Weekly Top 5 - Homeownership, Trickle Up, Kasim Reed, Biking & Walking, Bad Architecture

Here's what we found this week out there.. 

What's up in Roswell...

This Tuesday, the final public input meeting will be held for the Holcomb Bridge Road Corridor Study from 5 to 7 pm at the Holiday Inn at 909 Holcomb Bridge Road.

The Groveway Architectural Design Guidelines were released.  Check out the document here.  This document clarifies a lot of the questions that were found in the hybrid form-based code document.

Top 5 Articles of the Week

Homeownership Means Little to Economic Growth - The Atlantic Cities

OUCH! The truth hurts.

Robert Shiller of Yale University documents that from "1890 to 1990, the rate of return on residential real estate was just about zero after inflation." Other studies have shown how America’s historic over-investment in housing has distorted its economy, leading to under-investment in technology and skills. Or as Nobel prize-winning Columbia University economist Edmund Phelps bluntly states it: "To recover and grow again, America needs to get over its 'house passion.'"

Tools for Trickle Up Economics - Place Shakers

This article made it to the top 5 simply because of the quote below. Think of how many worthless buildings we have dotting the landscape that were not beautiful when they were constructed and are decaying now with little hope of ever becoming commercially viable again.  Some of the solutions to the conundrum that the post recommends are Form-Based Codes, Updating Infrastructure Standards and ceding more control to localities.

I hope that you of San Diego, whose city is just entering on its great period of development, will recognize what so many old communities have failed to recognize. That beauty is not only well worthwhile for its own sake, but that it is valuable commercially. Keep your waterfront and develop it so that it may add to the beauty of your city. Do not let a number of private individuals. . . make it hideous with buildings, and then force your children to pay them an exorbitant sum to get rid of the ugliness they have created. - Teddy Roosevelt

Mayor: Conversation over T-SPLOST too ‘esoteric’ - Creative Loafing

I can’t tell you how much I loathe the conversation going on about the transportation tax right now.  The opening paragraph of this article sums up my thoughts pretty nicely below... no ned to say more (but I will in this month’s Roswell Current).

Bickering over the number of lanes on a road project. Debating whether the Atlanta Beltline will reduce a Cherokee County soccer mom's commute time. Or, for that matter, if a Sugarloaf Parkway expansion will help a Little Five Points barista have better access to transit.

House Republicans Ramp Up War on Safe Biking and Walking - Sierra Club Compass

It’s no secret that we like walkability and bikability at NUR.  We recognize that not all areas are walkable and bikable and accept that they never will be.  Cars are necessary tools just like a hammer and chainsaw but I generally don’t use a hammer or a chainsaw for every task that I do.  That being said, our national legislature continues to pursue a ‘cars only’ agenda.. the four bullets below is all you need to know from this Sierra Club post.

• Nationwide, biking and walking account for almost 12% of all trips, yet biking and walking infrastructure receives less than 2% of all federal transportation funding.
• But as Senate and House negotiators enter the final three weeks of negotiations over a transportation bill, House Republicans are demanding that the Senate drop provisions that will make biking and walking safer across the country
• One particularly egregious demand from House Republican negotiators is that the Senate eliminate the Safe Routes to School program.
• 83% of Americans support maintaining or increasing funding for biking and walking, including 80% of Republicans. 

25 Buildings to Demolish Right Now - ca Home & Design

I agree with most of the buildings on this list.. most notably the Boston City Hall.  Yikes!  So, what buildings in Roswell need to be “Demolished Right Now?”  I’d have to say the AT&T building on Oak Street is on the list.  How about the entire south east quadrant of the HBR/400 interchange? 

Beautiful Strip Malls as Far as the Eye Can See!

This was simply too good to pass up.. This guy running for office in Michigan is about as clueless as they come as far as architecture, design and urbanism are concerned. Check out his take on an empty strip mall.. The scary thing is he's serious.. and he could seriously be in the House of Representatives next year.

The Transit Tax - What's In it For Roswell?

I have intentionally stayed quiet while all of the wrangling has been going on to shave the list of transit projects down from roughly $23 billion to the $6.14 billion.  This was in part to keep me from getting my hopes up and then dashed when projects were cut from the list.  Fair warning, the current constrained list (pdf) of $6.14B is by no means the final list.  There will be wrangling all the way through Oct of this year when the final list is selected by the Regional Roundtable.  However, we’re closer now than ever.  So, there are two questions I have:

1. What’s in it for Roswell?
2. Should Roswell vote for it?

Let’s start by taking a look at what’s in it for Roswell.  The first thing that I noticed was that most of the road projects in the North Subregion are slated to receive full funding, $440M total.  The Roswell specific road projects would receive $133M.  This is roughly 2% of the available pie and Roswell represents about 2% of the region’s population.  Seems fair to me.  The tax would also kick in $37M of the $900M needed to bring rail to the Holcomb Bridge/400 interchange.  Here’s a list of the projects that directly impact Roswell: 

• SR 9 (Atlanta Street) from Chattahoochee River to SR 120 (Marietta Highway) ‐ Widening and Corridor Improvements - $20.4M  - This is a project that is near and dear to my heart as I live along the corridor and am part of the Community Advisory Group.  This funding will significantly help accomplish the goals that the community has in mind.  However, I am concerned that the use of regional funds will take away some of the leverage that the community would have in ensuring that the environment improves not only the traffic flow but the community it flows through.
• SR 140 (Houze Road) from Rucker Road to Mansell Road ‐ Operational Improvements - $18.6M - I’m not sure of the exact details on this one.
• SR 400 at SR 140 (Holcomb Bridge Road) ‐ Interchange Improvements - $48M - This has been a long time coming.  The city has proposed some minor changes to the intersection in the short term but this should help improve overall flow and capacity at the interchange while also enabling the city to kick in some for aesthetics.  We need a gateway to Roswell and this is our chance.
• SR 140 (Arnold Mill Road) from Cherokee County Line to Rucker Road ‐ Widening - $46M - As you know, I’m not a widening fan but given our current situation in this area, this one is a necessary evil.  
• MARTA North Heavy Rail Line Extension to SR 140 - $37M - It’s a start.  But, it might be better spent on something that’s actually going to happen such as the Beltline or the Cobb Light Rail.

Another absolutely huge project that will impact North Fulton is the improvement of the interchange at 400 & 285.  In the current list, there is $450M budgeted for this project.  Considering that the northern section of 285 between 75 and 85 is consistently recognized as one of the most congested roads in Atlanta, if not the nation, I’d say this is a big win.  Improving flow at this interchange could significantly improve commutes for many Roswell and North Fulton residents.

 Some other personal favorites of mine are:

• Atlanta Beltline Streetcar Circulator and Trail - $601.8M
• Northwest Corridor (Acworth to Arts Center Station) Fixed Guideway Transit ‐ Phase 1 from Midtown to Cumberland - $856.5M

So, should we vote for it?  All in all, I believe there is a good mix of Transit and Road projects on this list and it should definitely be considered seriously.  Here’s a quick list of Pro’s and Con’s:

Pros:  

• Local road projects are all virtually fully funded
• Roswell is represented fairly
• North Fulton may be over represented
• It’s really our only option as a Region if we want to do something at all

Cons:  

• Most larger projects are not fully funded and will rely on currently unknown sources of funds (federal, state &/or private public partnerships).
• MARTA to Holcomb Bridge is a pittance with $37M and might as well be reallocated
• More road projects than transit advocates would like to see.  Could have more bus funding in exchange for some road widening
• Allocation of funds to specific projects is not set in stone so things could change once the dirty pols get their paws on the money
• It is a tax albeit a small one (about $10/month per metro Atlanta resident) 

One last thing...  This tax will fail unless it is moved to the general election ballot.  The region deserves to be represented fairly and having this on a republican primary ballot will not generate a turnout that is representative of the region.  Fortunately, Gov. Deal gets this and has put this on the agenda for the current special session for the general assembly.   

It’s our only chance to actually move the political and traffic gridlock that has existed for the past 10 years in our region.  I’m voting for it.  I might have to give up a lunch each month but I just might save some money in gas and more importantly time.  Where it stands right now, I'm for this tax and given what our sub-region has to gain, it's hard to argue that the rest of North Fulton shouldn't be for it as well.

Billboard Bull

So, this was going to be part of my upcoming NUR Review.  However, the ridiculousness of it got the best of me and I had to awaken from my post slumber to opine.  I was angered in February when the House passed HB179 that will expand the area around signs in which billboard companies would be able to remove trees (some limitations exist).  This bill has been quite controversial and has been pushed by the outdoor advertising lobby for years now.  Fortunately, up until now, the bill hasn’t had much success.  But, just like bad hangovers, bad bills never seem to go away. 

This one resurfaced and somehow did pass.  The City of Roswell took notice and in the March 30, 2011 city council meeting, the council voted to oppose the bill and formally request that Gov. Deal veto the bill.  Several other municipalities joined the fight including Sandy Springs, Woodstock and Athens-Clark County.  This quote from Roswell’s mayor Jere Wood sums it up well:  

We have always taken the position that trees are much nicer than billboards, That’s an easy one for most of us; if you’re not receiving money from the lobbyists.

Even with this opposition, the past history of vocal opposition for more than a decade, Mr. Deal decided in the interest of the billboard lobby and signed this POS into law tonight. 

I’m obviously not happy about this and I’m going to guess that most people who are aware of the bill aren't either.  Below I’ve put together a list of questions I have: 

• How much of a company’s business can actually be attributed to a billboard advertisement?  I’m sure some interstate fast food restaurants get some business from billboards.
• If that percentage is significant, how are they getting any business now with trees everywhere?
• Does anyone really have any problem seeing billboards?  Really?  
• Do you feel like your life is any worse off because you missed a billboard?
• Do you have any billboards that you absolutely love? In this weird way, I miss the So So Def Records billboard.  That forty foot afro welcoming me back to the ATL every time I came back into town was.. well it just made me feel at home. 
• How would you feel if a tree blocked your favorite billboard?
• Why do our politicians and our billboard companies think we need to be distracted further from our driving activities?
• Seriously, driving is the single most dangerous activity that a the average American partakes in.  Do we need more distractions?  Do we?
• Can Roswell ban billboards?  If so, I'll support that bill.

image: Atlanta.Metblogs

10 Stories, Driving Trends and Regions

It's amazing how much can change around the city in two weeks. This post is pretty long but I think there are a bunch of juicy articles for everyone. Also, as you know, we have a new Governor who will have to take on the challenges of the state and region. I'm looking forward to seeing his position on transit in the metro region.

Roswell

North Fulton Cities Affirm Billion Dollar Transit Plan - AJC

This is just one piece of a metro-wide plan that is being put together by the Atlanta Regional Commission. Notable Excerpt:

The north Fulton proposal includes three layers of projects. The top layer has about 18 projects, including greenway connections and capacity improvements on Hammond Drive in Sandy Springs, McGinnis Ferry Road in Johns Creek and on Ga. 9 in Alpharetta.

Roswell Sued Over Holcomb Rezoning - NorthFulton.com

Now, this is about as boring as it gets but it struck me as interesting because a developer couldn't get his land rezoned from office to retail to provide what he believes the market wants.. a strip center that will house a car wash, dry cleaners and day care... maybe we can throw in a nail salon, tanning bed and a wing delivery joint. I think the market is demanding some of those too.

$100M, 10 Story Office Project OK'd - NorthFulton.com

I don't think this one's ever going to get built.. Do we really need two 10 story towers in a park in Alpharetta? Unless the roads are more interconnected, you can rest assured that you'll be seeing more traffic in the area around these two towers (if/when they get built and occupied).

Roswell gets $400k Grant for Holcomb Bridge Rd Study - AJC

The study is supposed to recommend ways to improve traffic from Warsaw Road to Holcomb Woods Parkway, including the Ga. 400 interchange. We need to be sure that the improvements are not completely oriented to auto travel. There are pedestrians and bicyclists that would also like to see notable improvements in that area.

Alpharetta Readies Downtown Changes - NorthFulton.com

I was a huge proponent of the now dead mixed-use (with residential) proposal for downtown Alpharetta. However, that is long gone and they are now looking at streetscaping as an improvement measure that is cheaper and more in line with the times. The project will go just from the Roswell border at Hembree Rd all the way up to Windward. I like the idea and I hope that it can encourage them to bring back the old proposal sometime.

Region

Obama's DOT Chief Calls for Leadership in GA - WSBRadio.com

Ray LaHood was in Macon a couple weeks ago making a case that leadership in GA can get us where we need to go.. literally. Notable Quote from LaHood:

If Georgia wants a rail line and wants to be connected to high-speed intercity rail, you can make it happen.. You need to have leadership from all of you, but you need it from the governor's office, too.

Georgia Conservancy Promotes Healthy Growth Through Blueprints Program - Saporta Report

I'm currently taking the Good Urbanism 101 class that the Ga Conservancy offers and it is a well put together program to educate leadership in Georgia on the ecological benefits of smarter development. Katherine Moore gives a good overview of the program in this guest piece on the Saporta Report.

Mayor Calls for Elimination of 'Food Deserts', 25 Percent Reduction of GHGs by 2020 - Creative Loafing

Mayor Reed wants to establish Atlanta alongside New York, Chicago and Seattle as one of the top 10 greenest cities in the US. One of the goals is to bring local food available within a 10 minute trip of 75 percent of all residents by 2020. You can check out an 8 page summary of the plan here. There's only one problem with this.... They are talking about the City of Atlanta not the Region of Atlanta... we need to be doing all of this Regionally.

"Cities" May Not Matter as much as We Think - Regions and Neighborhoods are Where Things Actually Happen - Kaid Benfield NRDC Switchboard

So, adding on to the statement above that we need to be doing more regionally, this post focuses on the city vs. region debate and mentions Atlanta. Notable excerpt:

One might say that Atlanta is a sprawling metropolis and powerful economic engine with a population of 5.4 million people; but, using the second, Atlanta becomes a much smaller area confined within an artificially drawn boundary containing only some 540,000 residents. The smaller, jurisdictional Atlanta may mean something to candidates for city office and cartographers, but it has very little to do with economic or environmental reality.

Why You Should Stop Bitching and Embrace the Streetcar - CitySearchBlog

As I look deeper into the Streetcar, I like it a lot more. The amount of ridership from GSU students as well as office workers in the area will probably be a lot larger than most expect. Plus, it's a good start for a project (eventual Peachtree Streetcar) that has to start somewhere.

Branded! Municipal Identity and the Selling of Cities - PlaceMakers

This post focuses on the new branding campaign for the City of Dunwoody which looks very similar to the Wal-Mart logo. Notable Excerpt:

If your leadership fails to engender trust, you can t sell strength. If your policies are not incentivizing what you want and penalizing what you don t, you can t sell vision. If your zoning promotes sprawl and your citizens are disconnected from civic participation, you can t sell community. No matter how pretty your logo or clever your tag, you are wasting your time.

Transit Links Crucial to Suburban Prosperity - Jay Bookman - AJC

Uneasy Alliance of Officials Meets on Metro Atlanta's Transportation Needs - AJC

Rail Between Atlanta and Charlotte Looks Promising with New Funds - Politic365.com

Solar Powered Green Home for Atlanta - Jetson Green

Council Asks Haddix to Resign from RTR - FayetteDailyNews.com

Beyond

Is the Digital Age Changing Our Desire to Drive? - Infrastructurist

The statistics used are from an Advertising Age article about the diminished importance of the automobile in the digital age. The piece points out that in 1995 people age 21 to 30 accounted for roughly 21 percent of automobile-miles driven in the United States. By 2001 that figure had dipped to 18 percent, and in 2009 it had fallen below 14 percent. All this while the proportion of people in this age group actually increased.

A Very Impressive Two Weeks for the Federal Sustainability Partnership - Kaid Benfield NRDC Switchboard

This is a great summary of how EPA, DOT, HUD and the white house have teamed up to support smart growth initiatives around the country with the Partnership for Sustainable Communities.

Smart Grids are a Dumb Idea - Tree Hugger

In essence the smart grid advocates are saying we can't afford what we have, so let's build something else we can't afford. We need to be building local power systems that are more efficient at transferring energy to the end user.

Investing in Metro Areas is the Key to Sustainable Growth - Grist

One of the fundamental beliefs of new urbanism is that the region is the true economic engine of the country. Two plus two equals five in cities.

Christopher Leinberger Explains Why Washington DC is a Model for Walkable Redevelopment - Tree Hugger

Good case for why future train stops should go to walkable centers and not to spots along 400. In my opinion, stops should go along Notrhridge's low income area, Roswell near Canton Street, town center shopping center, the hospital, Alpharetta at Northpoint, the old Prospect Park site at Old Milton and then up to Windward.

Will Los Angeles Ever Become Something Besides a 'Suburban Metropolis' - Grist

Great point on the rationale for building rail. The point is not to decrease traffic. Any system that is built for that purpose will fail.

British Officials Demand a Reduction in Street Sign Clutter - Unclutterer

I demand a reduction as well.

Good News on Energy Efficiency - Sierra Club Compass

Increasing the efficiency of new homes by 30% is a HUGE win on the sustainability front.

Suburban Renewal - Richard Florida @ Creative Class

Prizes for Public Participation - Daily Camera via Planetizen

Cul-de-sac Hell, Continued - Human Transit

How Segregation Caused the Housing Crisis - ChicagoNow

Peach Bites

Wow, we had a busy week with headlines.  Most of them centered around water and transit.  We obviously, the recent flooding was a big story and there was some movement in the water wars.  In the transit arena, Ray LaHood, secretary of transportation for the Obama administration was in town and shared his views on what the state and region need to do to progress the transit gridlock that exists.  

We also saw a couple really positive articles come out which we will kick the post off with below:

Emory Honored for Green Work - The Urban Land Institute awarded it's Sustainable Development Award to Emory's Sustainability Program.  This is great because Emory has been a leader in the area developing LEED certified buildings and creating innovative sustainability programs such as their campus Farmer's Market which was started in 2008. - EmoryWheel.com
 

Smog Days Down in Georgia - Great News!!  The metro area has halved the number of unhealthy air quality days.  The suspected culprits are the weather and the economy.  This happened even while the federal government increased the standards for healthy air this year. - Georgia Public Broadcasting

Georgia Supreme Court Rejects Power Plant Challenge - Justices voted unanimously on Wednesday against hearing the appeal by environmentalists against the $2B Longleaf Energy Station.  Notable Quote: “It’s amazing that, with 30 organizations representing tens of thousands of people weighing in with the Supreme Court discussing how important this case is … the Georgia Supreme Court declined to even consider the case,” said Justine Thompson, executive director of Atlanta-based Green Law. - Atlanta Business Chronicle

Congress Set to Finalize Anti-Mercury Bill - Wow.. There are only four facilities in the US that are still using mercury to produce chlorine and one of those is the Olin plant in Augusta.  Apparently, more than 600 lbs. of mercury are released into the air and water along the Savannah river annually.  It would definitely be nice to see that phased out. - Georgia Public Broadcasting

 

Perdue Favors Incentives for Water Conservation - You may or may not recall our post, Perdue says no to conservation and yes to water war.  Well, in typical politician fashion, reality has set in and the big man has flip-flopped.  He is now saying "I think it's time to think about potentially, some state-types of strong suggestions for conservation efforts in our local communities, and I'd love to think about it in an incentive fashion... rather than a stick."  Expect to see outlines of those 'incentives' before the next state legislature session. - Georgia Public Broadcasting

 

Perdue Names Water Task Force - Sonny is bringing in some heavy hitters from the private sector.  John Brock, CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc., and Tim Lowe, Lowe Engineers Inc., will co-chair the panel which will look for alternative plans following the recent federal court ruling. - Atlanta Business Chronicle

Trash and Bacteria Fill Rivers - In the aftermath of the recent flooding, reports are now coming out about e.coli and other problematic bacteria polluting our rivers and streams.  The bacteria will quickly go away but the bigger issue is the tons of trash that have been introduced into the rivers.  Where will it all flow to?  At least we're upstream.  It's someone else's problem, right??? - Georgia Public Broadcasting

 

Atlanta Reservoir Plan on Hold - We touched on this in last week's Peach Bites.  This week, the Atlanta City Council decided to put off consideration of the proposed $650 million reservoir in the Dawson Forest. - Atlanta Business Chronicle

Tri-State Water Dispute: Georgia's Hand Further Weakend - Alabama landed another blow against Georgia this week.  The prospects for a ruling in Georgia's favor keep getting slimmer and slimmer. - Georgia Public Broadcasting

 

Georgia Applies for High-Speed Rail Grant - The GDOT applied for a grant in the amount of $472 million this week to begin working on a high-speed rail line between Atlanta and Macon.  This application, if approved, is expected to cover all the capital costs of the project.  I've been doing a lot of research on this topic and haven't really heard much about the Atlanta-Macon route.  You've probably seen the Brain Train, Lovejoy and Chattanooga routes discussed but the Macon route came out of the blue.  Any way we look at it though, connectivity is a good thing.  Let's see what happens. - Atlanta Business Chronicle

 

ATL Mayoral Candidates and the Beltline - The AJC had a quick recap of the recent Beltline mayoral forum.  The reality of the economic collapse and depressed real estate market is definitely recognized by the candidates.  But, it is apparent that all three of them support the Beltline.  They each have some interesting ideas on what is the vision of the beltiline. - AJC

Beltline Mayoral Forum: Which Candidate Scored - There was some interesting perspective on the recent Beltline mayoral forum from Atlanta Unsheltered.  Here's what I took from the post.  Lisa Borders and Mary Norwood really support the beltline.  Kasim Reed wants to prevent crime and a deterioration of urban youth.  Mary Norwood got stuck in traffic and the audience wondered why she didn't take MARTA since there was a stop across the street.  Probably because there wasn't a stop where she was coming from.  hmm...  - Atlanta Unsheltered

Beltline Officials: Citizen Group Wants to Take Control of the Project - This was interesting.  The Tax Allocation District Advisory Committee (TADAC), has put out statements questioning the funding of affordable housing along the Beltline and has stated that Beltline officials are keeping important information private and thus not allowing TADAC to do it's job.  There is too much in the article to accurately summarize in a few sentences but to me it seems to be a battle over public or private control.  I lean toward the private side. - Creative Loafing

Atlanta Forward, Our View: Transit is a Track to Metro's Prosperity - This article has some interesting local perspective and I enjoyed the comparison to St. Louis and Chicago when riverboat transportation was giving way to train transportation.  St. Louis became an also-ran because it pandered to pressure from riverboat operators.  If Atlanta panders to the pressure of the auto/road lobby, we will lose out on the opportunity to significantly upgrade our transit and will fall behind other southern cities. - AJC

Atlanta Forward, Another View: Georgia Needs to get its Act Together - This quote sums it up: LaHood expressed the administration’s strong support for more transit alternatives. He encouraged state support for MARTA and noted streetcars are on their way back — citing the success of Portland, Ore.’s system. This kind of thinking is potentially good news for the proposed Peachtree Streetcar and bodes well for federal support for our region’s comprehensive, coordinated Concept 3 Transit Plan. - AJC

State of Georgia is Stuck in the Mud While Atlanta Region Moves Forward on Transit - Notable Quote: "Although LaHood didn't tell us anything we didn't already know, it's always reaffirming to have the most powerful transportation official in the country tell state leaders that they've been asleep at the switch."  The good news is that there is overwhelming support for Concept 3 and Metro Atlanta is on the verge of approving the Regional Transit Committee which will be a much needed regional steering group that has the teeth to make things happen. - Saporta Report

MARTA Was a Pioneer.. Was...

This is a very depressing little video from Citizens for Progressive Transit. What it tells me is that Atlanta has been passed by simply by letting the status quo rule the political scene. For too long now, there has been an atmosphere of complacency. Unfortunately, we are now seeing what complacency leads to. It is still unbelievable to me that Cobb and Gwinnett county have never become part of MARTA. Now, we have Oxendine talking about building a parallel connector. When will the politicians understand that building more roads is a 20th century solution to our transportation woes??

Learn About Sustainable Atlanta

Listen to Lynette Young and Mandy Mahoney from Sustainable Atlanta talk about sustainability efforts that the city of Atlanta is making on The VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network. One of the big things on the table right now is the Sustainable Building Ordinance. It is a true game changer in how sustainable Atlanta will be moving into the future. You might be surprised by all of the things the city is taking action on.
Listen Here

Grist Ranks Mayor Franklin #6 Among the Greenest Mayors in America

Having instituted a number of Green Initiatives since taking office, Mayor Franklin has helped lead Atlanta in a bright green direction. Some of the city’s most notable undertakings are the Beltline, infrastructure modernization, reductions in electricity use and the establishment of the private sector group Sustainability Atlanta. If we keep the momentum, we will continue to see the progress. “We are building a green, sustainable city,” Franklin says. “We do this for our children, and we do this because it is the right thing to do.”

See the full list here.

Sustainable Atlanta Roundtable - Atlanta's Transportation Destiny

On Friday, the Southface Institute held its monthly Sustainable Atlanta Roundtable. The event is held on the first Friday of every month and brings together many of the most influential individuals , businesses and non-profit organizations involved in making Atlanta a more sustainable city. The event was started over eight years ago and has grown into an impressive meeting.

The topic of discussion this month was Metro Atlanta’s Transportation Destiny and as you can imagine with the recent political events, it was a very interesting discussion that left the experts choosing their words wisely. The Panel this month was made up of:

• Kevin Green, Executive Director, Clean Air Campaign
• Cheryl King, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA)
• Tad Leithead, Senior Vice President, Cousins Properties; Chairman of the Transportation and Air Quality Committee, Atlanta Regional Commission
• Maria Saporta, moderator, Atlanta Business Chronicle

The panel was very insightful and really shed light on the inner details of the issues, past and present, surrounding the political log jam that has evolved on this topic. I have to admit that I was thoroughly impressed with Mr. Leithead who had a thorough grasp of all of the issues and was confident enough to answer even the most pointed questions.

One of the questions that resonated with me had to do with the party polarization that has come about around the transit issue both here in Georgia and nationally. I cannot understand why if you are a conservative then you must be a car person and if you are a liberal then you are a transit person. Ultimately, all forms of transportation in this country are subsidized so there can’t be an argument that one form of transportation pays for itself while another does not. It, of course, was not the purpose of the roundtable to settle partisan and philosophical issues.  The one thing that I was suprised did not come up once was the Beltline.  I figured that for sure, someone would bring that up.

Here are some of the main points that were made in the discussion:

• Companies are reconsidering moving to Atlanta due to Traffic.
• Virtually no progress has been made on transit in 10 years.
• The rest of the state needs to realize that if Atlanta goes, so goes the state.  Thus, the state needs to consider a more integrated funding approach for transit.
• Most Atlantans don’t have transportation choices except what road to take to get to work.
• Charlotte may pass Atlanta on this front as they have figured out how to work together with the state. Atlanta is no longer the little engine that could in the south. Everyone is shooting to be the next Atlanta (without the traffic)

If you are interested in listening to the roundtable, you can access it on Southface’s website here.

Also, if you would like to attend any in the future, they are on the first Friday of each month and are open to the public. Admission is $10 for members and $15 for non-members if you pre-register. Prices jump by $5 on the morning of the event.