One way to encourage community input into development planning

I have a line, "an RFP [request for proposals] isn't a plan" with regard to the various RFPs issued for redevelopment of government-owned properties in DC (and in general).

One of the classic innovation in revitalization projects in historic preservation circles is the rehabilitation by the famed developer-restauranteurs-movie theater proprietors the McMenamin Brothers, of the abandoned Kennedy School in Portland, Oregon, into a bed and breakfast with brewpub and I think art-related aspects. (I never did manage to go visit it when I was in Portland a few years ago at the National Trust for Historic Preservation national conference).

Later I found out that before the McMenamins got ahold of the property, the City of Portland embarked upon a neighborhood planning initiative for the property.

-- Kennedy School Master Plan, City of Portland (1995)

The best way to get what you want out of a property in terms of economic development potential, is to have a plan ahead of time--of course, the plan has to have reasonable expectations (cf. "Southeast D.C. Project Asked Too Much of the Private Sector" by Roger Lewis from the Washington Post) and work to share the gains for all the parties.

But it is the luck of the draw to expect an RFP to generate great plans. Especially on hyper-short deadlines. The Washington Business Journal had an article, "Big Development to hit Prince George's County: Transit-oriented at New Carrollton could be a national model" on the release of an RFP by WMATA for development at the New Carrollton station, but with a turnaround date of less than two months, it becomes almost impossible for the best result to be generated by this process.

From the article:

Proposals will be required to meet the General Services Administration’s standards for federal buildings as a way to lure federal tenants and private sector companies that tend to follow the feds. The site, part of which is owned by the state, is adjacent to the massive Internal Revenue Service building at New Carrollton.

Instead of issuing a request for proposals, Metro is issuing a request for qualifications to gauge developer interest and ability to complete the project. Metro will hold a mandatory pre-bid meeting Oct. 5 with responses due Nov. 5. The authority will then work with the partner to plan the project: a mix of uses including up to 2.5 million square feet of office or other commercial space and 3,000 residential units.

Metro also will change the way it funds planning and design. The Maryland Department of Transportation will provide $350,000 and the selected developer will front $650,000 that will be refunded after the project breaks ground. In the past, Metro has provided only a small amount of seed money for planning and design; developers were responsible for funding the rest out of pocket with no hope of getting any back.

“I always talk about Prince George’s County because that’s where the big parcels of land are,” said Goldin, who took the reins of the authority’s joint development efforts a year ago with the goal of rehabilitating and accelerating planning and development.

Goldin said the solicitation could serve as a test of a joint-development style that — if successful — could be applied by the Federal Transit Administration to joint developments involving transit agencies nationally

I will say that an "RFEI" process -- request for an expression of interests -- is a good intermediate step, not as good as a plan, better than an RFP. But it all depends on how good the planning process is, and thus far, WMATA has not demonstrated that it has what it takes to do a good job.

What should have happened, is that all subway stations should have strong and high quality station area plans that would guide appropriate development in those areas.

By way of contrast, and while the amount of money isn't nearly enough, according to the Boston Globe, the City of Gloucester, Massachusetts offers what we would call "pre-development" monies--a very small amount to be sure--to community groups to develop proposals for development projects. From "Planning Stages":

The city is offering grants of up to $2,500 to help groups come up with schematic designs for redevelopment of the city-owned, waterfront parcel at 65 Rogers St. Earlier this year, the city purchased the 1.8-acre property for $1.5 million and is planning to review design submissions later this year. Applicants must include an illustration of their idea, a summary of the proposed uses, a cost estimate, a list of funding sources, and a statement of how the idea will benefit the community. For more information, call 978-281-9700.

Pretty interesting.