How Green Are you? Measure your Greendex! Calculator from National Geographic.

[HAL 9000 96]

I heard that Houston is the largest US City in terms of geography... somehow the current budgetary crisis striking some US Cities' public transport vs gasoline consumption ratios has not become an electoral issue as of yet.

These changes are by definition more realistic if demanded by the electorate in a gradual fashion.

Somehow I think people's changing driving habits will come home to roost soon even in sprawled out cities. Lets hope that places like Houston get ahead of the curve on that one and preemptively attack such a foolhardy mentality of expansion without limit.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

If transportation costs continue to rise, I think the "New Urbanist" movement being trumpeted by architectural firms specializing in such development (*cough*) will quickly become a foregone conclusion. We'll have no choice but to bring homes and workplaces closer together, to have cost-efficient means of public transport (light rail, guided pathway bus) and all that other good stuff.

Of course, if transportation costs are controlled by means of technical innovation (say, something that offsets the rise in gasoline prices), then life can and will go on without the disruption of (and the annoying evangelism of) New Urbanism.

[HAL 9000 96]

If transportation costs continue to rise, I think the "New Urbanist" movement being trumpeted by architectural firms specializing in such development (*cough*) will quickly become a foregone conclusion. We'll have no choice but to bring homes and workplaces closer together, to have cost-efficient means of public transport (light rail, guided pathway bus) and all that other good stuff.

Of course, if transportation costs are controlled by means of technical innovation (say, something that offsets the rise in gasoline prices), then life can and will go on without the disruption of (and the annoying evangelism of) New Urbanism.

I see it here in Chicago... former poor areas being gentrified over the last 20 years by developers and their friends in city hall... this makes me wonder about the socioeconomic costs of gentrification, as the poor in this case end up getting pushed further and further away from employment zones.

Too bad cities are more geared towards investment in residential zones that generate higher real estate taxes while neglecting to focus on ensuring more residents drive the entire local urban economy upwards via payroll contributions and commerce... but there again the argument becomes anti-ecological and one would think then that to be pro-environment means being anti-development for the poor and those that can't afford to buy redeveloped projects. As an interesting note, I am noticing a great many (perhaps a fashion statement more than anything else) new developments here that tout themselves as green and eco-friendly.

In fact, it couldn't be further from the truth as one can stimulate both without being a glutton for creating bipolar economic zones in cities: cities will just have to be efficient instead of patronizing towards their own inner machines like in Chicago. I am sure Houston and the various urban zones of NJ have similar machines.

[GaryC 7]

51 for me.

[Sister Fracas 5]

If transportation costs continue to rise, I think the "New Urbanist" movement being trumpeted by architectural firms specializing in such development (*cough*) will quickly become a foregone conclusion. We'll have no choice but to bring homes and workplaces closer together, to have cost-efficient means of public transport (light rail, guided pathway bus) and all that other good stuff.

Of course, if transportation costs are controlled by means of technical innovation (say, something that offsets the rise in gasoline prices), then life can and will go on without the disruption of (and the annoying evangelism of) New Urbanism.

I see it here in Chicago...

Off topic... but maviwaro, we should plan a Chicago VJ meetup...hehehe

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I see it here in Chicago... former poor areas being gentrified over the last 20 years by developers and their friends in city hall... this makes me wonder about the socioeconomic costs of gentrification, as the poor in this case end up getting pushed further and further away from employment zones.

It's happened in NJ too. And continues to happen. Speaking locally, the City of New Brunswick was as recently as the early 90s (when I went to school there) much poorer and much less safe than it is today. I had a friend who used to rent an attic apartment (illegal, obviously) above a crackhouse. We'd get drunk in his apartment and watch the streetwalkers from the window. I had reason to drive by that area again a few months ago, after a gap of many years. Brand new townhouses. Nice stores. Even a Panera. New, yuppie-looking crowd. Still mostly African-American like it used to be, just wealthier and 'hipper'. I noticed JnJ stickers in some windshields, so I assume many of them work there (it's a few miles away).

So where did the previous inhabitants go? I don't know. What I do know is that concurrent to the gentrification of the New Brunswick inner city, there's been a lot of affordable housing development in surrounding - and up to recently, mostly middle class and white - suburbs like Franklin and North Brunswick. And there's also been a concurrent increase in violent crime rates in these towns. Oh, and NJ Transit runs buses to these new affordable housing developments, these towns didn't have bus service before.

In sum, I like what gentrification has done to New Brunswick. I've actually read their master plan and the vision sounds compelling and desirable. But there does exist (and this may not be politically correct to say out loud) an underclass in this country that must go somewhere. I am very unhappy with the results of NB gentrification on surrounding suburbs. But I do recognize how unavoidable it was. We either rejuvenate our cities or we let them fester. We either give the smart, the hard working, the earning members of the cities the opportunity to have good lives in the city or we force them out into the suburbs and exurbs. Gentrification achieves the former but provides no real solution for the underclass. Maybe there isn't one.

[HAL 9000 96]

If transportation costs continue to rise, I think the "New Urbanist" movement being trumpeted by architectural firms specializing in such development (*cough*) will quickly become a foregone conclusion. We'll have no choice but to bring homes and workplaces closer together, to have cost-efficient means of public transport (light rail, guided pathway bus) and all that other good stuff.

Of course, if transportation costs are controlled by means of technical innovation (say, something that offsets the rise in gasoline prices), then life can and will go on without the disruption of (and the annoying evangelism of) New Urbanism.

I see it here in Chicago...

Off topic... but maviwaro, we should plan a Chicago VJ meetup...hehehe

Hey I WAS going to do a little grilling tomorrow on the Lakefront but the temperatures will be WAY too cold for our little grill...

A meetup would be interesting. I'd suggest, to stay on topic, hehehe, something ecological like meeting at the Signature Room

[Sister Fracas 5]

Hey I WAS going to do a little grilling tomorrow on the Lakefront but the temperatures will be WAY too cold for our little grill...

A meetup would be interesting. I'd suggest, to stay on topic, hehehe, something ecological like meeting at the Signature Room

or hey....a meetup at Green City Market... LOL

Edited May 9, 2008 by Sister Fracas

[HAL 9000 96]

I see it here in Chicago... former poor areas being gentrified over the last 20 years by developers and their friends in city hall... this makes me wonder about the socioeconomic costs of gentrification, as the poor in this case end up getting pushed further and further away from employment zones.

It's happened in NJ too. And continues to happen. Speaking locally, the City of New Brunswick was as recently as the early 90s (when I went to school there) much poorer and much less safe than it is today. I had a friend who used to rent an attic apartment (illegal, obviously) above a crackhouse. We'd get drunk in his apartment and watch the streetwalkers from the window. I had reason to drive by that area again a few months ago, after a gap of many years. Brand new townhouses. Nice stores. Even a Panera. New, yuppie-looking crowd. Still mostly African-American like it used to be, just wealthier and 'hipper'. I noticed JnJ stickers in some windshields, so I assume many of them work there (it's a few miles away).

So where did the previous inhabitants go? I don't know. What I do know is that concurrent to the gentrification of the New Brunswick inner city, there's been a lot of affordable housing development in surrounding - and up to recently, mostly middle class and white - suburbs like Franklin and North Brunswick. And there's also been a concurrent increase in violent crime rates in these towns. Oh, and NJ Transit runs buses to these new affordable housing developments, these towns didn't have bus service before.

In sum, I like what gentrification has done to New Brunswick. I've actually read their master plan and the vision sounds compelling and desirable. But there does exist (and this may not be politically correct to say out loud) an underclass in this country that must go somewhere. I am very unhappy with the results of NB gentrification on surrounding suburbs. But I do recognize how unavoidable it was. We either rejuvenate our cities or we let them fester. We either give the smart, the hard working, the earning members of the cities the opportunity to have good lives in the city or we force them out into the suburbs and exurbs. Gentrification achieves the former but provides no real solution for the underclass. Maybe there isn't one.

It is unavoidable... the only two things missing from that equation are allowing the "victims" of gentrification to obtain employment in redeveloped (hopefully green) industries that decentralize to those regions where they are pushed out to and stimulating economic and academic development that becomes globally conscious at a local level. This could decrease the crime problem associated with pushing people all around, but then again, it flies somewhat in the face of the urban renewal process that accompanies gentrification.

A happy medium is necessary, or at least diversifying how the gentrification is done so as to afford all folks prone to the upper end of the gentrification as well as the lower end, opportunities that are not currently created in a responsible manner. And these things are done gradually.

As for the crime, notice how cities these days have unpredictable crime patterns, one year versus the next, as well as how statistics for cities can switch at the drop of a hat. There is obviously more to be said about how particular regions control urban development and pinpointing the crime solely on the poor is as irresponsible as blaming them for being that way. Crime rates are in a way starting to look like weather patterns that shift in equilibrium from one place to the next, with people focusing on what they want to focus on instead of looking at the whole picture.

Edited May 9, 2008 by maviwaro

[HAL 9000 96]

Hey I WAS going to do a little grilling tomorrow on the Lakefront but the temperatures will be WAY too cold for our little grill...

A meetup would be interesting. I'd suggest, to stay on topic, hehehe, something ecological like meeting at the Signature Room

or hey....a meetup at Green City Market... LOL

I was being ironic about the Signature Room, even though its really cool!

The Green City Market is pretty pricey (on the fancier stuff) don't you think? Even though the quality of the produce is awesome. I usually get my fresh produce at Stanley's whenever possible, on weeknights.

I'll be seeing how it fares... I remember there was a local delivery service that gave a weekly ration (like two paperbags full of local organic produce, varied by week) of produce that was really well organized and ends up saving the user a trip to the market. I'll have to check it out if its still available (the price was really good, too). You pay for the season in bulk and you save a ton in the end, eating healthier and literally more green.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

... pinpointing the crime solely on the poor is as irresponsible as blaming them for being that way.

I don't blame crime on the poor. I blame certain forms of crime on the poor. The poor tend to engage in forms of crime with a lower bar of entry and higher risk. The fact is that it is those forms of crime that have an immediate and visible (and fear inducing) impact on the quality of life of residents. The crime wealthy people engage in has impacts that take years to manifest (where did all those tax dollars go? oh never mind, we'll levy some more).

[HAL 9000 96]

... pinpointing the crime solely on the poor is as irresponsible as blaming them for being that way.

I don't blame crime on the poor. I blame certain forms of crime on the poor. The poor tend to engage in forms of crime with a lower bar of entry and higher risk. The fact is that it is those forms of crime that have an immediate and visible (and fear inducing) impact on the quality of life of residents. The crime wealthy people engage in has impacts that take years to manifest (where did all those tax dollars go? oh never mind, we'll levy some more).

I tend to link one with the other much like there is a link between being un-environmental and consequential environmental effects. There are choices to make most of the time.

[Sister Fracas 5]

Hey I WAS going to do a little grilling tomorrow on the Lakefront but the temperatures will be WAY too cold for our little grill...

A meetup would be interesting. I'd suggest, to stay on topic, hehehe, something ecological like meeting at the Signature Room

or hey....a meetup at Green City Market... LOL

I was being ironic about the Signature Room, even though its really cool!

The Green City Market is pretty pricey (on the fancier stuff) don't you think? Even though the quality of the produce is awesome. I usually get my fresh produce at Stanley's whenever possible, on weeknights.

I'll be seeing how it fares... I remember there was a local delivery service that gave a weekly ration (like two paperbags full of local organic produce, varied by week) of produce that was really well organized and ends up saving the user a trip to the market. I'll have to check it out if its still available (the price was really good, too). You pay for the season in bulk and you save a ton in the end, eating healthier and literally more green.

I keep wanting to get to Stanley's because I've heard it's such a nice market, but that is 2 bus rides for me. I was joking about Green City Market as well, even though I DO like to go there maybe once a month to splurge on some of their meets and cheeses. There are plenty of local farmer's markets in the summer to get good quality stuff, instead of the shiny waxed fruits from Dominick's or Jewel

[HAL 9000 96]

Hey I WAS going to do a little grilling tomorrow on the Lakefront but the temperatures will be WAY too cold for our little grill...

A meetup would be interesting. I'd suggest, to stay on topic, hehehe, something ecological like meeting at the Signature Room

or hey....a meetup at Green City Market... LOL

I was being ironic about the Signature Room, even though its really cool!

The Green City Market is pretty pricey (on the fancier stuff) don't you think? Even though the quality of the produce is awesome. I usually get my fresh produce at Stanley's whenever possible, on weeknights.

I'll be seeing how it fares... I remember there was a local delivery service that gave a weekly ration (like two paperbags full of local organic produce, varied by week) of produce that was really well organized and ends up saving the user a trip to the market. I'll have to check it out if its still available (the price was really good, too). You pay for the season in bulk and you save a ton in the end, eating healthier and literally more green.

I keep wanting to get to Stanley's because I've heard it's such a nice market, but that is 2 bus rides for me. I was joking about Green City Market as well, even though I DO like to go there maybe once a month to splurge on some of their meets and cheeses. There are plenty of local farmer's markets in the summer to get good quality stuff, instead of the shiny waxed fruits from Dominick's or Jewel

Ahhh... CTA buses and those 2 hour trips to travel less than 20 miles... priceless!

Bad traffic management and poor bus service really have taken their toll...

(Try checking if you have Cermak Produce anywhere around you... those Mexicans sell better produce- it smells like produce, than the big supermarkets)

[Sister Fracas 5]

Ahhh... CTA buses and those 2 hour trips to travel less than 20 miles... priceless!

Bad traffic management and poor bus service really have taken their toll...

(Try checking if you have Cermak Produce anywhere around you... those Mexicans sell better produce- it smells like produce, than the big supermarkets)

Oh, that would be a "pack your lunch" outing....LOL...I'm all the way up north in East Edgewater