Public Realm

Housing and Oxnard

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Oxnard has a severe housing shortage. Earlier this year SB 827 attempted to help communities build more housing. If the direction of SB 827 is correct the “fixes” relate mostly to zoning that incentives sprawl and makes it almost impossible to build in city cores. I will not go into the failure of SB 827 here but making zoning changes that incentivize the building, making the building of housing easy instead of almost impossible, housing in downtown (Oxnard) was the main thrust of the legislation. Housing will happen eventually. Oxnard is working on Development Standards and Design Guidelines that, if … Read more

Barcelona’s Superblocks: Change the Grid, Change your Neighborhood

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Over two years ago, Barcelona set the transportation world aflutter when it announced it would be attempting to reinvent parts of its city by developing a Superblock system by transforming targeted street grids to prioritize people over cars. On selected small street networks large parts of intersections and roadways would be taken back for parks and community gathering. Vehicles would not be banned, but it would redesign the grids so that fast thru-traffic was discouraged thru a series of driving direction changes, street narrowing and speed limits. Thus, almost all vehicles present would be either local residents or people with … Read more

From Vision to Policy, Making New Urbanism Work

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“Brilliant podcast on placemaking, public policy, planning departments and the public. I cannot recommend this podcast highly enough.” Editor.   JULY 26, 2018   BY STRONG TOWNS This is our sixth dispatch from the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), which took place in Savannah, Georgia in May. Chuck Marohn attended CNU and hosted a series of in-depth podcast conversations about some of the most pressing topics for cities today, with leaders, thinkers, and activists in a whole range of fields. Now we’re bringing those podcasts to your ears throughout the summer. In this episode, Susan Henderson (principal and director of design at Placemakers), Hazel Borys … Read more

Making Cities More Dense Always Sparks Resistance. Here’s How To Overcome It.

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“NIMBYs are not necessarily the problem. They are behaving normally for humans. The problem is politicians and other decision-makers who know better, who don’t do the right thing because of NIMBY fear. If you’ve had a long process, heard from thousands of people, investigated and understood the technical issues, know your aspirations as a city, and you let 10 or 15 individuals at the last minute show up at council and turn it down? I don’t blame those 15 individuals, I blame the leaders.”   Urbanist Brent Toderian on how to deal with NIMBY [Not In My Backyard]. By David Roberts@drvoxdavid@vox.com  Updated May … Read more

Twelve Steps of Sprawl Recovery

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Image courtesy of the Village of Providence Twelve steps of sprawl recovery In communities across America sprawl is giving way to more diverse places. Here are a dozen keys to that trend. STEVE MOUZON    FEB. 13, 2018 The storm clouds of sprawl addiction had been gathering for years, but it took the Meltdown and the ensuing Great Recession to make it clear just how damaging that addiction had been to the health of cities across the US and abroad. Sprawl has two really big things going for it, but three even bigger things now going against it which are poised to … Read more

World Class Urban Design & Economic Development Education

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CityBuilding Express #CBX2018 Why spend 4 days on a tour bus with 50 mayors, developers, city council members, staff planners, supervisors, city managers, urban designers, town architects, economic development experts? For the annual CityBuilding Express (#CBX2018) event of course! There is never a dull moment with this inquisitive outspoken crowd! Nathan Norris photo Riding with 50 others on a tour bus loaded with urbanist nerds may not be your cup of tea, but for people working to make their towns and cities better through progressive economic development and creative urban placemaking – it’s a heady, exciting and dynamic time. Imagine “kicking the … Read more

WHAT DOES A WALKABLE STREET LOOK LIKE?

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JANUARY 24, 2018  by RACHEL QUEDNAU You know those games you usually find on the back of a cereal box or in a kids’ magazine that present you with two seemingly identical pictures and ask you to spot the six things that are different in each? Well, here’s a much easier version of that: What differences can you spot in the pictures above? (Hint: There are more than six.) We’re going to talk a little about those differences today and why understanding them is so crucial if we wish to build financially successful cities and towns. WHAT DOES “AUTO-ORIENTED” MEAN? An auto-oriented … Read more

Traditional Neighborhood vs Suburban Subdivision

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In a recent Facebook post by Civic By Design Traditional Neighborhood Design (TND) is compared to a suburban subdivision. The benefits of the TND far outweigh the “benefits” of the more conventional suburban design. The graphics speak for themselves. Civic by Design notes that the TND is by DPZ click for link to Vermillion project in Hunterville, North Carolina.    

Do not Forget Oxnard Boulevard

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Oxnard Boulevard is key to downtown revitalization success. We must not forget Oxnard Boulevard. Oxnard City revitalization must not ignore Oxnard Boulevard and only concentrate on the areas around Plaza Park. I strongly feel that only when Oxnard revitalizes Oxnard Boulevard, will Oxnard’s downtown come fully alive: Remove the medians from 3rd  (where Oxnard Blvd widens going south) to 9th Streets and feathering to Wooley Paint a curbside parking lane on both sides of Oxnard Blvd in front of all businesses from 3rd to Wooley Paint (inexpensive) bulb-outs at all intersections from 4th (Oxnard Transportation Center) Street to 9th – extending thoughtfully towards … Read more

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