Soooo, how is high-density looking to everyone now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have tons of affordable housing. It's called PG County.

“Ward 9” is not the “high opportunity area” that the mayor’s developer cronies have in mind for windfall profits through upzoning and FLUM amendments. That’s why they set their sights on Ward 3 and got the mayor to outsource the comprehensive plan amendment process to themselves and their lawyers.

It's great when we get sprawl development in "Ward 9" - we get more traffic, more air pollution, more parking demand in our neighborhoods, less open space and the people living there spend much of their time stuck in traffic and not being productive.

But you have a chip on your shoulder because people building housing make money - no doubt the person who built your home did so for charity?

Making money is fine. Making windfall profits because you have the mayor in your pocket and can force a huge regulatory change is not - particularly when the windfall to favored friends comes at the expense of green space, historic preservation, sunlight, pedestrian scale, quality of residential life and neighborhood character.

While the neighborhood character and quality of residential life arguments are subjective (though I'd love to hear the actual arguments) the others are not.

Again please provide specific examples where green space has been lost so developers can profit or where historic preservation has been trampled over or where the pedestrian scale (whatever the hell that even means) have been impacted by commercial development.

You can keep trotting out these absurd arguments but every now and then you need to provide some actual examples or even make an attempted argument to explain how or why you think all of these negative things have been happening.

OP can not propose to allow 12 or 13 story buildings in an area of one and twostory buildings which are historically protected and call that “compatible”. Such discordance would basically gut an historic district. Perhaps that is their objective.

Yet this is exactly what Bowser and the planning office are proposing in the Cleveland Park H.D. and in some other historic districts.

[Anonymous]

housing is a lot cheaper here than it seems because people make so much money. heck, even interns working for the d.c. government make $40,000.

[Anonymous]

Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

[Anonymous]

Thank you PP. This sociological life/work perspective was actually really interesting. I think that public transportation will continue to be key, but higher speed, more space and cleaner? And tele-commuting will be a game changer. I am a teacher and in one week have learned a whole new way to work. Teaching and learning have been changed forever. What college student will stay on campus for that last credit, when they have experience premium e-learning? The world and work have changed.

I do think there is new appreciation for low-density, with lessons learned that people want connection--walkable cities and burbs with town centers. In a way, much of DC and the xurbs are perfect models of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you PP. This sociological life/work perspective was actually really interesting. I think that public transportation will continue to be key, but higher speed, more space and cleaner? And tele-commuting will be a game changer. I am a teacher and in one week have learned a whole new way to work. Teaching and learning have been changed forever. What college student will stay on campus for that last credit, when they have experience premium e-learning? The world and work have changed.

I do think there is new appreciation for low-density, with lessons learned that people want connection--walkable cities and burbs with town centers. In a way, much of DC and the xurbs are perfect models of this.

Agreed. Chevy Chase DC, Palisades, Cleveland Park in NW DC almost seem ideally planned in that respect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you PP. This sociological life/work perspective was actually really interesting. I think that public transportation will continue to be key, but higher speed, more space and cleaner? And tele-commuting will be a game changer. I am a teacher and in one week have learned a whole new way to work. Teaching and learning have been changed forever. What college student will stay on campus for that last credit, when they have experience premium e-learning? The world and work have changed.

I do think there is new appreciation for low-density, with lessons learned that people want connection--walkable cities and burbs with town centers. In a way, much of DC and the xurbs are perfect models of this.

Agreed. Chevy Chase DC, Palisades, Cleveland Park in NW DC almost seem ideally planned in that respect.

Ideal. You can walk, walk, walk, shop, know neighbors, see the sky. A lot of 'new suburbs' are also following this side walks and town center model. And if people telecommute more, what's the diff? They can come into the city for fun/museums--but also have their own local restaurants, coffee shops, book stores etc.

[Anonymous]

Well, this Post article rather deflates the announced plan of Mayor Bowser and her developer pay-pals to densify Ward 3 at any price:

The Great American Migration of 2020: On the move to escape the coronavirus
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/coronavirus-great-american-migration/2020/03/28/b59d4d44-6f6f-11ea-a3ec-70d7479d83f0_story.html

[Anonymous]

I dont think I have seen any stories about people fleeing from their vacation homes to the city to escape the coronavirus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

That's not "the Washington Post," it's Joel Kotkin, and he's been anti-urban for decades. This is just his latest rationalization of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I dont think I have seen any stories about people fleeing from their vacation homes to the city to escape the coronavirus.

Look harder. They're there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

That's not "the Washington Post," it's Joel Kotkin, and he's been anti-urban for decades. This is just his latest rationalization of it.

“Anti-urban.” Is that the dismissive term for anyone who doesn’t share the GGW/Snark growth/Bowser agenda?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

That's not "the Washington Post," it's Joel Kotkin, and he's been anti-urban for decades. This is just his latest rationalization of it.

“Anti-urban.” Is that the dismissive term for anyone who doesn’t share the GGW/Snark growth/Bowser agenda?

You haven't read any Joel Kotkin, have you? Well, you probably have plenty of time now. He's anti-urban. You'll love him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:increasing density is an excellent way to spread things like coronavirus

Precisely my thoughts. Maybe our ancestors who fled polluted cities for green pastures knew a thing or two after all...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

That's not "the Washington Post," it's Joel Kotkin, and he's been anti-urban for decades. This is just his latest rationalization of it.

“Anti-urban.” Is that the dismissive term for anyone who doesn’t share the GGW/Snark growth/Bowser agenda?

You haven't read any Joel Kotkin, have you? Well, you probably have plenty of time now. He's anti-urban. You'll love him.

Kotkin seems pretty solid, described by the New York Times as “America’s uber-geographer.” He’s is a professor in urban studies in Orange County, California. He writes about demographic, social, and economic trends in the U.S. and internationally. He is listed a regular contributor to The Daily Beast and Forbes.com and is on the editorial board of the Orange County Register. Evidently he does not drink the “smart growth “ Kool-Aid of upzoning America’s walkable neighborhoods into dense urban clusters. Understandably he has his detractors among big development interests, their handmaidens in the DC office of planning, and various urbanistas who blog from mom’s basement for Greater Greater Washington.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how the WaPo sees it. The era of Snark Growth May be over:

“Even before covid-19 hit, large urban centers like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago were losing population; more than 90 percent of all population growth since 2010 has taken place in the suburbs or exurbs. Millennials, as a new study from Heartland Forward demonstrates, based on an analysis of census numbers, increasingly head to cities and towns in the middle of the country and away from the supposed “magnets” of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
The current pestilence is likely to accelerate those shifts, which bear major ramifications for how Americans get to work. Transit ridership was doing poorly before the crisis, declining throughout the country, while telecommuting and driving alone continue to grow. With the specter of contagion, city-dwellers are told to avoid crowded subways, removing a critical element that makes ultradense cities work. In New York, subway traffic is down precipitously, as many commuters now work at home instead. Toronto is eliminating much of its downtown train service. The Washington Metro is also cutting back.
Just as progressives and environmentalists hoped the era of automotive dominance and suburban sprawl was coming to end, a globalized world that spreads pandemics quickly will push workers back into their cars and out to the hinterlands.“

That's not "the Washington Post," it's Joel Kotkin, and he's been anti-urban for decades. This is just his latest rationalization of it.

“Anti-urban.” Is that the dismissive term for anyone who doesn’t share the GGW/Snark growth/Bowser agenda?

You haven't read any Joel Kotkin, have you? Well, you probably have plenty of time now. He's anti-urban. You'll love him.

Kotkin seems pretty solid, described by the New York Times as “America’s uber-geographer.” He’s is a professor in urban studies in Orange County, California. He writes about demographic, social, and economic trends in the U.S. and internationally. He is listed a regular contributor to The Daily Beast and Forbes.com and is on the editorial board of the Orange County Register. Evidently he does not drink the “smart growth “ Kool-Aid of upzoning America’s walkable neighborhoods into dense urban clusters. Understandably he has his detractors among big development interests, their handmaidens in the DC office of planning, and various urbanistas who blog from mom’s basement for Greater Greater Washington.

Lol did you really just paste a quote from his personal website to boost him? As near as I can tell, he took that from a David Brooks column, not some kind of objective assessment. He's also explicitly called walkability an elitist luxury. He's a lover of suburban sprawl, very consciously.