Does This Subdivision Make Me Look Fat?

Your significant other probably has never asked you this question but it may be one of the the most appropriate questions one to ask when pondering poundage.  Way back in the mid-70s, the U.S. obesity rate was about 10%.  By 2007, that rate had increased to 33% with another 33% of the U.S. being clearly overweight.  In 1991, zero states had an adult obesity rate greater than 20%.  Over the next 16 years, America stuffed its collective pie hole to the point where Colorado was the sole state under 20% in 2007. As a nation, we have gained 5.5 billion pounds since the 1970’s.  That’s 27.5 of our largest aircraft carriers.  Now, consider the tag-along maladies associated with obesity such as diabetes, heart disease, increased risk of certain cancers and osteoarthritis and we really start to see the immensity of this problem.

 

So, is it the increased number of Big Gulps that is causing this or is it the increased amount of couch surfing?  That’s a tough question to answer but studies indicate that sloth may have more of an impact on obesity rates than gluttony.  A study performed in Britain looked at obesity rates between 1950 and 1990 and saw that even as gluttony peaked and declined over the years, obesity continued to climb and the data suggested a notable causal role of inactivity.  A study looking at Atlanta found that an increase in daily driving of just 5 minutes increased the likelihood of obesity by 3 percent.  Add another 30 minutes to your commute each way and you’re scale will start to cringe.

Our car dependent lifestyle is literally driving our increased inactivity.  I would wager that most of us drive by necessity not by choice.  Fortunately, that is something we can start to change.  The sprawl fighting organization Congress for the New Urbanism has made healthy places one of its focal points.  In 2010 they partnered with the CDC make health a focal point of their annual convention, which was appropriately held in Atlanta that year.  The CDC has a Healthy Places program that lays out the guidelines for building places that help improve help rather than hinder it.  

If you live in a subdivision where it is a challenge to incorporate walking or cycling into your daily chores, your ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle for you and your family is going to be diminished when compared to a highly walkable neighborhood.  The health benefits that come from being able to open the front door to a walk friendly environment where you can walk to the store, office and park are significant.

It turns out that walkable places that new urbanists and smart growth advocates strive to create are one of the best solutions to many of the health issues that our country faces.  We are getting better with places like Historic Roswell, Avalon, Alpharetta City Center and Milton Crabapple providing (or soon to be providing) moderately walkable lifestyles.  But there is still a lot of work to be done.  Let’s keep pushing for walkable town centers with a diversity of uses, connective paths between neighborhoods as well as parks that are our kids can safely walk to and steer clear of the sloth inducing, car oriented development of the past. 

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Chattahoochee & Pine - It Could be (a lot) Better

Up front, I have to give thanks to an interested neighbor for this post.  I didn't even realize that there was a development in the works less than a quarter mile from my front door.  The development is at Chattahoochee St and Pine St.  

The developer, Acadia Homes & Neighborhoods, is looking to deveop the 3.3 acres by building 16 small lot single family homes on the site.  Up front, I have zero problem with those numbers (I'd prefer about 5 more homes actually) and I welcome new development in my neighborhood.   

I believe at Acadia thinks they are doing the right thing and it appears they have been very up front with their intentions by involving the surrounding neighborhood.  That being said, I belive the plan lacks creativity and limits the upside for the neighborhood.  Of course, it could be much much worse but we won't worry about that.  Below is the New Urban Roswell critique on the Chattahoochee and Pine subdivision as proposed.  We also offer an alternative view on what that land could be.

Up front, the design of the homes leaves a little to be desired.

Historic Homes Don't Have Garages in the Front

If we are truly looking to keep an historic feel in Historic Roswell, we need to recognize that historic homes do not have front loader garages.  I am of the opnion that front loader garages should only be used when a side, back or separate garage is not an option.  A home should say "People Live Here" not "Cars Live Here." Homes in the Historic District should maintain some semblance of a historic feel.  More than 50% of a front facade devoted to a garage is not in any way historic or charming.  Below is a side-by-side comparison of a proposed home in C&P and an almost mirror image of a home in Vickery Village.  You be the judge:

The Site Plan Adds Little to the Neighborhood

The second major issue with C&P is that the site plan adds very little value to the surrounding neighborhood.  It simply adds 16 homes.  Part of a developer's obligation to any neighborhood should be a willingness to integrate the newly developed homes into the fabric of the existing neighborhood.  That said, one of the best ways to do that is to create a walkable environment with an allocation of public space for the surrounding neighborhood to enjoy.  Below are two images.  The first is the existing site plan and the second is a rough sketch of an alternative.

Up front, this suggested alternative is purely conceptual.  It does not take into account setbacks, buffers and elevations.  It is meant purely to show that barring typical zoning baloney, that we can create fantastic places that add to neighborhoods rather than take away from them.  This type of development would actually add value to the surrounding homes.  The existing proposal would not reduce value but it does little in the way of increasing amenity and charm.

This alternative plan would have 7 smaller single family homes and 3 townhome buildings surrounding a small public square.  The townhomes could be subsituted with smaller cottages.  The square at Glenwood Park in Atlanta is a good example of a small square surrounded by townhomes that is a community amenity.

courtesy: BuildABetterBurb.com

courtesy: Tunnel Spangler Walsh

The neighborhood should have narrow streets with back alley entrances for cars.  In order to accomplish a better design, the lots would likely need to be slightly smaller than those proposed in Acadia's diagram.  The main roads should have 9 foot travel lanes which significantly reduce speeding thus increasing safety for the neighborhood.  

There could be a small playground for the neighborhood.  Currently, one does not exist in that part of Historic Roswell.  Additionally, it would be ideal to connect the new development to S Atlanta St with a sidewalk or gravel path.  This could be done by purchasing a slight amount of land along the property line between the two empty commercial properties to the east of this site.  

My point with this post is not to sink a development but to argue that with a little thought and effort, we can build much better places.  Land developers should be required to consider things like public space, playgrounds, connectivity and future connectivity in their plans. 

Please feel free to add your comments.

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.

Does Atlanta Need an American Makeover?

This is a well put together video by AmericanMakeover.tv chronicling Atlanta's unstoppable sprawl. It showcases the New Urbanist community Glenwood Park near downtown as an alternative to the unbridled growth that the city has experienced. The video is short but informative and I suggest you check it out. Also, if you have not had a chance to check out Glenwood Park, do so next time you are down near Grant Park or East Atlanta (it's right between them just south of I20)

PeachBites

EPD Says Air Will Be Cleaner When New Coal Plant is Built

GPB News

"The state's top environmental regulator for air pollution says the air in eastern Georgia will be cleaner if and when a coal plant is built near Sandersville in Washington County." This must be one of those new "clean coal" plantsl.

Georgia Organics 12th Conference: A Success

Go Green InTown
Unfortunately, I missed this one. Hopefully I'll be able to get to next year's conference. The conference and trade show had over 1100 attendees and was the largest in the 12 years of the event. Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma and In Defense of Food, was the keynote speaker. You can see his speech here. If you have never heard or read Mr. Pollan and you are interested in sustainable and healthy food, check out the clip or read one of his books. It was great that Georgia Organics was able to bring such a big time name to the event. We are fortunate to have such an organized group right here in Georgia focusing on local and organic food production.

Old Suburbia Must Fit Into New Society

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Our love affair with shopping is on the skids. Ghost-town strip centers already abound. It’s not hard to imagine dead malls pocking the landscape like buffalo carcasses amid the tumbleweeds in old Westerns." Ellen Dunham-Jones' book Retrofitting Suburbia details a recreation of the suburbs or "new suburbia." She says that metro Atlanta is one of the top three metro areas undertaking suburban retrofits with projects such as Smyrna Market Village and Perimiter Place in Dunwoody. It's good to see that Atlanta is finally starting to get it. Unfortunately, we got it right at the wrong time for real estate.

Toxic Cloud in Forsyth County Disipates

GPB News

This one was scary. Authorities recently had to evacuate 80 people from a kitchen and bathroom faucet manufacturing plant. The cause of the yellow puff of toxic smoke was an inadvertent chemical mix.

Movie Review: Radiant City

I really enjoyed this "documentary." The story is told through the lens of a fictional family who has moved to a suburban neighborhood outside of Toronto from a more urban area. They made the move to get a bigger house with more space and to hopefully give the kids a better life. Throughout the movie, all of the major issues of urban sprawl are covered.

The family psychology moves from euphoria to uncertainty to misery throughout the course of the film as they discover that their move to the suburbs is not making their lives easier or happier. 

If you would like to see a movie that gives you a primer on sprawl, check Radiant City out.  You will definitely see a lot of similarities with Atlanta since we unfortunately are a sprawl city.

www.radiantcitymovie.com

Peach Bites

Here are some of the more interesting articles that we have come across recently.

Atlanta Watches in Envy as Phoenix Light Rail Debuts (AJC)

Sprawl to Meet Its Limit in Atlanta (AJC)

Coal Plant Project Threatened by Partnership Breakup (Atlanta Business Chronicle)

Transit Group Has Its Hands Out for $50 Billion (AJC)