for Mac? CHECK.

Cool slides with bullet points and stuff? CHECK.

Handouts? CHECK.

 

Committee Quorum? NOPE.

 

In the age of cel phones, grown adults cannot call to say they won't be able to attend a meeting. So much for ambitious notions, proactive planning, grand plans and out-of-the-box thinking in Franklin, WI.

Pack it up; go home.