WMATA recently released the 2008 Metrorail Station Access & Capacity Study (PDF) which analyzes how the system can accommodate future growth in detail. David has a good summary of the report’s major recommendations for improvement and expansion. A table in the report caught my eye that showed the estimated number of jobs and households around […]
Raise the Gas Tax to Cut Oil Company Profits
Record high crude oil prices has put the federal gas tax in center stage, as McCain and Clinton have proposed a summer holiday of the 18.4 cent federal gas tax. Thomas Friedman blasted the short-sighted proposal, as well as our leader’s failure to create a coherent energy policy. Calling it a meaningless “quick-fix” solution, Barack […]
Bike Rental Program Starts Soon
Ever wanted to rent a bike in downtown D.C. to run a quick errand or see the town? Starting next month the city’s SmartBike rental program kicks off with 120 bikes at 10 locations, where the racks have already been installed. Membership will cost $40 annually and work something like Zipcar, with rentals limited to […]
Climate Change: The Moral Imperative for Smart Growth
This Tuesday I attended the “Earth Day Rollout” of a new book detailing the relationship between urban development and climate change. Intuitively, it would seem logical to conclude that compact cities release less greenhouse gasses on a per capita basis than low density ones. We might hypothesize compact cities shorten distances between destinations, encourage walking […]
An Architectural Aesthetic of Efficiency
“The principle of organic economy was too essential to the functioning of the society not to affect ethics and aesthetics profoundly.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, from the novel The Dispossessed Architectural sustainability, or the green building movement, is dominated by concern with buildings energy efficiency and use of sustainable materials. Left largely undiscussed is […]
Montgomery County Loves to Park
In a previous post on parking I reviewed some of the region’s bloated parking requirements. Today I was re-visiting the Montgomery County Zoning Code’s parking requirements and decided to post a more detailed list. Although these requirements can be adjusted somewhat for uses near Metro stations or in parking districts or for other reasons, this […]
Rosslyn Redevelopment
Last Saturday I competed in second annual Real Estate Case Competition hosted by George Washington University’s Real Estate Investment & Development Organization. Sixteen universities created interdisciplinary teams to create detailed redevelopment proposals for a site in Rosslyn, Virginia slated for redevelopment. The property owners, Vornado/Charles E. Smith, participated in the judging of the entries and […]