By Mark | May 26, 2008 |
Community goals are a top priority in city planning
Citizens regularly participate in making their public spaces better and local leaders and planning professionals routinely seek the wisdom and practical experience of community residents.
Residents feel they have responsibility and a sense of ownership for their public spaces.
Neighborhoods are respected, fostered and have unique identities. There is a sense of “pride of place.”
Public spaces are planned and managed in a way that highlights and strengthens the culture of a particular community.The emphasis is on pedestrians, not cars
Pedestrians and bicyclists are more numerous than vehicles (on at least some streets).
Streets function as “places” and have numerous attractive destinations along them.
Transit options are available to get to places where people want to go and are used by all kinds of people.
Parking does not occupy most of the public space; free parking is difficult to find.
There is a walkable commercial center convenient to every neighborhood that provides everyday needs and services (grocery store, pharmacy, library, medical services, coffee shop etc.)New development projects enhance existing communities
New developments, both public and private, are designed to include mixed uses and to be easily reached without using a private vehicle.
Developments are human scale and connect with places to cut through rather than mega scale, internalized and islands unto themselves.
There is a mix of new housing types and layouts that allows and encourages people to grow old there.Public spaces are accessible and well-used
There are public places within both neighborhoods and downtowns where people can gather informally and regularly.
Parks feature attractions for people of different ages and are used at different times of day; they are more than simply recreation facilities.
The waterfront allows people to actually reach the ocean, lake or river.
Amenities (benches, transit waiting areas, etc) are comfortable, conveniently located and designed to support the intended use.
Negative uses or users do not dominate the public spaces.
Both children and seniors can easily and safely walk to where they want to go (e.g. children can walk to school, seniors can walk to movies, grocery stores).Civic institutions are catalysts for public life.
Schools are centrally located to support other neighborhood activity.
The library is a multi-purpose and popular place where people go for many different types of activities.
Civic institutions (museums, community centers, hospitals, government buildings, etc.) have resources and activities that appeal to people of all ages and all cultures in the community.Local economic development is encouraged
There are many locally owned businesses-markets, mom-and-pop stores, street vendors, and larger independent stores; these local businesses are encouraged by the city; people know their retailers by name.
The mix of locally owned businesses is such that at least some of them are “third places” -places where people can just spend time.
Local businesses work with schools to provide internships or part time jobs.Public spaces are managed, programmed and continually improved.
The public realm is managed to maximize community interaction and to facilitate public outcomes.
Spaces are managed to provide opportunities for generations to mix.
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Jim in Chimczuk - Saying no for all the wrong reasons:
Hmmm, doesn’t look like Windsor has much of the above. Other than a few of the points we do not fair well as a city.
Looking over the picture at the top of the column I don’t believe Windsor has one “going places” and in fact has every “going nowhere”.
This is not being a naysayer, it is just stating the facts that are so obvious to everyone.
Now that we know what we should do to make a better, more vibrant city for everyone we should be moving forward to implement these well reasoned points for our city.
The question I want answered is why aren’t we? Why are we chasing so many arms-length corporations and doing deals with millions of dollars that don’t benefit anyone (tunnel deal perhaps?) but a few? Why are we dis-regarding our neighbourhoods and communities for lawyers and ill-conceived ideas that are never truly investigated by our city hall yet rammed through anyway?
Let me ask you one question. Would you rather a city invest in neighbourhoods or grandiose ideas?
Yep ME! With the Going Nowhere column and the list below it, makes Windsor look pretty dysfunctional by putting an X beside each of the above, rather than a checkmark. THAT WAS DOWNTOWN and other neighbourhoods in Windsor at one time!
Big-box schools contribute to sprawl
“Historic structures decline as new facilities move still farther out
When Lyn Michell’s son Warren was small, the family had the good fortune to live across the street from the boy’s Atlanta elementary school. Now that Warren is in middle school, Lyn has joined legions of U.S. parents who drive their children through crowded suburbs just to get to and from school. When Warren enters high school, the commute will be even longer, the monthly gasoline bills bigger, and the route even more congested.
Unfortunately, this trend is escalating as new suburban mega-schools are built far from community centers, fueling sprawl, pollution, and traffic. Meanwhile, America’s old historic schools, in or near town centers, are being abandoned and demolished at an alarming pace-a wasteful trend driven by misguided federal and state policies and funding. …”
http://bama.live.advance.net/opinion/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/opinion/1211706978254000.xml&coll=1
Our own school boards are adding fuel to sprawl and a dysfunctional city, by building these mega-schools and destroying city neighbourhood schools. These new schools don’t offer a sense of place, or community, the only thing they teach the kids is how to commute!
I can’t wait for oil to reach $150 a barrel!
Free parking, is the fertility drug for cars!
I was trying to research what was so unique about the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s school funding.
It seems as though the entire program was based on not building high schools that house over 400 students. I believe they match funds to build the school as long as it does not exceed that size.
The premise was that teachers could actually observe students after they passed their level and consult with future teachers if they noticed changes. That this was the magic number not to exceed if you wanted to have all teachers play a part in all students education throughout their time.
With his Worship, Mayor Eddie Francis - this City is going nowhere fast.
Another short dispatch from Charlottetown PEI. Through a ‘friend’ on city council, I’ve managed to get the entire article that this list was quoted from in front of the Mayor, all of council, the CAO and the planning department. If they read it — who cares. The fact is that it was put forward and they might, just maybe, read a couple of paragraphs and realize that there is a better way to do things. (Not that PEI does an overly bad job, considering the size and population density it has!)