New Jersey still has private transit carriers providing "public transit"

In "Revisiting the need for comprehensive transportation planning at the metropolitan and regional scales | For profit services, and White's Ferry, Montgomery and Loudoun Counties" I discussed how the private ferry between Montgomery County Maryland and Loudoun County Virginia hadn't been acknowledged as a "transit service" in those counties respective master transportation plans, and when conditions changed, leading to closure, they had no quick way of responding.  

It's a demonstration of a quirk in planning generally and transportation planning specifically. Mostly, a master plan only covers what the government controls or operates, and usually ignores for profit services, and often, franchised services.

Passengers board an A&C Bus Corp No. 32 bus at Hudson Mall on Route 440 in Jersey City, Tuesday, July 25, 2023. (Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal)

It turns out that in New Jersey, a number of "public transit" routes are actually operated by private carriers, not necessarily with public subsidy.  In Jersey City, A&C Transit, which operates 4 heavily used lines, announced it is shutting down.

You'd think that because there is a statewide transit agency in New Jersey, NJ Transit, that they would have a way of responding to this--not unlike how in the 1960s and 1970s privately owned transit companies ended up being acquired by local governments, because they wanted to maintain the services even as the companies shut down.

But apparently that isn't the case (" NJ Transit can’t let A&C bus routes die," Jersey Journal).  From the article:

Everyone seemed to be taken by surprise last week when it was learned that the nearly century-old A&C Bus Corp. would be shutting down the Nos. 30, 31, 32 and 33 lines at the end of October. 

Local officials immediately started banging at NJ Transit’s door, but the response was less than enthusiastic. That may be attributable to a sort of shellshock at NJT as multiple privately operated bus routes have had a hard time recovering from the pandemic, leaving the state’s public transportation system scurrying to find answers. 

Now that the reality has had a chance to set in, the people who depend on the A&C bus lines and the greater community should expect and receive the full support of NJT.

It's the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s (commuter railroads) all over again.

You'd think that local, regional and state transit agencies would be monitoring these services, and preparing to step in if there are problems.

Great quote that gets at the heart of perceptions of commercial districts

'Time for a refresh': Even Nashville tourists think downtown's vibe is off. 

Photo: Andrew Nelles, Nashville Tennessean.

The Nashville Tennessean has an article, "'Time for a refresh': Even Nashville tourists think downtown's vibe is off," on its premier entertainment district, Lower Broadway, which is a mix of retail, restaurant, and music establishments ("'A money making machine': Is Nashville's iconic Lower Broadway losing its music soul?," NT), and cultural facilities centered around country music.  From the article:

"We visited a couple years ago, and I wasn’t 21, so we just walked up and down. Now that I’m 21, it’s going to be different for sure," Galicki said. "But it does seem a little bit more run-down, and there are more homeless people." 

The post-COVID tourism boom in Nashville has led to congested streets, incessant noise and unruly party-bus crowds, issues that city leaders are striving to manage. Cell phone thefts, assaults, and pickpocketing were common last year. 

Progress is being made, but not before some major downtown businesses are relocating to calmer areas like the Gulch and Midtown. Music City Center CEO Charles Starks told board members recently that convention attendees are hesitant to venture downtown between meetings. "It used to be that the first questions we got were about sustainability, food service and tech," Starks said. "Now, the focus has shifted to public safety."

There have been issues of various types for awhile, see:

-- "Another example of why local culture plans need to include an element on retail/dealing with for profit elements of the cultural ecosystem: Nashville's Tubb Record Shop," 2022
-- "Leveraging music as cultural heritage for economic development: part two, popular music," 2017

But like with downtowns and entertainment districts and destinations across the country, e.g., the Philadelphia Inquirer reports ("Philly arts groups struggle to bring back audiences after COVID") that many of the theaters and museums and other cultural establishments there have lost at least 30% of their audience compared to pre-covid times, Nashville's Lower Broadway district is going through some hard times as audiences have shrunken.  

To me, it's an illustration that you always have to actively manage such districts, especially because of the possibility of slowdown.  

E.g., in my old haunt of H Street NE in Washington, DC, a number of places are closing according to reports on local social media, and it's likely due to always increasing competition (the Wharf has expanded, there is more going on at Navy Yard and near by, the Union Market district continues to intensify), plus DC's crime issues, and the post-covid drop off in business.  

I also wonder if having lost one of its champions ("Joe Englert, DC nightlife impresario, dies | Lessons about nightlife-based revitalization," 2020) makes a difference too.  He was more than a planner, as he brought money, buildings, concepts, talent, vendor relationships, and the ability to deal with government agencies to the fore, and facilitated the opening of many taverns and nightlife destinations there.

The quote, emphasis added:

David Corman, director of safety services at Nashville Downtown Partnership, suggests that the heightened fear among the public is more about perception than reality, as crime rates have decreased. In the first six months of this year, 64 major, Part 1 offenses downtown were reported to police compared to 70 crimes during the same period last year. 

“We have a saying here that if it doesn’t look clean, then it doesn’t feel clean and, subsequently, safe and that can impact an individual’s perception of crime," Corman said. "When someone is solicited for money or experiencing an unhoused person’s living situation downtown, all of this interacts with an individual’s internal biases and plays into how we experience our own feeling of safety."

Perceptions matter.  And what influences them needs to be managed and addressed.

Years ago, I wrote a piece that I called "The Soft Side of Commercial District Revitalization," which included clean and safe issues.

But it's also about disorder and a more cavalier attitude about it.  Pre-covid there was a lot of willingness to futher "define deviance down" in terms of "petty crimes" like fare evasion and shoplifting, because of the idea that people committed these crimes because they were poor, not because they were inherently criminals.  

But I think it backfired, as did other measures (like letting more alleged criminals out before trial), in that it led to an increase in crime in many ways, making things worse overall.

This has been abetted by the public camping element of homelessness, which diminishes the quality of many public spaces.

Nashville.  The article discusses the area's transformation over the past 20 years, which has been remarkable.  But the impact too from touristification, the challenge of putting resources in other parts of the city and county (which have a merged government), and political interference from the State Legislature, which is Republican while the city is more Democrat.

=====

Cf.  There is a Business Insider article, "Every American city wanted to be cool. Now they're all just boring copies of each other."  While my line is that all places are unique, but few are exceptional, in that they can't be compared, which many people argue, Nashville is a unique place.  

But there is no question that as places are touristified, they can be homogenized.  Definitely this is the case as places become what we might call night life bar districts.

Bus stops as neighborhood focal points and opportunities for placemaking

1.  Boston is promoting digital library access at 20 bus stops ("Borrowing books on the bus? It’s happening in Boston," Boston Globe).

It's not particularly pathbreaking.  Libraries in places like Orange County, California and Calgary have put in book lending stations at transit stations in their communities for more than a decade.

2.  But once again, it raises the issue of how to make bus stops more than perfunctory places within a neighborhood and community.  See past blog entries:

-- "Pathetic not revelatory: Quality of bus stop study in San Francisco," 2021
-- "Bus shelters as social spaces, as potential vectors for virus: Seoul's new anti-covid bus shelter," 2020

Project for Public Spaces has a report on the topic, Destination Station: Transforming Bus Stops through Community Outreach.

3.  Utah has invested in bus stops, but given the heat and sun in the summer months, the fact that a majority of stops have zero provision for shade is a problem.  And not providing a shelter doesn't work out so great in the winter either.

There are three bus stops--no shelters--alongside Sugar House Park for which I am on the board, and I hope that we can work with the Utah Transit Authority to put shelters in, and at at least two of the locations, to incorporate greenery.

Transit shelter next to a fence/golf course, E. Spring Street, Long Beach, California, 

with bougainvillea growing on top of the shelter

A few years ago, there was a public art project with one bus shelter in Everett, Massachusetts that did something similar ("Everett tried to make a bus stop pretty," Boston Globe).  But only for three days.

Rendering of “Felipe Baeza: Unruly Forms,” which will be presented by Public Art Fund next month on more than 400 JCDecaux bus shelters and street furniture throughout New York, Chicago, Boston in the United States, and Mexico City, León, Querétaro in Mexico.  Image: Public Art Fund, NY

4.  The New York Times has an article on a bus shelter public art project, "Watching for the Bus Stop Gallery."  From the article:

Starting Aug. 9, the artist, whose home base is Brooklyn, will be giving people something to think about during their own public transportation journey, or purgatory as the case may be. As part of a Public Art Fund program designed to reach people where they live or commute, Baeza will have eight of his mixed-media, collagelike paintings reproduced on some 400 JCDecaux bus shelters in New York, Boston and Chicago as well as Querétaro and Léon in Mexico. They will also appear on digital kiosks and newsstands in Mexico City.... 

And his paintings for the project — fantastic, ritualistic images of human bodies in different stages of transformation or regeneration — touch on the power of mobility. Speaking from a small office-like studio at the Getty, where he had a nine-month residency ending in June, Baeza called his subjects “unruly forms” or “fugitive bodies” who don’t conform to norms or abide by laws. Some seem to be morphing into sea creatures or mythic birds; others are on the cusp of flight.

I especially like the leveraging of digital ad networks across cities.  

I proposed something like that, although within communities, as point #10, "Create a digital community and transit information network for Silver Spring, employing kiosks and mobile applications" in "PL #5: Creating a Silver Spring "Sustainable Mobility District" | Part 3: Program items 10-18" (2018).

An illustration of Jane Jacobs' point about the value of "a large stock of old buildings" to center city health

In Death and Life of Great Cities, the author lists four factors that undergird healthy cities.  One is "a large stock of old buildings."

The interior of a second-floor office space in 123 S. Broad St, occupied by the architecture firm Coscia Moos.

The point wasn't that these buildings are attractive (hopefully) and support historic preservation, it's that "old buildings" are paid off and offer lower rents, and therefore support innovative uses like business startups that need low costs in order to develop ("Jane Jacobs and the value of older, smaller buildings," Journal of the American Planning Association, 2016, "Big Data Backs Jane Jacobs: Cities Need Old Buildings," Smart Cities Dive).

Of course, she wrote that 60+ years ago.  

In a city like Washington, where the height limit constrains development, old buildings tend to get torn down and rebuilt or renovated so that they can continue to command higher rents.  

That's why I argue DC should allow higher heights, because small organizations are displaced to the suburbs, reducing the economic vitality at the core (although this is mostly a theoretical argument).

-- "Another attempt to raise discussion about the DC Height Limit"

In Philadelphia, 123 S. Broad Street, an old building not paid off, but with lower financing and running costs, is able to thrive by renting to organizations attracted to historic architecture, the ability to lease smaller spaces than typically available in newer buildings, and lower rents ("123 S. Broad is finding a niche in Philadelphia’s uncertain office market," Philadelphia Inquirer).

Seattle, All Star Baseball Game, free transit throughout the city and metropolitan area

 Just the other day, "Desperate times sometimes lead to a more marketing-oriented guise: WMATA/Metrorail | Bonus: WMATA's financial crisis," discussed special event transportation, and how WMATA in DC provided free transit starting the evening of July 4th, to facilitate movement to and from fireworks displays.

Yesterday and today are the primary days of activities around the Baseball All Star Game, which this year is in Seattle.  According to The Center Square ("Seattle public transit free Monday and Tuesday for MLB All Star game"):

This fare-free period applies to the following services in the region; 

• Access Paratransit 
• King County Water Taxi, Metro and RapidRide Buses
• Metro Flex on-demand Services 
• Sound Transit Link light rail 
• Seattle Streetcars 
• Kitsap Transit Buses 
• Kitsap Fast Ferry

Notably excluded from the free fare period for the region are Pierce Transit, Community Transit, and the Seattle Center Monorail, which will continue to charge riders on July 10 and 11.

In February, Utah Transit Authority provided free transit days around the NBA All Star Game, and for an outdoor music festival in May. 

 

Opposition to affordable housing in Chevy Chase, DC

Chevy Chase Community Center, Washington, DC.

The Washington Post has an article, "D.C.’s Chevy Chase neighborhood in uproar over affordable housing," about how proposals for a new Chevy Chase Community Center, incorporating a variety of improvements as well as housing above, which could be either 100% affordable housing or partial, are being met by opposition.

What bugs the s* out of me about this, is how DC goes in circles perpetually.  

A fine looking mixed use building with a library on the ground floor and affordable housing above, in Portland, Oregon.

For example, I remember in a DC planning meeting in the very early 2000s, learning about how the Hollywood branch of the Portland library system had a library and cafe on the ground floor, and 47 units of affordable housing above (" Putting housing above a public library, Portland takes another pioneering step toward urban density," Metropolis Magazine, 2002).  That's 20! years ago.

Baldwin Apartments on H Street NE; 37 apartments, 100% affordable, over ground floor retail and building amenities.

Similar proposals were made for some libraries in DC--the West End Library site was redeveloped as high income housing, and high quality affordable housing was built on H Street NE on the site of a modular, dinky library ("All-Affordable Apartment Building Headed to H Street NE," NBCWashington).

A proposal in Tenleytown ("Fenty Announces Development Partner for Tenley-Janney Site," DC press release, 2008) was successfully fought off, and in Southeast DC, in the Benning Road neighborhood, residents fought the idea fearing that pedophiles would live in the housing, and prey on children using the ground floor library ("Mixed-Use Messages," Washington City Paper, 2006).   

Obviously, DC itself has successful examples of doing this, although more with replacing the civic asset rather than including it going forward.  Still you can take the civic asset example from Portland, and the successful housing examples from DC and Portland, and apply it to Chevy Chase.

Although Chevy Chase is also right to be worried.  DC has actively placed Section 8 tenants in apartment buildings up and down Connecticut Avenue, and many of the households have been a scourge, bringing the 'hood to Ward 3 ("D.C. housed the homeless in upscale apartments. It hasn’t gone as planned," Washington Post, "Mayor Bowser meets with Connecticut Ave. tenant leaders," Forest Hills Connection).

But buildings like The Baldwin Apartments show it can be done successfully, in a manner that improves the range of what's available in a neighborhood.  But DC Government shows a lot that its management capacity is weak.

Normally, I'd not recommend such a location because it's practically in Maryland, and low income residents need good transit access.  OTOH, it would provide options for DC residents who might work in Montgomery County, and there is decent bus service on Connecticut Avenue, and the Friendship Heights Metrorail Station is a 15 minute walk to Wisconsin Avenue (and even faster by bike).

Upholstered cushions affixed to a wall bench by a bus stop on wall by a bus stop on Hackney Road (Bethnal Green/Shoreditch, London) upholstered by the trainees in the Shoreditch Design Rooms upholstery program

Reddit photo. 

-- Shoreditch Design Rooms

Also see: 

-- "Bus shelters as social spaces," 2020

-- "Pathetic not revelatory: Quality of bus stop study in San Francisco," 2021

-- "Transit, stations, and placemaking: stations as entrypoints into neighborhoods," 2013

Digital ad screens in NYC Subway stations display weekend service closure maps

Reddit photo from r/nycrail.

In 2018, I had a meeting and walking tour of part of London with Ivan Bennett, who had been product design manager for the London bus system--it was a fabulous experience, about 6 hours.  

-- "Thinking systematically about bus transit service improvements: spurred by Columbia SC, Edmonton AB, and Baltimore," 2017
-- "Branding's (NOT) All You Need for Transit," 2018

One of the points he made along the way was about digital screens being able to display different kinds of maps much more easily.  

For example, at night, the display of a digital bus system map could be limited to the night time bus route network.  

This is another example of the positive opportunities offered by digital display screens for transit system maps.  

Previously, NYC Subway used posters to present this information, which had to be printed and put up.

Building a statewide rail passenger program for Ilinois

I have written about how Pennsylvania with SEPTA, Massachusetts with MBTA, and Maryland with MARC ("A "Transformational Projects Action Plan" for a statewide passenger railroad program in Maryland," 2019) could use their regional railroad commuter systems as the foundation to develop statewide railroad passenger programs.  

Massachusetts has a big advantage because offshore wind power could be used to electrify the entire system.

I hadn't thought about it in terms of METRA and Illinois.  The State of Illinois just selected METRA as the operator, over Amtrak, to extend service from Elgin (the service emanates from Chicago) to Rockford ("Metra chosen to restore passenger rail to Rockford," Rockford Journal-Star).  Rockford is about 90 miles from Chicago.

Amtrak does provide service throughout Illinois, such as from Chicago to St. Louis, and Chicago to Milwaukee.

For thinking about how to organize railroad passenger service at multiple scales throughout the US, see:

-- "Two train/regional transit ideas: Part 1 | Amtrak should acquire Greyhound" (2021)

Independence Day and Civic Engagement when Democracy is in crisis

I don't have the energy to write about this in depth.  SCOTUS ("The Supreme Court Has Kicked the Door Wide Open to Jim Crow–Style Bigotry," The Nation), voter suppression, gerrymandering, authoritarian tendencies in the Republican Party, Trump and insurrection, State Legislature preemption of the ability of local government to act ("States Are Silencing the Will of Millions of Voters," New York Times), etc.

Signing of the Declaration of Independence

Yes, to have democracy you need to practice it.  And I believe our civic institutions need to seize on every opportunity to promote substantive civic engagement.  Which isn't easy, is time consuming, is subject to blowback (e.g., the conservative push against school boards) etc.

Margaret Sullivan's column in the Guardian, "On the Fourth of July, a few reasons to feel encouraged about US democracy," quotes a law professor, Asha Rangappa from Yale:

"Get engaged locally,” urged Yale University’s Asha Rangappa told me recently when I interviewed the former FBI agent for my podcast, American Crisis: Can Journalism Save Democracy? That could mean runing for office, signing up to be a poll worker, volunteering at school, participating in the arts. 

Rangappa wants more Americans to “cultivate the habits of democracy”. Those habits are developed when people leave their social-media echo chambers, get out into their communities, and simply talk to each other.

Yep.

Desperate times sometimes lead to a more marketing-oriented guise: WMATA/Metrorail | Bonus: WMATA's financial crisis

First, in the early years of the blog I wrote a lot of pieces about transit marketing and doing a better job of it.  Now a goodly amount of that is encapsulated in "Branding's (NOT) all you need for transit" (2018), but old pieces like "Making Transit Sexy" (2005), make the point too, less sophisticatedly.

Second, during the 2008 crash, I got an email from an activist in response to all the budget and service cuts faced by transit systems.  She said, why can't transit systems be like the system in Rochester, New York ("Creativity Helps Rochester's Transit System Turn a Profit," New York Times), which gets a significant amount of financial support from institutions, who recognize the impact of transit on their organizational community.  That money provides a base level of support independent of fare revenues and government appropriations.

My response was you don't develop such relationships in crisis, but when times are good, and hopefully, those relationships and funding streams can survive exogenous shocks.

WMATA is in financial crisis because of the decline of transit ridership due to telecommuting ("Metro says funding increase needed to avoid catastrophic cuts," Washington Post) but also its financing structure ("Next Stop: Fiscal Cliff  | Inherent Flaws in Metro's Funding Model Are Steering It Right Into A Financial Crisis," Washington Business Journal -- note that I disagree with some of the major points made in the article).  

WMATA's been in organizational crisis for almost 15 years, and even without that crisis, I argued in 2009 before the train crash that it needed to rebuild the metropolitan consensus on transit, which needed to be rebuilt anyway because it was about 40 years after the initial development of the system ("Getting WMATA out of crisis: a continuation of a multi-year problem that keeps getting worse, not better," 2015).

As revenues have dropped because of the service crisis, WMATA has finally introduced a variety of fare innovations.  They still pale compared to systems like London Underground and Melbourne, but for the DC area, they are a step forward.

I was shocked to read in today's Post that this evening, starting at 5pm, Metrorail and Metrobus will be free, to support people going to and from the fireworks.  From the article:

Metro rides are free after 5 p.m. Tuesday 

Officials suggest taking Metro to get to the Mall. Starting at 5 p.m. on the 4th, Metro will offer free transit to access celebrations throughout the D.C. area. The waived fare will be in effect until the rail system closes at midnight, but applies to all rail, bus and paratransit services. Customers will not need a SmarTrip card during those seven hours. The agency will begin increasing service after 4 p.m. to accommodate crowds. 

Officials say the increased service is meant to mitigate some delays and detours near the Mall that are expected because of road closures. Red Line trains will operate every six minutes, while Blue, Orange and Silver line trains will arrive every 12 minutes. Trains on the Green and Yellow lines will arrive every eight minutes from open to close. 

“Metro will be celebrating Independence Day the best way we can — by providing frequent service to help customers get to the festivities around the region and back home safely,” Metro General Manager Randy Clarke said in a statement.

That's not unlike what I've suggested for the Inauguration ("Should transit on Inauguration Day be free?," 2013/2016) and other super special events ("Washington Cherry Blossom Festival and event transit," 2023).

It's probably too little too late.

All the pundits say the biggest problem is the lack of a regularized funding source, like property tax or sales tax ("DC area transit commission board member thinks he has a brilliant idea on how to fund Metrorail: sales taxes," 2022; "Metrolinx Toronto: 25 potential tools to fund transit-transportation infrastructure," 2013).  And absolutely that it is a key issue.  

But like 2008 and the example of Rochester New York transit, the time to create a regularized funding stream for WMATA was in the late 1970s and early 1980s when the system was opening and expanding and ran great.  Crisis is a crappy time to ask for money, especially when your service quality is declining.

Note that every transit system in the country pretty much has the same problem of loss of revenues.  Few systems have recovered more than 50% of their pre-covid ridership.  

California just provided a big bailout to SF MUNI and BART as an example.  But the DC area's funding for transit is split between three states and each has different motivations, making doing the right thing difficult.

From "DC area transit commission board member thinks he has a brilliant idea on how to fund Metrorail: sales taxes":

1.  Crisis is a bad time to ask for money.  

2.  The three jurisdictions controlling WMATA, Maryland, Virginia, and DC, disagree on the purpose of transit.  

3. The best time to ask for regularized funding is when you're successful.  

Rebuilding the regional consensus about transit.

Transit financing

My solution: Step 1: creating a regional transport association.

Step 2: Separate planning from budgeting.  

Step 3: Fix the Funding.  Yep, it needs to be done, but not just for Metrorail, for all of the regional transit services. 

Step 4: WRT WMATA, declare force majeure, and contract out operation of the heavy rail system to Hong Kong's MTR.  Start over.  

Step 5: Reconfigure bus service in the metropolitan area.

Tempe Neighborhood Traffic Calming Manual

I can't claim to have a handle on every great program, but for smaller communities, Tempe, Arizona, Long Beach, California, and Arlington County, Virginia, have very well developed local transit systems and complementary in-depth sustainable mobility programs.

Back when I was doing a bike and pedestrian plan for Baltimore County, I visited with the Tempe transportation department when I was vacationing in Arizona.

One of their  best practices is a great manual for traffic calming measures, which was just updated as of May.

-- Tempe Neighborhood Traffic Calming Manual

Unlike many places, they not only have developed a good, robust process for dealing with requests, but they have a comprehensive listing of the approved treatments.

Tempe is also national best practice when it comes to neighborhood transit systems.

2. I've also argued that Safe Routes to Schools programs are traffic calming programs too, supporting students, schools, and neighborhoods.

The State of Washington School Walk and Bike Routes: A Guide for Planning and Improving Walk and Bike to School Options for Students is very good on facilities.

The Michigan SRTS Manual is good on the process of creating a program, building support, and planning, but doesn't list interventions, but the Encouragement section of the National SRTS guide does.

Happy 4th of July

Many neighborhoods and cities have parades on the Fourth of July.  In DC, the Palisades Parade is probably the biggest neighborhood parade, and often a great spot for campaigning.  

Capitol Hill has developed one over the past decade.  And Takoma Park, Maryland has a great one which is embraced by both TP and the Takoma DC neighborhood.

Reddit's DC thread has a couple photos of a group of people in the Palisades parade, protesting the project to put bicycle lanes on Connecticut Avenue.  

Connecticut Avenue is an 8-lane street, way too wide, and is a commuter artery, although I'm sure average daily traffic (ADT) has dropped considerably in the face of telecommuting.

The weirdest thing--the world doesn't end when you put in sidewalks, crosswalks, bike lanes, etc., despite protestations to the contrary.

Apparently pro bicyclists marched un the Capitol Hill parade.

In Salt Lake now, in my greater neighborhood, people are protesting the addition of raised crosswalks as a "Safe Routes to School" measure.  

One of their claims is it will interfere with stormwater drainage.

The reality is that Salt Lake City has raised crosswalks in lots of places, including around the block from one of the schools targeted for improvements.

The Takoma Park parade is a lot of fun.

And I think it's funny but important that people take these kinds of opportunities for protest.  At Takoma Park, it's mostly the 9/11 "Truthers."

Park system ratings for 2023 | Trust for Public Land ParkScore® rating system

I have been remiss in writing about the 2023 release of the Trust for Public Land national ratings of park systems, called ParkScore®.  

-- "How Does Your City’s ParkScore® Rating Stack Up?," TPL, 2023

In the past I've had issues with it, because DC is always rated highly--this year it's #1--but the reality is that 80% of "DC's" parks are run by the National Park Service, and its arguable about how successful NPS is at serving the local residents.  

-- "Lies, damn lies, and statistics: parks edition," 2012 
-- "Washington, DC, Named Best City Park System in 10th Annual ParkScore® index, Lifted by Strong Scores for Park Equity," TPL

Not to mention how DC lacks a systematic approach to parks and public space planning. DC produced a parks master plan, allegedly, about 6 years ago, but only an executive summary has been released.

-- "Five examples of the failure to do parks and public space master planning in DC," 2021

But the DC park plan summary is good, and acknowledges the importance of the National Park Service in providing park space. 

Separately, DC DPR did a playground improvement program a number of years ago, and initially I thought they should wait on a master plan.  

I was wrong because they ended up doing a good job, "sub-planning" the playground function, reconceptualizing what they offered, and actually following through with the construction of quality improvements.

ParkScore® uses this criteria for rating, which I believe has evolved from earlier studies:

• access
• investment
• amenities
• acreage
• equity.

For example, I don't think amenities were included originally, although it is a gross-grained measure:

• basketball hoops
• dog parks
• playgrounds
• restrooms
• recreation and senior centers (indoor facilities)
• splash pads.

According to an article in the Seattle Times on their ranking, "Seattle ranks among top 10 park systems in the country," the ParkScore® amenities measure is based on the conclusions of a journal article with findings about which park offerings (at the neighborhood park scale) have the greatest impact on park use and individual physical activity.

-- "The First National Study of Neighborhood Parks Implications for Physical Activity," American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2016.

Except for the fact that most park systems lack the budget for serious research, the findings outlined in the article--they studied 174 neighborhood parks, ranging from 2+ acres to 20+ acres, in 25 cities, ranging from 100,000 to 1 million in population--provide a lot of useful guidance for thinking about how to improve activation, use, and participation.  From the article:

Park size was not significant after controlling Supervised activities and onsite marketing were significantly related to increased park use and MVPA [moderate to vigorous physical activity] person hours. Every additional supervised activity increased mean park use by 48% (β¼0.39, po0.0001) and the mean MVPA time by 37% (β¼0.37, po0.0001). The presence of marketing materials, such as banners, posters, and signs was associated with a 62% (β¼0.48, p¼0.003) increase in the number of park users and 63% (β¼0.49, po0.001) increase in MVPA person hours. Each additional accessible target area (e.g., basketball court, tennis court, play area) was associated with 2% more person hours of park use (β¼0.02, p¼0.03) and 2% more minutes of MVPA(β¼0.02, p¼0.006).

They used a measurement tool called System of Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (SOPARC).  I wonder if it would be possible to work with local universities (in my case, the University of Utah) to study some local parks with this tool?

But definitely these results provide guidance on making decisions about how to promote a park and its activities, and whether or not to be more proactive in creating and delivering activities, focused on increasing use, and as a result greater physical activity and presumably, individual health benefits.

Academics argue there isn't a housing shortage as much as a problem with income and the mix of housing available

 -- "Housing Prices Are Too High. Building More Homes Won’t Solve the Problem," Barron's

A longer-term perspective, however, shows that America isn’t suffering from a housing shortage. Housing production has lagged behind household growth since 2010, but this doesn’t account for the massive overhang of housing produced in the previous decade. Fueled by the housing bubble of 2000-07, 160 homes were added to the stock for every 100 households formed during the aughts, our analysis of Census Bureau data shows. This level of production created a huge surplus of housing, which has yet to be fully absorbed. 

Put differently, from 2000-21, the nation grew by 18.5 million households. To maintain an adequate inventory of vacant housing, which historically would be 9.3% of the total, the housing stock needed to expand by 20.2 million units. Instead, it grew by 23.7 million housing units, producing a surplus of 3.5 million units. 

... The belief that there is a housing shortage is correctly motivated by concern over the housing-affordability problems that confront so many households. But census data show that these housing-affordability problems largely reflect a mismatch between household incomes and housing prices. 

Here, prices refer to housing prices in the market as a whole, not just the prices of new-to-the-market homes, which fluctuate widely with the pace of housing production. Housing-affordability problems for the population as a whole aren’t related to housing shortages or low vacancy rates. Rather, they are driven by high overall housing prices and low household incomes.