“That site is going to sit vacant for a decade.” That was the quote from a frustrated developer as he left a public hearing this past spring, after the city council voted down his planned apartment project. I prepared a market study for the proposed project that was voted down. It was to be a market rate, general occupancy housing on a vacant site in an inner ring suburb. Which city does not matter here, nor do the specifics of the project. What matters is this is but one of countless examples across the country of short-sighted cities passing on…
It bothers me that my four-year-old son Ellis is most familiar with Target as the source of his food. We’ve tried to balance that with the purchase of a Community Share Agriculture (CSA), so a trip to the farm where that food comes from is certainly in order. Still, in a perfect world, I’d have a full-service grocery store a five-minute walk from my house, and the most logical location would be next to the 38th Street light rail station. Every transit station area should be anchored by a grocery store. A recent Citiwire post by Neal Peirce about supermarkets…
I recently participated in the creation of a master plan vision for a prominent transit-oriented development site at the southwest quadrant of Lake Street and Hiawatha Avenue. The master plan vision/development concept is a collaboration with the Corcoran Neighborhood Organization, the BKV Group and a team of developers. I represented my firm, Joe Urban, Inc., in largely a market research role. You can view the plan here. The driving objective of the master plan vision is to build on past plans and provide the Corcoran Neighborhood Organization with a means of helping to inform the approvals process when the Minneapolis…
In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal (posted here on the New Geography website), Joel Kotkin takes on the myth of the move back to the city. He raises some very good issues, but I believe there is a hole in his argument. First of all, we should not be confusing the demand for condos in downtown Miami, Los Angeles and Las Vegas (very speculative and investor-driven during the housing bubble) with actual demand and desire for urban living in mixed-use, walkable neighborhoods served by transit. Mr. Kotkin cited a 2004 survey by Smart Growth America as proof…
My latest article, “Retooling Industrial Development,” has been published in the May/June 2010 issue of Urban Land magazine. With the recent recession, companies are seeking to “optimize their networks” and consolidate their warehousing and streamline their movement of goods. Coupled with infrastructure investments and greener development, it is a very interesting time in the industrial market. Read “Retooling Industrial Development” here.
My Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a neighborhood as A section lived in by neighbors and usually having distinguishing characteristics and People living near one another. What is a neighborhood? What do I look for in a neighborhood? What do you look for in a neighborhood? Have you ever been to the perfect neighborhood? Where is it? Do you live in it? Some will say the truly great neighborhoods of the world are found in the world’s premier cities. Some say design decides what makes up a great neighborhood. Or balance, the right mix of uses. Jay Walljasper’s wonderful guide, “The Great…
How do businesses decide where to locate? Are businesses attracted to hip, creative cities with an educated workforce, or are they drawn by low taxes? Turns out, of course, the answer is much more complicated. I researched this topic over the past year, and have taken a first pass at trying to explain the nuances in the following article. Read the exclusive joe-urban.com article here.
We can thank Joe Mauer, the all-star, golden glove, batting champion catcher for the 2009 Central Division champion Minnesota Twins for saving urbanity in Minnesota. Allow me to explain. Target Field, the new home of the Minnesota Twins, is an urban ballpark built right in to the fabric of the city. Joe Mauer, born and raised right here in St. Paul, is a true hometown favorite who just signed a long-term contract. Sure, there are other great players on the Twins, but Joe Mauer is the reason Minnesotans, be they, from city, suburb or outstate, come to Target Field. And…
My latest article in Urban Land magazine has been published in the March/April 2010 issue. Read “Little Infill” here. Little Infill refers to the challenges the development community and cities face in trying to develop small projects on even smaller sites. On the one hand, “little infill” projects are quite popular, particularly if they are mixed-use. OK, popular in principle, but often very opposed by immediate neighbors. As well, there are challenges with regard to design, financing, leasing/selling, and with various zoning and other city codes. Yet little infill projects must be made easier to develop if we are to…
Inspired by “A Flash Census in Five Boroughs” in Friday’s New York Times, I took a flash census of my own in my “borough,” my ‘hood – the Standish-Ericsson neighborhood in Minneapolis. View photos of my journey here. April 2, 2010 – 11:04AM to 12:35PM Heading to the light rail station on the bike with Ellis in tow in the Burley: 1 – neighbor in his driveway prepping his boat for the season 1 – retired neighbor repurposing metal in his garage At the light rail station: 2 – trucks across the street unloading grain at the ADM mill (yes,…
