Building From Scratch

In a week where one of the last remaining original copies of the Magna Carta was purchased at auction, it seems fitting to return to the beginning of things, to a time when the built-up environment left a scant mark on the landscape, or even when places still had that stamp of newness that seems so long ago. The story item that caught my attention, and brought me to this topic, was the news out of the Chinese/Vietnamese border, where Asian Highway No. 14 is on its way to fruition. In an attempt to create a modern surface transportation network throughout the continent, plans are in the works for an 87,000-mile highway network across Asia. The 152-mile stretch from Hanoi to Lao Cai is meant as a gateway from China's Yunnan Province to the seaports of Vietnam, all in the interest of expanding the global reach of Asia's growing economic strength. As if drawn on a clean sheet of paper, the highway will change things, hopefully for the better, for the residents and businesses in this neck of the world. It will dirty things up further, and displace around 25,000 people, so hopefully it will all be worth it.

Another tidbit that got me to thinking about drastic changes to once untapped regions actually comes from the middle of the Chicagoland metropolitan area. How the heck are revolutionary changes supposed to happen on the well-tread shores of Lake Michigan, you ask? Well, in Evanston, the city nestled along the northern border of Chicago proper, they are looking to open up the door to a whole new kind of place from what it is now. Home to Northwestern University (which I called home for four years) and the Women's Christian Temperance Union movement, the current leaders of the city are welcoming in a proposed 523-foot tall building into the relatively modest skyline its downtown now musters. Nothing now existing in the suburb rises within 200 feet of the proposed tower. It would be seen miles away. A recent 4-3 vote of the Evanston Plan Commission has sent the process to the next step, but there are still significant hurdles to redefine the community. As one opponent noted, "Evanston is a little university town. It seems out of character to have a skyscraper here." We'll see which camp's vision for Evanston's future will win out.

And how about down in New Orleans, where the work to rebuild the city from the ground up continues to face daily battles as to what the vision will be. This week city politics have been ensnarled in a massive protest from citizens angry that the federal government plans to demolish thousands of low income housing units, with no real assurances that these units will be replaced. Brad Pitt's lofty plans aside, New Orleans struggles each day with these issues where complex, competing forces make the task almost impossible. People don't want to return to the past, but they do want to return to the home they remember. The real issue seems to be whether the vision for New Orleans actually foresees the inclusion of the residents that lived there prior to Katrina. As one of these stalwarts noted, "They don't want this city to be for the poor, working-class people. . . . Everyone else, kick them to the curb." Even though in some ways starting from scratch, there's a lot of history, resentment and suspicion planted on the banks of the Mississippi.

As we approach the time to put up a new calendar on the wall, it's another chance to start over. But for those out there celebrating Christmas (or even those who just get a few extra days off), this is the time to hold onto and enjoy a bit of the current state of things, before it is time yet again to forge ahead, and start anew. Enjoy!

For Better or Worse

As we move into the holiday portion of the year, it's alternatively fun and depressing to look back at the prior calendar and see how fast it all went. In the same vein, it is also a popular exercise to look back at the year, and take an accounting on how things are going out there, and revisit our friends to find out how the heck they're doing. I feel like doing the same thing for some of the stories I've been tracking in the land use world over the course of this year. Sure, I'm jumping the gun a bit on the recap for 2007, but there have been a few tidbits in the news that got me to thinking about whether some of these trends and happenings have taken a turn for the better, or for the worst. One story that popped up again in the news is out of my birthplace of Cleveland, which is suffering disproportionately hard from the foreclosure crisis that continues to affect homeowners across the nation. Unfortunately, it appears the fears reported have grown worse. Crime has infiltrated such places as Slavic Village, a working-class community in the metropolis. Not exactly new to crime, the area has nonetheless seen fortunes turn worse when homes are foreclosed. According to one source, on average, once the owners are forced to move, it takes about 72 hours for looters to strip everything valuable from a home, down to the piping. Approximately 800 homes stand vacant in the community.

How about in China, where from time to time we looked at the situations facing the hyper-growth economy of the largest market in the world. One such storyline comes from the Three Gorges Dam project, the gigantic harnessing of hydroelectric power occurring in the hinterland of the nation. After having displaced over a million people, rumblings are beginning to surface about the environmental degradation and geological instability caused by the construction. In addition, as the nation seeks to continue to harness its hydroelectric potential, there is a call for additional relocations and upheaval for more locals. In the end, the economic and social well being of those living in these regions may not be improved materially with all the hubbub. And besides, China is still building coal-burning electric plants to satiate most of the increasing demand for electricity.

With the stories thus far, it is enough to put a damper on our impending turkey fests. How about all the talk I devote to approaches to improve the environmental state of our built environment? In Fort Collins, Colorado, which believes it is, "Where Renewal Is a Way of Life," they are facing two proposed energy projects that demonstrate the difficulty in defining the term "clean energy" sources. One project involves the, at first blush, "clean" source of solar power. The other is the oft-evil nuclear power source. However, at closer inspection, the solar initiative will require the use of cadmium, a carcinogen, and the nuclear initiative, which involves the extraction of uranium near the town, would actually support power plants with no carbon emissions. Why must everything be so complex? Why can't we have at least one feel-good story where everything works out well?

Sure, it may seem like things are imploding in around us. Throw in global warming, and it only makes one even more uneasy as we hop in our cars, and on planes, to travel long distances to be with our loved ones for the holidays. Around this swirling turmoil, it is actually a good thing that it is time for the holidays. Because putting aside the minor squabbles bound to happen when families reunite for the season, be thankful they are there, to lean on and realize that there is still some good out there in the world.

This is Serious!

Yesterday marked the first anniversary of me throwing out my thoughts on land use to all of you out there. I've enjoyed having the opportunity to do so, and hope to keep it up as we move along. You never can tell how these things go, but I still believe that the world of land use, and the questions it raises, continues to remain highly relevant as we move further and further away from the initial impact of Kelo. For those of you out there who are as conscious as I am to the events happening around us (and I'm sure, some of you moreso), you can see the stakes involved in decisions made by land use boards around the country each day. No, it's not always life and death. Not every homeowner needs that setback variance to build their new swimming pool on his/her property. A multi-billion dollar corporation won't crumble if they don't receive approval for a new outlet that adds to their 10,000-store fleet. But sometimes, these decisions do result in catastrophic consequences for those interested in the outcome.

Take for example the recent case in Clarksville, Tennessee, where a barber shop owner sought a rezoning on his house -- from residential to commercial. Ronald "Bo" Ward came before the City Council for the requested action to help increase the value of his property, which in turn would allow him to obtain a loan to pay off the debt he incurred to expand his shop. The Council voted against the application. In response, Ward pulled out a small handgun, announced, "Y'all have put me under. . . . I'm out of here," and proceeded to shoot himself in the head. Apparently he had relied on a favorable decision to determine whether he would live or die.

And on the other side of the globe, Yang Chunlin, a fifty-two year old out-of-work factory worker, decided to take up the cause of land confiscation going on across China in the midst of its rapid expansion. He circulated an open letter entitled "We want human rights, not the Olympics," and got 10,000 people to sign it. Reminiscent of Kelo, Yang sought to challenge the government's support for securing property for projects developed by private investors. Why the massive support for Yang? Activists argue that over a million people have been displaced in order to construct new sports venues for the coming Olympics in Beijing next summer. For his trouble, Yang was thrown in prison, chained for days in the same position, and assigned to clean up the waste produced by his fellow inmates. For his beliefs, he has been jailed under the catch-all "subverting state power" umbrella. It is unclear when he may be released.

Such stories only reinforce my prior beliefs of the importance of keeping an eye on land use matters going on virtually everywhere on Earth. Perhaps I get a little out of hand with my thesis that land use is this critical, but make your own judgments. Although rare, people take such matters to the extreme by making them life or death choices. There must be a reason. This can be quite serious stuff. As I started this whole endeavor, "The beauty of this unique world is that decisions on where to locate what, and how big, is a highly democratic affair, even greater than voting or serving on a jury." I still believe this. Considering an unemployed factory worker a half a world away can draw the attention of the national media over here, over a petition involving land use questions, reminds me how one person in the process can create a significant impact.