The Revitalist

Residents of Orion in Manhattan enjoying the free breakfast and Starbucks.

The NY Times remarks on the phenomenon of chummy condo communities. The latest crop of new buildings are featuring more and more amenities that are geared towards getting residents to be friends. More than just a lounge space with a big tv and a pool table, there are free breakfasts, organized sports, book clubs, play groups for kids, etc. In a cosmo city where most residents have perfected their 30-yard stare, it is unusual enough that its worth remarking on. As the article noted, there is also an element of self-selection going on – people interested in hanging out with their neighbors are more interested in the amenity heavy buildings.

Of course, whether the residents and amenities all click together is a complicated alchemy. We're hoping to foster an energetic community at Washington Mills. Since the project will be the first residential conversion to open in the mill district, it is likely to create that sense that everyone is in on it together, the revitalization of the neighborhood. If Washington Mills can sustain an active and creative community, then it will surely benefit the projects that come after – create that much more momentum that will flow through the neighborhood.

Current NYC subway map on left. Redesign by Eddie Jabbour on right.

Sticking with the information design theme, Signal vs. Noise has a nice post on the design of subway maps. Should they accurately show the location of lines and stations with respect to the street grid? Or should they be graphically simplified for easy reading and use? The designers all agree that by trying to satisfy both, you  ultimately compromise the usefulness of the map. The comments point out the benefits of both styles and suggest that there is a time and place for each. Plus, people have contributed links to other maps, including the newly designed MBTA map that gives you both perspectives as tabs for easy comparison.

Also, a nice NY Times article about the design process. 

Following on the trend of powerful visualizations of dense data, the blog SpeculativeBubble.com has plotted the ups and downs of the US housing market into a roller coaster ride (via The Creativity Exchange). The data is based on the work of Yale economist Robert Schiller. The average home price in 1890 is used as the baseline, and the rises and falls are plotted from there (adjusted for inflation). The graph makes the market swings visually understandable, but the roller coaster translates them into the unmistakable stomach lurching and breathless anticipation of a wild ride. The final climb through this past decade, with the click, click, click of the coaster, is just so ominous...

 

A: The coolest thing you've ever seen.

 

Artist/designer Aaron Koblin has created a video visualization of the FAA flight data from March 20, 2005 (via SND Update Blog).
Just stunning.

Owners of Pho Lynn, one of the downtown
pioneer restaurants.The Globe has a nice article about the revitalization of downtown Lynn. A few of the early speculators have had mixed success, but there are a growing number of new residents and new redevelopment projects that indicate that the tide is turning. Lynn has acquired roughly 250 new homeowners in the past one and a half years. An eclectic mix of cafes and restaurants are opening up in the downtown (always a good sign), and there are a handful of small tech businesses making a go of it. Lynn has lots of obvious advantages – 20-min train ride to North Station, Boston harbor waterfront, in place arts community, etc. – it just needs to overcome that lingering reputation. As the article notes, many of the newcomers are not from the Boston Metro area, so they don't carry those prejudices.

With the re-population of downtowns, we may see improvements in not just our economic health. Several studies have recently remarked on the connection between more urban, walkable environments and a healthier population. The San Francisco Chronicle has anecdotal evidence that people are starting to go urban for health reasons, not just because they want to be closer to the symphony. This strikes me as a fantastic way to market urban redevelopment to the Boomers, who are generally known to be worried about deteriorating health and independence as they get older. So, it's not just that by moving from the 'burbs to that urban condo will make you more socially connected and engaged in the community, but you'll also lose weight, lower your blood pressure and feel better all around. Fantastic!

Governor Patrick and the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs have announced that effective immediately all large development projects that require MEPA review will also have to account for their greenhouse gas emissions and take reduction/offsetting measures. MEPA review (which requires public disclosure, comment and a mitigation plan of environmental impacts of the project) is required for large-scale projects undertaken by state agencies or private projects that involve state approvals or money, among other criteria.  The process for assessment is being drawn up now and should be formalized by July. Apparently, the developers will have a certain amount of latitude when it comes to selecting their method for offsetting the impact, e.g. energy efficient systems, alternative fuels, transportation systems, etc. I didn't see a statement about the program on the EOEA website, but I'm sure that there will be a lot more discussion and details in the coming weeks.

The Christian Science Monitor has a nice article of the increasing awareness in some cities of using plants to control water issues (via Planetizen). In Denver, the Greenprint Denver program has been using the Mile High Youth Corps to replace lawns and traditional flower beds with xeriscaped (native plants only) beds. The idea is that native plants are more drought tolerant and will require less water, chemicals and maintenance. This is part of the City's overall green initiative, including planting 7,000 trees between Earth Day and Arbor Day this year. In Kansas City, they are tackling the opposite problem – too much water – by using thirsty plants in low-lying areas to soak up extra water and prevent run-off and floods. The program 10,000 Rain Gardens is working with the city's Water Services Dept to create rain gardens around the city and offering home owners training in using soggy native plants.

On the home front, ReadyMade Magazine shows you how to capture and reuse your storm water with a recycled laundry detergent dispenser. And the New England Wild Flower Society maintains extensive information on plants native to New England and how to grow them.

ULI San Francisco has been busy (two years' worth of work) putting together a (free!) web portal to real estate/land use sites for the San Fran area: urbanmap.org (via The Ground Floor). The sites are sorted into eight categories: commercial property, economic development, environmental and regulatory issues, general atlas, market reports, pay per view data, residential real estate, and smart growth. There is a helpful blurb about each describing what's available, with a screen shot of what the map/data looks like (so useful!).

It makes me wish that I needed info on the San Fran area just so that I could put it to work. I hope that the other ULI groups are busy working on their own portals... 

The New York City Parks Department is implementing a new system for valuing its street trees. A computer program created by researchers at UC Davis and the US Forest Service crunches the numbers on trees' contribution to property values and environmental benefits, both in absorbing CO2 and in reducing energy demand by providing shade. The City inputs the result of a tree census, and the program returns data demonstrating that NYC's street trees provide $122M in annual benefit. That's a return of $5.60 on every $1 spent on tree investment. This is going to be powerful evidence to bolster the parks department's argument that trees improve our cities (you know how those budget people love their spreadsheets). And the work confirms what everyone has anecdotally known all along. Houses with big, lush trees out front are more valuable, approximately 1% more. So, let's all be kind to our street trees – they 're money in the bank.