Planning Commissioners Journal

Train-ing

Commemorating the anniversary of the completion of the first transcontinental railroad at Promontory Summit, Utah in 1869, Amtrak has set Saturday, May 10th as National Rail Day.

Many American planners -- and citizens who have traveled to Europe or Japan and enjoyed high-speed rail service -- realize that our national system is far behind where it should be. With gas prices projected to keep on climbing, and concerns about greenhouse gas emissions, it's time we turned our attention to catching up with countries like France, Germany, Spain, and Japan.

While there has been progress in many U.S. cities on light rail and trolley systems -- something highlighted in the Planetizen update in our Winter issue -- the same can't be said of our inter-city rail system. Even in our dense Northeast Corridor, our high-speed rail is nearly a generation behind that in use in Europe.

For just a quick look at high-speed rail in Europe, see "Touring Europe at 200 Miles an Hour: Travel by High-Speed Rail Catches On as an Alternative to the Hassles of Flying," in the Mar. 12, 2008 Wall Street Journal:

"Consumers are flocking to the comfortable, speedy trains -- while growth is slowing in parts of the airline industry. Eurostar reported a 15% rise in ticket sales for 2007, with much of the increase occurring after the London enhancements. Meanwhile, airport passenger-traffic growth has fallen to 2% in Britain for the past two years ..."

photo above is of the new TGV-Est line, connecting Paris and Strasbourg at operating speeds in excess of 200 mph. Interestingly, France views its high-speed rail system as key to strengthening regional economic development by facilitating access to medium size cities throughout the country. See, e.g., Strasbourg: a "Magistrale" city. The video below shows tests of the new TGV breaking the world speed record of 574 kph (344 mph).

It didn't used to be this way. America for nearly a century was the world-wide leader in passenger rail, with trains like the 20th Century Limited connecting cities between New York and Chicago.

But countries like Spain now far surpass us -- witness their expanding high-speed AVE network, which connects Barcelona and Madrid -- 314 "air miles" apart -- in 2 hours and 40 minutes.

By comparison Chicago and St. Louis are just 260 miles apart. Amtrak connects the two cities, but it takes 5 hours and 20 minutes.

At high speeds now common in much of Western Europe, rail often replaces air as the fastest city-to-city travel option. Only in a very few places in the U.S. can the same be said.

Ready for Car Sharing?

For some good online resources on car sharing, take a look at: Dave Brook's CarSharing.us blog. Brook was founder of Carsharing Portland, the first commercial car sharing company in the U.S. in 1998. He later worked with Flexcar, which recently merged into Zipcar. Dave also recently posted a google map showing North American cities with car sharing programs. For links to a variety of newspaper articles on car sharing, go to CarSharing.net. Finally, here are some of the car sharing programs discussed in Hannah's article in the Planning Comm'rs Journal: -- PhillyCarShare -- Chicago I-GO -- Zipcar -- Enterprise Rent-A-Car -- Arlington, Virginia, Car Sharing -- San Francisco City CarShare

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

Curious about one of the hottest trends in transportation. We've got an excellent article, "Ready for Car Sharing?" in our Spring issue. Written by our transportation columnist Hannah Twaddell, it will help you understand how car sharing works, and factors in successful programs. You can take a look at excerpts from Hannah's article and, if you're interested, order & download the full four-page article. Take a look also at the video clips at the end of this posting.

Right now, car sharing is more common in larger cities. But it's expanding to smaller places, especially where partnerships can work together to promote it -- and where neighborhoods have high enough densities to support it.

Private businesses such as Zipcar, U-Haul, and Enterprise Rent-a-Car are also expanding their neighborhood-based operations to more communities. For a recent article on this newly competitive environment, see "Warning to Zipcar: Traffic Ahead" (Boston Globe, Mar. 30, 2008).

But in smaller cities, it still usually takes a nonprofit to get a car sharing program underway.

PCJ General Manager Betsey Krumholz recently spoke with Annie Bourdon, Executive Director of a nonprofit car sharing program under development in Burlington, Vermont. Take note, in particular, of the supportive role being played by the county metropolitan planning organization (MPO), which sees the value car sharing can play in reducing overall vehicle use and benefitting the region's transportation infrastructure.

Car Sharing Comes to Vermont
by PCJ General Manager Betsey Krumholz

"Car sharing programs can be successful in a lot of communities," asserts Annie Bourdon of Green Mountain CarShare in Burlington, Vermont. "The key is in understanding the needs and habits of the community in which it operates."

Bourdon is heading up this new organization, on a mission "to provide an affordable, convenient, and reliable alternative to private car ownership that enhances the environmental, social and economic well-being of our region and planet." It is gearing up for operation in Burlington, a city of 39,000 residents,

The Changing Climate of Smart Growth

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

It wasn't all that long ago that when you heard talk of smart growth, it focused on reducing sprawl in order to preserve farmland and open space, reduce infrastructure investment costs, and develop more walkable, livable neighborhoods with a mix of uses. Certainly, that's still integral to smart growth. But one new element seems to have come to the fore of the smart growth agenda: climate change.

Yes, minimizing energy consumption has always been part of smart growth's aims, but if this February's national Smart Growth Conference in Washington, D.C., is any indicator, climate change and global warming are now an important way of "framing" the benefits of smart growth.

The Conference's opening plenary session, titled "Let's Change the Climate," was specifically oriented to how smart growth can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This was immediately followed by a session headed up by Conference honoree Dr. Richard Jackson on "Climate Change, Public Health and Smart Growth." And many other conference sessions also paid attention to the link between climate change and smart growth.

During the Let's Change the Climate panel discussion, Steve Winkelman, the Transportation Program Director for the Center for Clean Air Policy (and co-author of Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change) directly made the point that framing climate change as the major issue we're facing as a nation can help promote smart growth principles. Or as panelist Jemae Hoffman (head of Sustainable Transportation and Climate Change in the Seattle Dept. of Transportation) put it, "climate change is another good [reason] to do what we all want to do," adding that it is also "putting pressure on us to move faster on transportation issues."

Indeed, putting climate change on the front burner elevates the focus on transportation policy, especially efforts to reduce vehicle miles traveled. After all, it is the transportation sector (through motor vehicle fuel use) that is in most places the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, during the Conference sesssion Winkelman noted we'll soon "need to get to vehicle miles traveled taxes."

Green Roofs are Cool

... and can make a major dent in the "urban heat island" effect in our cities -- that is, the increased temperature due to lots of paved surfaces that absorb the sun's heat.

As part of this February's Smart Growth Conference, a group of us had the chance to visit the green roof atop the headquarters of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) in their historic downtown Washington, D.C. offices.

But before Nancy Somerville, ASLA's Executive Vice President, shepherded us up to the roof, she told us about some of the benefits -- and challenges -- of installing the green roof.

Retrofitting a green roof on an older, historic building was not easy -- or cheap. One of the major expenses was the need to construct a new stairway to the roof, so visitors wouldn't have to clamber up a ladder. The roof also includes a grate walkway so people can circumnavigate the roof and view the varied plantings. And given that this roof is under the stewardship of landscape architects, it's not surprising that the roof's design is quite attractive and the plantings diverse.

The ASLA green roof has a unique feature: it is shaped into two "waves" or mounds. They're formed with thin layers of styrofoam insulation, and serve to hide the HVAC systems. As Somerville explained, they also allow the plantings to be at eye level, helping create a more attractive amenity for visitors. [Click on the drawing to view it at larger size].

But you have to bear in mind that ASLA's green roof is a model / demonstration project, a living

laboratory to help landscape architects learn about the functioning of an urban green roof. So it wouldn't be fair to hold it to a strict cost-benefit accounting.

In fact, as Somerville (above left) noted, one of their goals is to carefully monitor and measure the impacts the roof has on temperatures and rainfall retention, and to also see which plants thrive best.

Which brings us to potential benefits. Somerville ticked off several, from lowering urban temperatures, to reducing stormwater runoff, to improving air quality, to reducing energy use inside the building, to creating new biohabitats.

Perhaps the key reason for the growing popularity of green roofs lies in the fact that between 15 and 25 percent of the surface area of our cities is comprised of roof tops. Since most rooftops today consist of impervious, often dark-color surfaces, they do nothing to reduce either temperatures or stormwater runoff. But add a few inches of soil and plantings, and you get some dramatic differences.

The first year results for ASLA's green roof, for example, showed that it retained 74 percent of all rainfall (some 29 inches) -- including 100 percent of all rainfalls of less than 1 inch. Reducing urban stormwater runoff can yield environmental benefits, as well as save cities costly infrastructure investments.

How much of a soil layer do you need on a green roof? There's no single answer. As Somerville pointed out, what are termed "extensive" green roof areas typically consist of just 2 to 6 inches of soil or growing medium, and are quite light in weight. "Intensive" roof areas can have depths of 6 inches or more, and will support a broader range of plants. Part of what is possible, depends on the roof's structural capacity. On the ASLA building this varies in different parts of the roof. For example, more intensive planting are possible above the elevator shaft which offers greater structural support.

Before we left Somerville reminded us of the "amenity value" of having a green roof. With wonderful views and cooler temperatures, it can offer a great place for employees to take a break. Not surprisingly, green roofs can increase a building's real estate value.

Can't visit the ASLA's green roof? Take a look with their rooftop webcam! And visit their green roof project web site for more details and performance data on the roof.

Will the Electric Grid Fuel our Vehicles?

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

One of the most intriguing aspects of the arrival of plug-in electric hybrid vehicles in large numbers is their potential for bringing about a radical change in the relationship of the transportation and utility sectors of the economy.

That was a key theme at a conference on the future of plug-in electric hybrid vehicles, sponsored by the University of Vermont (UVM) Transportation Research Center this past December 11th. See also my previous post, Plug-In Your Car and Save Dollars (and the Environment).

Plug-in electric hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) have the potential to dramatically shift the landscape in which transportation and utility companies operate. As vehicles "fueled" from electricity start to increase in number, utility companies will play a much more important role in the world of transportation.

Nancy Gioia, Director of Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs at Ford Motor Company, who also spoke at the UVM Conference, indicated that there's plenty of off-peak electric capacity available for PHEV growth -- in part because the 6 to 8 hours needed for recharging the battery would most often be done overnight, when electric demand is lowest.

Plug In Your Car & Save Dollars (and the Environment)

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

"Climate change is real ... we need to be part of the solution ... that's a significant shift for us."

That's part of the message Nancy Gioia (pronounced "joya") brought to a packed ballroom at the University of Vermont last month.

Gioia is head of Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs at Ford Motor Company. One of her priorities has been getting out a commercially viable plug-in electric hybrid car (PHEV, for short). In fact, Ford is in the process of delivering a fleet of its new "Escape" PHEVs to Southern California Edison for extensive testing and evaluation.

According to Gioia, Ford is firmly committed to these rechargeable vehicles that run on batteries, with the ability to shift to gas when the battery is drained (hence, the "hybrid" nature). Gioia cited J.D. Powers research indicating that by 2013, hybrid sales will exceed one million/year (about 254,000 hybrids were sold in the U.S. in 2006, over 25% in California).

Ford is not alone in rushing to PHEVs. General Motors is scheduled to roll out its "Volt" PHEV vehicle (GM, for reasons explained on their web site, doesn't call the Volt a "hybrid") in 2010/2011 -- and

What's Syracuse's Destiny?

From PCJ Editor Wayne Senville:

Promotors say it will be one of the most spectacular green building projects in the world ... but some detractors at the national Greenbuild Conference see it as an auto-centric, anti-community, white elephant.

What they're referring to is Syracuse, New York's, ambitious Destiny project, being developed by real estate mogul Bob Congel, founder & managing partner of the Pyramid Companies, a major mall developer.

At Wednesday's Greenbuild Conference in Chicago, a panel of project boosters -- including Congel (on far right in photo) and Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll (second from left) -- laid out the case for this mega-project.

Destiny is being called a "destination retail city." That is, it's planned as an enormous 75 million square foot retail, hotel, and entertainment complex intended to draw visitors/shoppers from well beyond the immediate Syracuse area.

It's location is outside the city's downtown -- expanding on the existing Carousel shopping mall (see photo below). One way to view it as a mall on steroids -- perhaps along the lines of the Twin Cities' Mall of America.

But what makes the project interesting -- besides its unique blend of private, city, state, and federal financing -- is that it's being designed to incorporate a full panoply of green building practices, such as using recycled industrial materials as part of its construction, and having its own 22 MW renewable-energy power plant.

This is in keeping with Mayor Driscoll's vision of Syracuse as "Green Capital of the World." At the Conference, the Mayor spelled out a series of "aggressive" steps the city has already taken to reduce energy consumption, including an ordinance that requires all municipal buildings to be LEED-certified.

Dan Tomson, Managing Director of Citigroup Global Markets (second from right in photo of panelists), which is instrumental in putting together Destiny's financing, said that "we believe in combatting climate change with market-based solutions."

But the project financing relies on a number of state and federal financial "sweeteners," including $228 million in federal, tax-exempt green bonds designated for energy-conserving projects, plus a huge brownfields tax credit.

At the Greenbuild Conference, Congel also announced the latest addition to the Destiny project, a $450 million dollar, 1342-room hotel and conference center, which would make it the largest hotel in New York outside of New York City. (See illustration at start of this post; the hotel is in the foreground).

Congel described how he came up with the design concept for the hotel: "We needed to get an icon type of thing. I wanted to have it look like grass growing up 600 feet." The hotel, which Congel said would meet LEED-platinum standards, would also "change the skyline not just of Syracuse, but of the United States."

So what's not to like about what would be one of the largest green projects in America? One concern raised at the Conference by Ken Kortkamp (on right) a San Francisco-based engineer is the "auto-centric" nature of the project. As Kortkamp commented, "you're not creating a community, let alone a sustainable community." Others also questioned the absence of any residential component of the project, and its dependence on visitors coming by automobile.

In response, Mayor Driscoll said the project "will be a trigger to development elsewhere in the city" and would help fight sprawl. The challenge for Syracuse, he added, will be "how do we take this project and help benefit the rest of the city." For Congel, the project will "create the demand that other private developers will take care of." In terms of transportation, Congel also mentioned the possibility of designing a monorail system as part of the project (hopefully connecting with the Syracuse airport and downtown).

The U.S. Green Building Council is also behind the project, having purchased one of the new federal green bonds issued for Destiny.

For an economically depressed city like Syracuse, Destiny offers an attractive vision. But will the visitors arrive in the number expected? And will Destiny deliver benefits to the rest of the city, including its downtown?

Update posted on 11.26.07: An interesting post on the Veritas et Venustas blog about the transportation-related factors in "green buildings" -- something that came up in questions about the Syracuse project:

"Designers and builders expend significant effort to ensure that our buildings use as little energy as possible. This is a good thing—and very obvious to anyone who has been involved with green building for any length of time. What is not so obvious is that many buildings are responsible for much more energy use getting people to and from those buildings. That’s right—for an average office building in the United States, calculations done by Environmental Building News (EBN) show that commuting by office workers accounts for 30% more energy than the building itself uses. For an average new office building built to code, transportation accounts for more than twice as much energy use as building operation."

See also my post during my cross-country trip about the Chesapeake Bay Foundation "green" headquarters building -- the building that's the focus of the Veritas et Venustas blog entry.

Jamming in Green

From Planning Commissioners Journal Editor Wayne Senville:

The green build movement reached critical momentum this week, as more than 20,000 people: developers, contractors, engineers, architects, planners, students, and assorted elected officials, jammed into the McCormick Place convention center in Chicago for the 2007 International Greenbuild Conference.

Sponsored by the U.S. Green Building Council, the Conference featured a keynote address by former President Bill Clinton, and well over 100 workshops and panel discussions. This was in addition to over 800 vendors who packed the exhibition hall (go to a post on Best Green Blogs for more on some of the vendors, including photos).

Wading into the largest lunch line I've ever encountered (see below), I was floored to see such enormous interest in green building practices. Another attendee had a similar reaction. And CNBC reporter Diana Olick reported that "I'm not often shocked, but I am today. And so were the folks running the convention. An unbelievable response, is all I can say. This place is so packed with people from all over the world that the registration line was literally two hours long."

Just across the street from the convention center was a sign bearing witness to the growing interest in green building: a new Chicago condominium project touting to potential buyers its green features.

At the start of the Conference, former President Clinton announced an initiative of the Clinton Foundation that will include:

• partnering with the City of Chicago to enable a "green overhaul" of privately-owned multi-tenant housing across the city, as well as of the enormous Sears Tower and Merchandise Mart buildings;
• a partnership with GE Real Estate to retrofit projects in GE's $72 billion global portfolio; and
• a major effort (with the U.S. Green Buildings Council) to create a "Green Schools" program to reduce energy consumption in K-12 schools, along with a comparable program aimed at colleges and universities.

Clinton noted in his remarks that "when it comes to climate change, the hurdles we face aren't technological, they're organizational ... the solution to the climate crisis isn't far off in the future -- it's in the buildings we inhabit, our civic infrastructure, and the way we organize our lives."

In terms of green building, Clinton observed that "what we have to do is prove that this is not a big bottle of castor oil that we're being asked to drink." Instead, he described green building as an enormous economic opportunity for the nation.

More on some of what I heard during the Conference in my next post.