tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post1828438899328483451..comments2022-04-29T13:22:00.817-04:00Comments on Joe the Planner: The white elephant in the roomJoe the Plannerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11577251046288232934noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-39698889480164319762009-11-08T12:46:33.933-05:002009-11-08T12:46:33.933-05:00Excellent! Thanks so much for this.Excellent! Thanks so much for this.Tyler Brownhttp://www.tethos.canoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-19966134134637614702009-03-19T20:07:00.000-04:002009-03-19T20:07:00.000-04:00Joe: Your article is making the rounds.Awhile befo...Joe: Your article is making the rounds.<BR/><BR/>Awhile before and co-incident with, the collapse of the retail economy, we are experiencing the Amazon.com phenomena!<BR/><BR/>In our household, 90 % of our expenditures are now online purchases. Most of our, get by automobile, stuff is perishables, hardware and business supplies. We maybe the extreme, living 23 miles from Safeway and 40 mile from Lowes and Office Depot, but online purchasing has become very user friendly and blogs have become the ideal way to check product workability and reliability. <BR/><BR/>We are in a “Paradigm Shift” of retailing and we may find that we are at “Peak” quantity of highway infrastructure other than upgrade.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-61104266952950347852009-03-10T21:31:00.000-04:002009-03-10T21:31:00.000-04:00If you like Joe the Planner (as I do), you'll love...If you like Joe the Planner (as I do), you'll love James Howard Kunstler: www.kunstler.com.Betty Barcodehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14614223500937270009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-68529523688643212332009-03-10T18:08:00.000-04:002009-03-10T18:08:00.000-04:00Joe, this was a very good article. Write more, pl...Joe, this was a very good article. Write more, please.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-49083384431040468552009-03-07T14:34:00.000-05:002009-03-07T14:34:00.000-05:00A comprehensive website that looks at open retail,...A comprehensive website that looks at open retail, parks, commercial and real estate development projects, foreclosure spaces and unsold property combined with information on current developments would be an incredible resource. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps we should start an open source Google Map for Urban Planning.<BR/><BR/>I've put something together with a few examples to show you what I'm talking about. This could be a great resource for planners, business owners, investors and city officials. e-mail me at dgoshin@yahoo.com<BR/><BR/>http://maps.google.com/maps/user?uid=111098536190091663226&hl=en&gl=us&ptab=2Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-51942023116878308132009-02-19T21:04:00.000-05:002009-02-19T21:04:00.000-05:00@ dgoshilla: you raise some good points. Both our ...@ dgoshilla: you raise some good points. Both our cities and inner-ring suburbs are trashed. In a future of diminishing returns, we've certainly got our work cut out for us.<BR/><BR/>But if our future does mean fewer resources and higher costs (particularly for energy), then the layout of the 'burbs is particularly badly suited. The subsidies and incentives that have artificially propped-up exurban development will, by and large, disappear. The least-valuable parts of suburbia may be good for nothing more than salvage. (In fact, over the last few decades, blight has overtaken many older, less-extravagant inner-ring suburbs surprisingly fast.)<BR/><BR/>In this future scenario, it'll be much easier to rebuild our older, traditional communities. Our land-use and development practices may begin to resemble something like common sense.Joe the Plannerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11577251046288232934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-1239367463309071452009-02-19T20:49:00.000-05:002009-02-19T20:49:00.000-05:00Joe, great article. Looking for side conversation ...Joe, great article. Looking for side conversation to share some insights. Drop me an email at jasontheplanner@hotmail.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-7128783205074185862009-02-19T19:54:00.000-05:002009-02-19T19:54:00.000-05:00Sprawl - is a word heard thousands of times over t...Sprawl - is a word heard thousands of times over the years in Lancaster New York.<BR/> Infra structure (sewers,water and roads) is ignored - build, build, build has been the local governments mantra.<BR/> They can do this because like all other large corporations lately have learned - in the end the taxpayers will be forced to pay. Whether its local, state or federal taxes - we will pay.<BR/> We will pay to upgrade and extend roads,bridges,waterlines,sewerlines and whatever it takes to keep the tax and spend system running.<BR/> Without this cycle, the "Political Machine in America" will shurely be exsposed for what it is - one giant tax fed, tax funded retirement system for those who live within the choosen ranks.<BR/> The workers - taxpayers are the cows that feed the system - as long as they are fed - they are happy - gladly unaware that if they don't produce the perscribed amount of milk(taxs) they then will be replaced and swallowed up by the same system they supported.<BR/> Why should we stop the sprawl - it creates jobs for some - temporarily - wealth for a small handful of the well connected and tax dollars to hide the over stuffed system we enjoy.<BR/> Who cares that some water lines are made of rotting wood, who cares bridges are failing, who cares that the newer subdivisions are pumping sewage into an already battered and overly burdened treatment system? <BR/> Our childrens generation and the ones that follow will surely thank us for their chance at the American dream - maybe they too will some day enjoy a tax funded bailout and live better than we have - isnt that what its all about, looking out for our futures ! ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-6493736628331673192009-02-19T19:36:00.000-05:002009-02-19T19:36:00.000-05:00How about we take some of Barry O's spending, er s...How about we take some of Barry O's spending, er stimulus plan and DO something with it:<BR/><BR/>Hundreds of acres of neglected cityscape lies in ruin...block upon block with mid 20th century homes shuttered...infested...one occupant per every 10 properties....<BR/><BR/>Take these few residents and respectfully relocate them.. Sure it will be tough...but make it worth their while....under those streets, you upgrade power and plumbing and create shovel ready plots...sprinkle in new berms, trees, put things on bus routes, build a library and fire hall...sprinkle in some small retail pockets....make the next Clarence suburban development (for example) happen within minutes of downtown...reduce reliance on 30 minute commutes, traffic, gasoline...<BR/><BR/>Life in the city is great. No more burbs. Charge more to rebuild infrastructure in suburban farmland....turn the lemon we suffer from (abandoned properties, suburban ring sprawling into ever distant suburban rings) into newness...all the advantages of a suburban pre-planned community with the convenience of downtown, the lake, the theatre.<BR/><BR/>Take those free gov't dollars to clear and make shovel ready tomorrow's neighborhoods a reality....big lots, varied hoe styles, 10 minute commutes, new life where now there is only decay.<BR/><BR/>Then get these communists, er, bureaucrats out of the way so entrepreneurs can build a business model to make it happen<BR/><BR/>I bet 30 percent of the city could EASILY be cleared and people would welcome access to Elmwood, Hertel, the medical campus, etc.<BR/><BR/>Long term, we rebuild the city from within...give people a reson to do it....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-90023269514299241962009-02-19T16:14:00.000-05:002009-02-19T16:14:00.000-05:00Can you say Benderson?Can you say Benderson?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-54747011763870128922009-02-19T15:37:00.000-05:002009-02-19T15:37:00.000-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-49765911544916608062009-02-17T12:32:00.000-05:002009-02-17T12:32:00.000-05:00You've got it exactly right. I have a paper you mi...You've got it exactly right. I have a paper you might like to see re: Buffalo in this context. E-mail me if you're interested: mcope@uvm.edu (formerly faculty at UB).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-16283405254438195422009-02-16T12:39:00.000-05:002009-02-16T12:39:00.000-05:00Fascinating article. I grew up in the suburbs of ...Fascinating article. <BR/><BR/>I grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo and now live in Los Angeles. <BR/><BR/>Here in LA I'm seeing retail shut down everywhere. Its scary to drive down urban shopping areas like Melrose, Robertson, Beverly, Colorado and even Rodeo to see every other storefront "for lease".<BR/><BR/>We're seeing a cultural shift towards saving propped up by a shrinking credit market which will lead to a serious decrease in spending and the need for as much retail as we've had here in the US for the past 8 years.<BR/><BR/>My concern is what to do with the open retail space occupying LA. These storefronts are usually one story and no bigger that 1500-3000 square feet. Because of their location they are certainly expensive aka overpriced and if there are no retail/restaurant/galleries to fill the spaces they will lay dormant for years to come.<BR/><BR/>My hope is that people will begin coming in from the suburbs to the city. With more density will come retail and soon enough these for Lease signs will fall. <BR/><BR/>An even greater concern is what if this actually happens? What if we witness a suburban diaspora? While tens of large and stalled housing complexes certainly exists to accommodate these "ex pats" the infrastructure does not. Where will we park our cars? Where will people attend school? How will people receive healthcare?<BR/><BR/>Ask yourself what problems would arise from an influx of population from the suburbs to the city and you will bear witness to the issues facing our country as a whole.<BR/><BR/>Public Transit, Education and Health Care all saw major cuts from the stimulus bill because of the need to bring 3 Republicans on board. <BR/><BR/>The US needs a comprehensive city by city, state by state solution to public transportation.<BR/><BR/>The US needs to fix our healthcare system so that we're not spending 3x the amount of other countries per person while receiving worse care.<BR/><BR/>The US needs a national strategy to revamp our middle, junior high and public schools.<BR/><BR/>If we can't solve the above issues we'll never dig ourselves out of this ditch and the web between our cities, suburbs and exurbs will be full of the carcasses of once occupied space.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32091884.post-68425446754881361022009-02-13T01:21:00.000-05:002009-02-13T01:21:00.000-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.mehtahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15993592594725264296noreply@blogger.com