How do we create PLACE and foster SUSTAINABLE chage?

I. Mission Statement

We need to create value of a place in terms of its physical, social, and economical value. We must be engaged in what place really is? What can we do to address and accomplish creating physical, social, and economical value to place.

II. What is Place?

A) Major themes/Ideas of the Council: • Creating a sense of place through connectivity and culture. Connect to places without relying on the car. Change our values! • Think of place in terms of a social, physical, and economical model. Socially, connectivity and culture. Having a clean and safe space. Physical, create a space that is aesthetic and green with good energy. • Push for public transit; change the idea and infrastructure of suburban sprawl.

B) “Culture of Change” • Bring back the edge to Southern California. Create demand. Tackle what is going to create demand. Bring California to the forefront. • People not place anymore. Place is about people and how people connect to place not vice versa. Connectivity to the existing sprawl. • We must plan for the future, change the Southern California mindset • We are having massive cultural shift, our mindsets are changing in terms of our habits. I.e., having a lot of cars on the driveway isn’t important anymore. • Moreover, create a partnership with the government, people, and community • We are in a generational SHIFT which will facilitate change • We need to tap into this new generation, work with the society we have now to change this suburban mindset from post WWII into a modern “metrosuburbian” place • We must identify what is important for people; it is vital to address these components. What do communities want?

The slowing of construction in the USA has created a once-in-a-generation opportunity for driving significant, positive environmental change. Although I hesitate to even use the word because it has so little currency in the USA, an opening exists for a nation-wide consideration of sustainable development.

C) What Can We Do to Remedy Sprawl in Southern California? • Tackle what is going to create demand in California. • Bring back the edge to Southern California in order to attract stakeholders. • Create diversity in housing • New “trend” is having higher density, create a new urban place to model. • California must reinvent itself create **DEMAND** • We need to figure out how to compete in today’s economy and bring jobs to SOCAL. • Create a competitive advantage (i.e., silicon valley) • As a result of the Recession we must Reset, Revolve, Revaluate, and Relook

D) Where Do We Start? How to We Address the Problem? • To begin start at the county level, Orange County is very disconnected (driven by politics). We must bring leaders of each city together and ask them what we can do about the disconnect and sprawl of our community. • Next look at the region in terms of the environment look at legislation SB 375, AB 32 (land use and transportation are vital) to change out culture, mindset, and our future. Speak with the author of SB 375 Daryl Steinberg.

1) Regionalism • Cities must collaborate locally to compete with cities worldwide.• Integrate SCAG • The goal is to effect positive change, create an Urban Development Story • OC is the model of suburban development therefore we must create a new model a new story to effect change for a new urban development model. • Ultimately, transportation drives how we create place! • We must answer questions like what will happen to the quality of life in SoCal if gas soars to $7.00?? What happens to growth? Since we live in such a car driven society this will affect our quality of life immensely. • Create a Public-Private Partnership • Utilize a Top-Down Approach state-county-region-city

E) Create a New Urban Development Model • We must create a sustainable model of development. That is attractive globally, that will bring people here. Create a compelling story that will bring the best and brightest to SoCal. • Create a new set of rules. What is the new way of life? • **Redefine what Suburbanization is** the goal is to work with what we have, redefine suburbanization over time. • Design a new model at the micro and macro level a new pattern of development

1) What are the Opportunities?For the future we must think differently.• Create Jobs • Create jobs through sustainability • Think of transportation for the future • Think about food and housing

F) What is the next Paradigm Shift? • DEVELOP A NEW MODEL FOR MODERN LIVING • Encourage redevelopment and utilize edge development • A goal should be setting new guidelines of a new development model

III. Think about our Fundamental Human Needs as a basis of a new model:

1) Transportation

2) Housing

3) Food

4) Jobs

5) Clean Place

6) Culture

**Our basic human needs is the new paradigm shift**

A) What is our End Product?

• A holistic approach (the new development paradigm) to urban development something interactive that should ultimately be spread to not only Orange County but globally.

B) Who is going to use our end product?

• The public (educate them by forums, conferences, lectures, especially through ULI, etc) • Government • The designer (and students)We must become part of ULI’s voice to spread the word about our new paradigm shift in urban development

C) What is hindering developing our new development paradigm?

• City regulations are too strict • Give “power to the people” • Think about how people really want to live vs. how “they” want us to live” • We must have a regulatory change (diversity of housing, density, etc) What problems affect the global, state, city, neighborhood, individual, national, and the region?? What are the solutions??

IV. Conclusions:

We must think differently in order to foster sustainable change. Our culture and thinking is evolving therefore we must create a new way of living. We must change our consumption habits. Utilize the new wave of the future by being holistic in all aspects of life. We must critically enforce the notion of transit in order to change the sprawl infrastructure. The automobile is a major cause of the disconnect in our society; it is handicapping us socially and economically. We must bring people back to place. Design a place for the people not just solely focusing on place. We must use to our advantage the current cultural shift we are in and evolve from the 1950’s consumption residue of materialism. California must reinvent itself to have a competitive advantage domestically and internationally. Create demand! Make people want to live in SoCal. Changing the idea of suburbanization will need much collaboration from the public and private sector. We must bring local leaders together to talk and discuss our current predicament. We must collaborate at all levels at the state, locally and regionally. Current policy and regulations are hindering a new development paradigm shift. We must remedy this by allowing citizens to choose how they want to live and reform draconian policies that are hindering growth socially and economically. We must develop a new model form of modern living. The goal is to create a place that will flourish and retain strong economical and social value. We must reintegrate our space to our culture, to our ways of life; reconnect the gap in our disconnective society. Create a place of value without relying on the car.

Text created as a collaborative effort at the ULI Initiative Council Group.

Photos Courtesy of Tree Hugger

What would COMMUNITY DRIVEN development look like?

Starting with a development team that is dedicated to community building through cultural development. A team that ensures the long term sustainability of every project through hands on operations and the ongoing programming of local art, cultural and community driven events. This daily involvement plays a large role in the continued growth and vitality of community driven projects. A development team that is constantly growing relationships through participation and support of communtiy festivals, gatherings, events, arts groups, rotary groups and scholarship funding. A development team that is a long term holder and prides itself on becoming a meaningful part of the community fabric.

Images Courtesy of: Mission Viejo Life

The Phenomenon of Dying Malls

American malls have been around for less than a century, but their influence on our culture has been amazing. However, even in prosperous times, distressed malls have been a persistent problem, as well as a point of intrigue in the suburban landscape. The current economic slump has magnified the problems that ailing malls have been battling for years, or even decades.

The rapid development of North American suburbs resulted in a rush to build malls. Most developers assumed that if their mall was newer and larger than the competition then they would make money, and for the most part they did. But what many developers failed to consider or neglected to care about was what happens to their project when the next mall is built. The blight that is left behind when one fails is a weight on the community. Lost tax revenue and jobs, increased vandalism and crime and lower property values are just a few of the problems a dead mall creates.

While dying malls are not a new phenomenon, their sustainability is something developers should consider. The dominance of the fashion, food-court and family-focused mall is ending. The good news is that no new enclosed malls have opened in the U.S. since 2006.

Vacant malls, strip center shopping centers and big box stores have already been redeveloped into more sustainable, less auto-dependent places more in sync with today’s demographics. Depending on the specifics of each site, we can expect to see future failed malls re-inhabited, re-greened, or retrofitted. Essentially malls can be repositioned into what a community needs. When a mall dies, many options are on the table. Redevelopment into a more sustainable mixed use center is often a good solution if the real estate is valuable. They have the advantages of an already existing infrastructure and usually are located on major transportation routes. They should be regarded as a potential asset, much as you would look at well-located unimproved land, or a deserted warehouse or office district in a city center.

This kind of recycling will be particularly useful in suburbs, as they develop more “urban’ amenities” — like interesting restaurants, live music and local festivals. By redoing the mall, this can be accomplished without urban “densification” and retain low-density environments of single-family homes preferred by the vast majority of Americans. Sometimes dead malls find new life as colleges, government buildings, branch libraries, spaces for nonprofit arts groups, places of worship, car dealerships and community centers that can host a variety of events. Most times, if the building is cheaply constructed, and neglected for years, the only viable option is demolition. In some of the more dense communities, this will provide an opportunity to repair the regional landscape by turning them back to open space

What should never be an option is to allow the building to sit neglected for years. Although it may be sad to see a place with so many memories bulldozed, there isn’t much future for an abandoned generic suburban shopping mall. The current crop of dying malls are by no means the end of the shopping mall. Retail and shopping are too integral a part of American life.

The biggest long-term challenge to malls isn’t economic. It’s environmental. Right now, consumers can’t afford all the stuff we used to buy. But in the long run, the planet can’t afford all the stuff we do buy. So finding a business model that’s economically viable and environmentally sensitive shold be a goal for all new (and repurposing) mall developers.

So going forward, developers and mall operators need to recognize that the shopping mall of the future can’t simply be a nucleus of stores surrounded by a sea of asphalt with a ring of highway around it. They need to hire talented suburban planners, architects, and landscape architects whom will encourage developing and/or transforming shopping centers into dynamic destinations that are woven into the fabric of the community. Developers should also strive to create malls that offer a place for people to socialize, not simply to buy. While no one likes to see businesses fail, dead malls provide great opportunities for communities to redevelop in healthy ways. Now is the time for them to remove the regulatory obstacles to retrofitting.

Here are some examples fo successful re-use.

Belmar in Lakewood, Colo.

Mizner Park in Boca Raton, Fla.

Bella Terra in Huntington Beach, Calif.

Photos courtesy of:

Chris Pixel

Xmelinda

ThePiratesDilemma.com

Trekearth.com

Huntingtonbeachevents.com

Epa.gov

Some text courtesy of:

DeadMall.com

How to create a culture of walking...

"Communities have a right to up-to-date, good quality, accessible information on where they can walk and the quality of the experience. People should be given opportunities to celebrate and enjoy walking as part of their everyday social, cultural and political life".

The trails in Mission Viejo are great for leisure and recreation, but not everyone lives like this 'Super Mom', out blazing the Oso Creek Trail for a little exercise. For the rest of us, we need to be coaxed into exercise to the point that we don't even know we are exercising. By creating enhanced walking experiences from desirable place to desirable place, can be that coaxing element.

Currently, when walking around Mission Viejo, we are offered the streets as our main connection element. The 5' wide curb adjacent sidewalk, next to a tiny and poorly maintained landscape setback, adjacent to a sea of asphalt at our underwhelming retail centers is not exactly a enhanced walking experience. Nor is it comfortable to traverse across the bridges in this city where you constantly feel like your going to be run over by a car.

So, what actions can be taken?
What we (the City staff and council, current property owners and incoming developers, and residents) need to do is:

• Actively encourage all members of the community to walk whenever and wherever they can as a part of their daily lives by developing regular creative, targeted information, in a way that responds to their personal needs and engages personal support.
  
• Create a positive image of walking by celebrating walking as part of cultural heritage and as a cultural event, for example, in architecture, art-exhibitions, theatres, literature readings, photography and street animation.


• Provide coherent and consistent information and signage systems to support exploration and discovery on foot including links to public transport.


• Financially reward people who walk more, through local businesses, workplaces and government incentives.


• Looking at future improvements by hitting the drawing boards with quality design consultants and with an open and flexible mind to providing creative solutions to real problems which exist in community today.
  

Now is not the time to sit on our heels and relic in the aging 'Masterplan' of the community and think that maintaining the quality of our community is by doing nothing. We are already seen our houses and retail centers deteriorate, many people have already invested in the long term of their properties by making sound improvements; most have not. If we want our community to continue to be the city where people come to shop and raise their families, we must invest in it.

It's not too late to re-think the 'Masterplan'!

'Super Mom' was featured in a past article in the OC Register. All other photos taken by author. Some content courtesy of Walk21.

New Research: 18- to 34-Year-Olds Key to Green Economy

Younger consumers connect the dots between climate change causes and buying truly green brands.
New research conducted by EnviroMedia Social Marketing indicates young Americans, an estimated audience of 76 million people, will power the new green economy and are the key to future economic growth.

This national opinion poll reveals a clear generation gap in understanding the cause of climate change — and marketing experts say businesses that pay attention may find new growth strategies.

More than any other age group, 18- to 34-year-olds believe global warming is caused by human activities. Additionally, the research indicates Americans who believe in this connection are almost twice as likely to buy more green products in this economy than Americans who believe it occurs naturally.

* Overall, 51 percent of Americans believe climate change is caused by human activities. Twenty-nine percent believe climate change is occurring naturally, and 15 percent say climate change needs to be scientifically proven. Just 3 percent of the public does not believe climate change exists.

* Sixty-four percent of 18- to 34-year-olds believe humans cause climate change —more than any other age group.

* Those who believe climate change is caused by human activity are more likely to have attended college; believe that green transportation or electricity from renewable resources is most beneficial for the environment (rather than recycling or minimal/reduced packaging); and are influenced more in their green purchasing decisions by third-party certifications than by word-of-mouth or manufacturer labels.

* More than half (56 percent) of the people who believe electricity from renewable resources is the most beneficial action for the environment believe humans are causing climate change.

About the Survey
Opinion Research Corporation surveyed 1,000 people January 23 - 26, 2009 by telephone in a random digit-dial sample, with a +/- 3.2 percent margin of error. The survey question: See details at http://www.enviromedia.com/enviroblog/?p=983
Photo Courtesy of The Green Blog

Thinking outside the GREEN box!

National Geographic contained an article last month called "A Bicycle Bump" which featured Portland, Oregon for it's "171 miles of bike lanes, ten freshly painted green boxes (picture above) that put cyclists safely ahead of vehicles, even some signals just for bikes." And this isn't the first time the yellow-bordered magazine has featured Portland. In the August 2008 issue, it named Portland the number one city in the top five bike-friendly cities in the nation.

It's of no surprise that biking is on the rise. With gas prices soaring, more and more people are parking the car and choosing to pedal to work. According to National Geographic, they measured this by the number of additional bikes being places on the racks of buses. In the lead is Houston with a whopping 235% increase.With more and more bike friendly streets being built and programs like bike-sharing, it's hard for anyone not to have the incentive to keep the car at home. Paris has a great bike sharing program, seen in the image below, taken near the Viaduc de Artes.

How wonderful would it be to show up in any city and be able to just grab a bike and go. Sure you can rent bikes for a time, but then they always have to be returned to the same place. Have a network of kiosks where you can pick up and drop off as you please purely on an as-needed basis is definitely something that would have more people grabbing a bike.

Now, many of you might be thinking that biking in Mission Viejo is more of a sport tham eco-commuting with all the hills we have in our city. But if our local government and developers would consider investing in our community by ways of improving the commercial and civic properties and amenities as well as improving the pedestrian and bicycle connectivity, this just might be a viable option for MV.

We could also take this concept further...what about sharing kids toys, video games and DVD'S, clothes, etc. We spend so much money on these things and more often than not we all complain about having these things pile up in our closets, garages and 'nooks & crannies'.

Think about it...what's your ideas?

Culture of Change - In Housing Strategies

It is this character of community living that our cities are losing, and our children may never experience unless we act now...

My first post, Culture of Change discussed a very similar topic but more focused on the consumer and retail. I found this article in what I thought was an odd place to find a topic like this, the Wall Street Journal's Live Mint. I am glad to see that topics like this are making it to the Business World.

Living together makes living lighter
The very idea of more for less indicates a culture of consumption, the concept of “getting” without “giving”, which is essentially contradictory to the principles of being environment-friendly. One has to believe in a certain value system of sharing and caring for each other and the environment, which will reap benefits that are intangible yet immeasurable.

All for one and one for all
Going green has turned into a trend today, and every individual has realized the relevance of being sensitive to the environment. Although this is a positive sign, we need to look further than the jargon—which is more technology-driven—and examine the real issues involved in being environment-friendly, in the context of present-day lifestyles and economic conditions.
An eco community is composed of like-minded people who live together, sharing utilities such as water and sewage systems, common spaces and facilities. An investment in an eco community would result in not only owning the piece of land that one has bought; the homeowner would also take ownership of the larger community space, which expands the visual and physical space available.

Bigger than the individual...
So essentially, one would not need to own a large piece of land individually, and yet one would get to enjoy a much larger space. Maintenance of garden spaces, water tanks, sewage systems, back-up power facilities and security would also become a shared enterprise, which could be supported by all members, and individual maintenance would be limited to one’s home and personal gardens.
...becomes cheaper for the individual
Several technologies—such as waste-water recycling, water treatment and rainwater harvesting—require a critical mass to become economical. An individual investing in these technologies would end up spending much more of his total budget than is desirable. In a larger group, it would amount to less.

Benefits beyond your doorstep
Neighbours who become extended family, open spaces where children are free and secure, and spaces where the elderly need no longer be lonely are some other benefits of living in a community.
Such communities can recreate some of the culture of small towns and villages where a lot of us come from, while trying to retain the advantages that a city offers. It is this character of community living that our cities are losing, and our children may never experience unless we act now. The emphasis needs to be on creating an ambience which is human in scale, while retaining the character of the land; “place-making” vs space-making being the underlying theme in the planning, creating places that celebrate the oneness of the human spirit with nature and not icons that exhibit man’s supposed superiority.

Living NOT to the maximum
Fewer burdens can be imposed on the land by not utilizing the maximum permissible area one is allowed to build on and reducing the footprint and material resources required.
The breakdown of traditional forms of community, wasteful consumerist lifestyles and the destruction of natural habitat, urban sprawl and over-reliance on fossil fuels are trends that must be changed to avert ecological disasters. Small-scale communities with minimal ecological impact are one alternative.

Photo courtesy of liveMINT.com

Top 10 People Space Planning Trends

Want to know what makes a good people space? Here is what the pros are seeing as the most important elements to make a public space great. In trying to compare these the public spaces of Mission Viejo, they just don't compare; that's probably since the last people place developed was the Kaleidoscope Center which many would say is a complete flop.

PPS Top 10 Placemaking Trends
Project for Public Spaces (PPS), the leading resource for public placemaking, revealed their Top Ten Trends Shaping the Future of Our Communities, especially as it relates to public spaces.

1. Placemaking goes global. Everything else is, so why not? Spurred by the internet, creatives demand connections more than ever, no matter where they are, and as result cities around the world are experiencing a renewed enthusiasm for public spaces. The best part of the global movement is that the most pedestrian-oriented and pedestrian-only districts are setting the highest standards for others to follow.
2. Collaboration is key to change. The above also explains why crowdsourced placemaking is fast becoming the natural means of implementation.
3. Going green. For emerging creatives, being environmentally conscious is a foregone conclusion.
4. Placemaking is becoming more important to the travel industry. See civic tourism and how investing in vibrant downtowns to attract creatives, followed by the rest of the residents (as the trend goes), also builds a strong tourist economy.
5. Libraries emerge is new town squares. I can’t really buy into this one, especially since they don’t add much to a square’s nightlife, but there are precedents in the outlying neighborhoods such as the new library fronting the Rockville Town Square, one of the most elegant new public plazas in the U.S. Then again, maybe libraries could support nighttime activity…
6. Being active 12 months of the year. This applies mainly to cold weather cities which in the past have shut down for the winter, though ten years ago many city downtowns were pretty much shut down all year. The point is, cold weather cities have innovated amenities (ie skating rinks, heated lamps, temporary enclosures) that allow people to enjoy public spaces all year round.
7. ‘The Power of 10’. This is a PPS program, but applies to everyone, where a city commits itself to providing ten public destinations that provide something to do. At the top of the creatives’ list is a ‘piazza as stage‘ (such as for ‘movie staying’), where just about anything can happen.
8. Public markets. Another PPS specialty, it’s a great way to find a deal, socialize, get outside and find a reason for the city to establish a pedestrian-only district. See their October 2005 newsletter on public markets.
9. Transportation planning as placemaking. This is best exemplified by the New York City Department of Transportation, which PPS supported in their rise to possibly becoming the most innovative, even placemaking-oriented government agency in the U.S.
10. Collaboration on developing new destinations. It’s the tangible result that results when you combine many of the above factors and crowdsource an actual place. If this isn’t a trend, then most of the other factors aren’t as well. Fortunately, this is a growing trend.

Thanks to Braulio Agnese of Architect magazine for the reference.
Photo courtesy of Neil Takemoto.

Culture of Change

ULI Coffee Talk
Presented by: Shaheen Sadeghi, LAB Holdings, LLC
Attended: 01-30-2009

Topic: Culture of Change

Do our kids want to live the same way we do? Will they have the same opportunities?

Creativity is more important that literacy.

All kids are born artists; the problem is trying not to let them grow out of it.

Retail is a formula driven model, ie. Outlet Malls, Big Box Retail, Entertainment/ Lifestyle centers, Mixed (up) Use.

Formulas are not human centric.

Planning...is our current trend of home building’s site plan just glorified shantytowns? Are they a real community?

If we want to change the game, we must understand the culture.

Great products/projects start with culture rather than design.

Kenaf edible clinics –Africa - Cameron Sinclair

Sustainable is not just driving a Prius.

Culture eats demographics for lunch. Good Example: Organic.

Missing culture is expensive.

Culture is about telling a story.

Culture is the glue between Brand, Product, and Consumer. Good Example: Apple.

Mass culture in America is breaking down.

You’re better off looking for new technology rather than investing in the latest generation technology.

We are turning from a mass market to a niche nation. Good Example: Boutique shopping.

Each person is a brand. Good Example: eHarmony.

U.S. makes up 4.5% of the world population but consumes 25% of the world’s goods. Is that sustainable? NO.

We will come out of this recession better…people, culture, economy, spenders, givers, world as a whole.

In the age of overload, emotional connection is the key.

Design with Conscience, is flourishing.

Urban Acupuncture. Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim-Bilboa, Spain – it reinvented the region with new businesses, new restaurants, new etc. Tourism.

Mixed use products – the ground floor is where the soul is. Good Example: Golf course communities in the desert - take the golf course away, homes would be empty. Develop the Soul of your project.

Sustainable is making something social.

WHAT’S MISSING??? Find it, explore it, make a business out of it.

Good example: CSA - Community Supported Agriculture - local community organically grown food for the individual consumer.

People want content in their lives.

Shift from passive consumers to active participants.

Your audience (end user) wants to be a co-author/co-designer to your product/project.

Time to get back to grass roots.

Want to get creative – cut a couple zeros off your budget.

Invent by being a user.

The 70’s were about Love (Lennon), 80’s about Greed (Miami Vice), 90’s about Ego (Donald Trump), 2000’s about Cause (Al Gore), 10’s…? We are at the tip of the iceberg with green technology. We need to get back to doing it for Love!

Every company should have a chemistry department. Leaving the baggage behind and bring new and fresh ideas. Look for what people want. (content, community, social culture).

CULTURE - “Commerce without culture and respect for community becomes a soulless and short lived commodity. Our creative endeavors demand a deep rooted examination of the local personality and careful placement of hand selected quality businesses to compliment the existing environment yet excite the senses. Partnerships with local entrepreneurs, artisans, educators, neighbors, and trade organizations are paramount to our success. The incorporation of ‘public space’ for the invigoration and support of local culture begins at the most primary stages of concept and design and becomes our proud trademark”.
Shaheen Sadeghi, LAB Holdings, LLC