Intersect: January 24, 2001


	Washington Regional Network
	for Livable Communities



	INTERSECT Newsletter of the Washington Regional Network for Livable Communities January 24, 2001- Volume 5 Number 1 WRN Website and Email Address Change WRN is pleased to announce the opening of its website at http://www.washingtonregion.net. There you will find our vision for the Washington region, information on our Redevelopment Initiative and Tax-relief for Livable Communities campaign, our annual report, and a reading and key links list. We welcome your feedback. Also, please note that WRN’s email address has changed to staff@washingtonregion.net; debkatz@washingtonregion.net will also work. Maryland Group Concludes Highway Construction Causes Sprawl An aggressive rate of highway construction has been a primary cause of sprawl in Maryland, according to a report released by the Maryland Public Interest Research Group (MaryPIRG). The study, "Paving the Way," finds that highways were not built where people lived and worked so much as people moved to where the highways were built. In central Maryland, 80% of properties within five miles of a highway were built after the highway. Much of this property development followed within five years of the nearby highway construction or expansion. The MaryPIRG report notes that while Governor Parris Glendening has announced a proposal to increase transit spending for the next six years, many large highway projects that would likely induce further sprawl remain in the plans. "If we are going to be serious about curbing sprawl, we have to fundamentally rethink our approach to meeting future transportation needs," said report author and MaryPIRG policy analyst Brad Heavner. "The transportation people need to be working at the same table as the zoning people, rather than assuming that sprawl is inevitable and building the highway infrastructure that makes sprawl happen." Contact: Gigi Kellett, MaryPIRG (410) 467-0439 or visit www.marypirg.org. WRN’s Smart Growth and Affordable Housing Forum Draws Large, Diverse Crowd by Janet Welsh Brown, WRN Board Member On December 6th, Margery Austin Turner of the Urban Institute spoke to an overflow crowd on the state of affordable housing in the Washington region, reporting on her findings in a recent study commissioned by D.C. Agenda. Members of the audience came from as far away as St. Mary’s County and upper Montgomery County. They included local government housing officials, advocates, and builders and contributed a high level of information and expertise to the evening’s discussion. Turner said the long migration out of the city to the suburbs is being reversed and asked what does that mean for the poor, especially for African-Americans? The District has a disproportionate share (49%+) of the region’s most affordable units, and the need for this type of unit exceeds supply by 16% in the city, 40% in the suburbs. The District has more than 21,000 subsidized housing units and almost 8,000 Section 8 vouchers, which are used to support eligible recipients in privately-owned units. More than 10,000 households are on D.C.’s public housing waiting list, and almost 15,000 are on the city’s Section 8 waiting list. At the same time, the supply of affordable units is declining. A tight real estate market, especially in the District, contributes to the problem. The most distressed units are being demolished and replaced by projects of less density and a mix of incomes. Federal housing programs only serve about one-third of those eligible. Subsidies for much of the privately-owned stock are about to expire. They will revert to market price. And with a majority of homeowner units in D.C. valued at above $145,000, home ownership is out of reach for households that earn less than 80% of the median income, let alone the lowest-income groups. The median income in D.C. is $60,700 for a 4-person family. In the District, affordable housing is highly concentrated (40% is east of the river, almost none of it in the affluent areas west of Rock Creek Park), whereas in the suburbs it is more scattered and of lower density. About 20% of very low-cost affordable housing supply is in bad condition, concentrated in a few neighborhoods. Prince George’s has absorbed more of D.C.’s out-migration than any other county, but Prince George’s County leaders may have been the most outspoken about not wanting to take on any more low-income residents. Montgomery County is one jurisdiction in the area that is requiring developers to build a substantial amount of affordable housing (20,000 units over 25 years). Turner recommended that more effort be focused on providing a fair share of affordable housing in the other jurisdictions in the region, including Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, and Montgomery Counties. Turner suggested principles that should guide planners and developers of affordable housing: accommodation of all income levels, regional access for low-income households, racial and economic integration, home ownership, and a strong, preventive regulatory and monetary role for the public sector. She pointed out that current development pressure in certain areas presents an opportunity to preserve a healthy mix of housing types, provided the government targets these areas for immediate intervention. She identified Columbia Heights in the District, for instance, as needing a balanced housing strategy to preserve low-income units while accommodating reinvestment and greater demand. Tools to preserve the emerging neighborhood’s affordable housing include participation of non-profits, public sector rehabilitation, subsidies for lowest-income families, accommodation of the homeless, and inclusionary zoning. An example of inclusionary zoning is requiring developments over a certain number of units to contain an affordable housing component. In response to questions from the audience, Ms. Turner added that production of moderately-priced housing and inclusionary zoning must be a part of the answer but is not enough. The lowest income groups require subsidies. Economic development, job training, and housing must be done together. Questions about location efficient mortgages, accessory dwelling units, and reduced parking requirements were raised as other means to make housing more affordable. More intensive development around Metro stations must take place. Turner said that lending institutions can play a more positive role, but zoning, subsidies, and other policies should be in place first. She also stated that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should purchase more in the underserved market. Affordable housing should be scattered throughout the city and suburbs rather than concentrated. Turner noted that while poor white households are scattered throughout the region, poor minorities tend to live in highly concentrated low-income neighborhoods. Race is an undeniable factor in the distribution of low-income households and is not being talked about. Turner suggested that D.C. leaders will have to initiate the conversation, and take it up with suburban counterparts. The District is in danger of re-segregation. This may be the District’s last chance to achieve mixed communities for a long-time. Said Turner, "Existing efforts [in the region] leave out a big section [of the eligible who are] not even touched by the programs." For copies of "Towards a Balanced Housing Strategy for D.C. and Its Region" by Margery Turner and Mark Rubin, call D.C. Agenda at (202) 223-2598. Sprawl Behind Rising Cost to Washington Families for Transportation A new study of spending in major metropolitan areas finds that sprawl drives up transportation costs and says households in the Washington area spend 15 cents out of every dollar on getting around, higher than any expense except housing. "Driven to Spend" found that the highest transportation costs for households were encountered in the sprawling cities of Houston and Atlanta, while more compact cities such as New York and Honolulu had the lowest costs. The Washington area ranked ninth. The report’s analysis of neighborhoods within three metropolitan areas found that annual automobile costs for average households are often thousands of dollars higher in sprawling neighborhoods with few transportation choices. "Sprawl turns driving from a convenient choice into an expensive necessity," said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG). New office buildings are being built far from transit while companies such as MCI/Worldcom have relocated jobs from transit-accessible to car-reliant locations, forcing all employees to drive to work. Furthermore, many outlying communities are designed in a way that children cannot walk or bike to school, sports activities or to visit friends. Heavy government investment in highways may be exacerbating the problem. Areas ranking as most expensive for households -- Houston, Atlanta, and Dallas -- have also invested heavily in expanding their highway networks. Since 1988, the miles of roadway per person in those areas grew by 18%, the share of personal expenditures on transportation 21%. "A highways-first approach won’t solve our congestion problems and it will take more money out of each family’s budget as they have to drive more and more every year," said Laura Olsen, CSG’s Assistant Director. To relieve high transportation costs for families, the Coalition for Smarter Growth is urging area officials to locate appropriate development at Metro stations, especially those in Prince George’s County and Fairfax County with ample capacity to create mixed-use communities with housing, jobs, shopping and services. Also important is providing better transit access to regional activity centers, such as rail to Tyson’s Corner, express bus service, and the circumferential "purple" transit line. Other key steps are initiating programs to reward those who live near transit or work and increasing spending on bicycle and pedestrian facilities (from its current less than 1%). The full text of "Driven to Spend" and area-specific fact sheets can be found at: http://www.transact.org. Contact: Laura Olsen at (202) 588-5570. Federal Highway Agency Issues Strong Statement On Bike and Pedestrian Facilities The Federal Highway Administration has issued "Accommodating Bicycle and Pedestrian Travel: A Recommended Approach," a formal policy statement strongly promoting safe access for cyclists and pedestrians throughout the transportation system. "There is no question that conditions for bicycling and walking need to be improved in every community in the United States; it is no longer acceptable that 6,000 bicyclists and pedestrians are killed in traffic every year, that people with disabilities cannot travel without encountering barriers, and that two desirable and efficient modes of travel have been made difficult and uncomfortable. Every transportation agency has the responsibility and the opportunity to make a difference to the bicycle-friendliness and walkability of our communities. The design information to accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians is available, as is the funding." The policy statement is available online at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bikeped/Design.htm. Business Journals "Get It:" Managing Growth Is Key Factor in Money Magazine’s "Best Places To Live 2000" Some business journals seem to be ahead of the curve these days compared to certain of their readers who are stuck in a 1950’s highway and sprawl mentality. For example, Money Magazine’s "Best Places To Live 2000" includes its usual emphasis on solid schools, low crime, and job growth, but also puts a premium on avoiding urban sprawl and promoting urban green space, culture and an accessible city center. The winner for best big city? Portland, Oregon. Home to more than 1,200 technology companies, three decades of keen planning in the Portland region have reined in urban sprawl and given rise to a mini-metropolis with short, easy-to-stroll blocks renowned for their shops, cafes, and nightclubs. A superb light rail network and a new streetcar system are helping to make it a cinch to get around. "We're growing gracefully," says Mayor Vera Katz. "And that's because we made decisions early on about our urban-growth boundary, to honor the pedestrian over the automobile and to plan out growth and transportation as a region." Adds city bureau of planning director Gil Kelley: "We're reinventing ourselves as a very urban place by incorporating the natural environment, transportation, parks and neighborhoods." Closer to home, James Bacon, publisher of Virginia Business, in the January 2001 issue criticizes AOL chief Steve Case for building a huge office complex in the middle of nowhere and then complaining to Richmond about traffic gridlock and asking for higher taxes to pay for new roads. Says Bacon, "If AOL had been serious about pioneering ‘community building’ for the 21^st century, it could have tackled the mundane but painstaking task of integrating a large corporate presence into the existing urban fabric…. AOL could have been a force for urban/suburban renewal: redeveloping and revitalizing old neighborhoods…." Upcoming Events Tues, Jan. 30, 12:30 - 1:30 pm - Smart Growth Speaker Series lecture "Planning Tools for the Next Century" presented by Bill Becker, Director of the U.S. Department of Energy's Center for Excellence in Sustainable Development. Among the challenges to building better communities is the difficulty communicating what such communities would look like or how they would work. For this reason, it is important for citizens, builders, and planning professionals to use tools to gain a greater understanding of the way planning decisions will look and affect us over time. For example, computer simulation can show the maturing of 50-year-old trees in just a second, or GIS modeling tools can generate alternative scenarios for the growth of a region 25 years forward to help communities achieve public consensus for innovative plans. Mr. Becker will discuss planning tools of the next century that can help localities quantify the energy, environmental, economic and social impacts of new development. Free; no registration required. National Building Museum, 401 F Street NW, Washington D.C. (Judiciary Square Metro). Contact: torma.tim@epa.gov. Wed, Jan. 31, 6:30 pm - Walk DC public meeting with Bill Wilkinson of the National Center for Bicycling and Walking. Surface Transportation Policy Project, 1100 17th Street, NW, 10th Floor, Washington, DC. For more info, contact Steve Waters, (202) 744-0595 or swaters@walkdc.org. Wed, Feb. 7, 4 - 5:30 pm - Purple Line Network Meeting for those interested in the development of a circumferential rail line. Location: University of Maryland, East Administrative Tower, 3rd floor. Park from 4 pm on in the east lot (in front of the President's Residence). Contact: Byrne Kelly, (301) 270-4626, byrnetgg@erols.com. Wed, Feb. 7, Maryland Bicycling and Walking Symposium. 9 am - 4:30 pm Exhibits, 4:30 pm Reception, 6:30 pm Panel Discussion. Meet fellow Marylanders who want walking and bicycling to be safe, convenient, and viable modes of transportation and integral parts of the overall transportation system. Exhibit Hall will showcase the widespread interest in bicycling and walking in Maryland. In the evening, a panel of top Maryland officials will discuss making Maryland a national model for bicycling and walking. This is an exciting place and time with elected officials, agency staff, community leaders, advocates, planners, and consultants talking with each other about bicycling and walking. St. John’s Hall/Lowes Office Building, Annapolis, MD. Sponsored by the Maryland Dept. of Transportation and the Maryland Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. For more info, to sign-up to have an exhibit and/or to be listed in the Maryland Bicycle and Walking Directory, contact Jim Hudnall, (301) 567-0089, info@ohbike.org. Web: http://ohbike.org/mbpac/symposium. Thank You WRN would like to thank the following for their contributions to WRN: Don Barclay, Meade Berman, Kerry Burch, Kent Cooper, Cheryl Cort, Marcia and George Degarmo, Lee Epstein, Andrea Ferster, Sandy Hillyer, Linda Katz, Marilyn Klein, Emily Lyons, Ed McMahon, Chris Miller, Bill Mosley, Joseph Passonneau, Walter Rybeck, Harry Sanders, Stewart Schwartz, Peter Shapiro, Webb Smedley, Dale Tibbitts, and organizational contributors Citibank, Maryland - National Capital Park & Planning Commission, Potomac Investment Properties, Inc., and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. INTERSECT! is a publication of the Washington Regional Network for Livable Communities. WRN advocates transportation investments, land use policies, and community designs that enhance existing communities and the environment of the National Capital Region. Contributions help cover the costs of producing INTERSECT as well as WRN's other activities including forums, workshops, and reports. WRN Contribution Form. Deborah Katz, Intersect Managing Editor Comments & articles welcome. Views expressed are not necessarily those of WRN.

	Washington Regional Network for Livable Communities 1777 Church Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 Phone: (202) 667-5445 ¨ Fax: (202) 667-4491 Email: staff@washingtonregion.net



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