Local, practical, "concrete" project proposed at last meeting

Had a good, if smaller, meeting this past Monday evening. Thanks to Centenary Business Professor Kelly Weeks, Attorney Maurice Loridans, Caddo Commissioner Matthew Linn, and Montessori Middle School Teacher Jon Soul for their contributions.

I'll edit this post later to include points we discussed, but the most exciting development was the idea that targeting local, practical means of increasing walk/bike-ability should be started. We're gonna be trail builders, by gosh! And even--potentially--crosswalk and bike lane requesters!

I also had a good meeting with SPAR Director Shelly Raigle and Planner Tim Wachtel. Shelly is setting up a meeting with the Director of the Department of Operational Services, Mike Strong, and we also agreed that approaching NLCOG to be the convenor would be a good move to make in the near future.

Local demographics discouraging: Louisiana continues to lose solid citizens to other states

Opus trio at LSUS: Sally, Ruthie, Theresa / Susan Rogers
Originally uploaded by trudeau

Demographer Elliott Stonecipher has tried to sound the alarm bell that contrary to what our leaders and others may be saying — Louisiana is losing residents to other states that offer more opportunity, writes Alison Bath in the Shreveport Times.

Population loss is a discouraging reality but perhaps a spur to groups like ABS. See the article here.

Good meeting Tuesday, next meeting Monday night!

First off remember we've got our first evening meeting of the year this year on Monday, at 6:00, in Centenary Square. Coffee and tea will be available, as will the internet and projection capabilities in case there's anything you'd want to show the group. (Usually we have google maps on the screen so we can zoom in and show various sites that relate to whatever we're talking about.)

Monday evening we'll be talking about:

• The meeting I will have had that afternoon with Shelly Raigle, Director of SPAR, and Tim Wachtel, SPAR planner and ABetterShreveport contributor.
• The value of ABetterShreveport becoming a 501 non-profit organization.
• The opportunity of working with and possibly through The Center for Civic Engagement at Centenary.
• Targetting Walk/Bike-to-School rates for specific schools.
• Gaining access to the bayous slowly and legally, versus "quick and dirty."

We had a very good meeting this past Monday morning, and I wanted to thank, by way of introduction, all who attended and contributed: Steve Shelburne, Centenary English Professor and Founding Director of the Centenary Center for Civic Engagement; Jeff Wellburn, natural gas marketer and consultant (and a model of civic engagement himself); Paula Hickman, an attorney and Director of the Shreveport-Bossier Community Foundation; Tim Wachtel, Planner for the Shreveport Public Assembly and Recreation Department (SPAR); Charles Gerrard, Director of the Highland Area Partnership; Brad Armstrong, commercial real estate developer; Sally Spruel, Co-President of the Historic South Highlands Neighborhood Association; and myself, a sociologist at Centenary.

The short summary of our meeting is that we talked about the following:

• how to think about funding the greenways proposal
• what parties to involve in the working group that would push the proposal forward
• the importance of making the greenways and trails part of an alternative transportation network that common origins and destinations
• the utility of using existing infrastructure for that network that would include existing streets, some perhaps repainted with bike lanes
• the utility of creating pilot transportation networks of trails and recommended walking and biking routes centered around schools, perhaps helped by:
• our state department of transportation's Safe Routes to School Program
• "mashups" where people are able to draw on online maps as a way of sharing their recommended routes
• Steve Shelburne described his project of establishing an architectural restoration facility that could be situated in Highland or downtown.

The meeting began at roughly 8:30.

I started by reviewing our agenda, then updated the group on the status of our grant applications to the E.P.A. and the National Park Service for counsel on creating an alternative transportation network of multiuse paths and greenways using our existing infrastructure of levees, drainage bayous, and streets. Neither grant is for funding, though presumably some of the counsel we could get would be on how we should go about getting funding for the project. The gist of the update is that we haven't heard from the National Park Service yet, nor from the E.P.A. since our semi-final round interview.

I said that some of us on the phone for that interview got the impression that the E.P.A. was reticent about our application because we didn't have a governmental point person for the project. I said I had a meeting ahead with Shelly Wrangle of SPAR on Monday with Tim, and I asked about the team or work-group that we might want included. Jeff mentioned that DOS, and how Mike Strong or Wes Wyche would represent that at the upper level; Jeff also mentioned that Ali Mustafa is the water drainage engineer who is a great person to work with. It was said that other work group members might come from MPC, Shreveport Green, possibly someone from the Department of Health (obesity researchers in town were also mentioned), and the Department of Transportation Safe Routes to School Program (I mentioned Donna Cavenaugh of ThinkFirst). It was suggested that we consider asking the Mayor's office to lead it, or NLCOG. I mentioned that I'd talked to Dale Sibley about that originally. [Come to think of it, Dale may have suggested SPAR because he'd forgotten about the transportation network dimension of the project and was thinking of it more as just recreational. However, the transportation network aspect of the proposal should be part of it's appeal for funders, particularly when use of these networks has been shown to reduce wear and tear on roads.

I also described the idea that Jon Soul and I and Ian Webb had talked about on how we could target our own Montessori school's ride/walk rate with a number of strategies. One would be mapping the network of school families and constructing a set of recommended safe routes for "walking school buses" where a parent or two escorts kids on their walk or bike ride to school. (I do the walking thing myself; never thought I'd love it as much as I do.)

We talked about NLCOG as a possible convener for the working group if the Mayor's Office doesn't want to do it, or, even if it does, NLCOG might provide a better organizational vantage point if we want to apply the project to Bossier and places outside the city as well. For example, making a levee-top path that links Shreveport and Alexandria would be one application of the proposal that would fall outside the purview of city governments, but that would certainly be in the domain NLCOG. Paula Hickman described how NLCOG is often a conduit for federal monies used for transportation, and how they'd worked on getting the buses to run late [chuckles], and how they are the designated regional planning authority for our area. Paula said she thought NLCOG would be interested in working with our group. (I also mentioned how NLCOG's new bike-pedestrian advocacy committee met for the first time last week and five of our group on it [Maurice Loridans, Ian Webb, Emma McCarty, Robert Trudeau, and myself] and how it is trying to find potential members of the committee who are non-white.)

Steve Shelburne mentioned that as new public spaces, these greenways would be perceived as additional space that needs to be policed. Because of this, police officials should be brought into the planning process for the network sooner rather than later.

We also discussed why the working group would need GIS data, and how it will be helpful to know what software they use to work with it.

At 9:30 a number of people had to leave, but the meeting continued.

Steve talked about a project he's working on to establish a Restoration Facility somewhere in town. The facility would accept donations from demolition projects and renovations and would provide an outlet for cheap renovation materials. A number of them apparently exist in Dallas and bring in thousands of dollars in yearly revenue. Steve said facilities such as these help preserve historical materials and architecture details. Places like Shreveport's Highland area and downtown are in the process of losing such valuable materials without a facility like this.

I wondered aloud if it might also be able to serve an empowering role for people as well, in that the facility might be able to double as a center for mentoring apprentices learning construction, salvage, even tool maintenance. A bicycle shop or even car shop could also become part of the facilitation's communal resources. I described how a student of mine was working on a proposal for a tool collective in Highland.

The meeting ended at 10:00.

Next two meetings are set

Our next two meetings are scheduled: Tuesday the 14th at 8:30 a.m., and Monday the 20th at 6:00 p.m. Both meetings will take place at Centenary Square room 206. Bring your ideas, an open mind, and wisdom born of experience, and we can help each other move our projects forward.

On the docket for Tuesday morning's meeting:
- aspirations, ideas, and strategies for repainting streets for bike lanes
- forming a work group for the drainage bayous to greenways and bike paths proposals
- how to target areas and schools for increasing walk/bike to school rates
- downtown revitalization ideas

Fresh coffee will be on hand. Please join us if you can!

Bike Lane Video

Here's an interesting video on a different kind of bike lane. (Thanks Maurice!)

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/10/contraflow-bike-lanes.php

p.s. it's looking like we'll be meeting Monday evening at 5:30. let me know if you'd rather we start at six; i know one person would.

Let's meet!

Seems like a good time for it. After all, Kate Archer Kent was kind enough to publicize our group on KDAQ yesterday while I was on with her during their fund drive, but, when she asked when we meet, I was compelled to say we hadn't started back up yet this year.

Meeting could move us forward in existing directions and maybe get us started on new ones too. Anyone who's found out about the group and our ideas through whatever means might want to join us, and a number of us are working on various things we'd all like to hear about. I'll be happy to update people on the grants we've submitted, as well as the variety of project proposals my students are working on in my Urban Sociology class. Some of those projects have to do with Highland, some with biking, some with downtown.

So here's the question: what's the best time for us to meet? Monday evening at 5:30? Thursday morning at 8:30? Or Wednesday at noon, for a brown bag lunch?

Please comment here or e-mail me (ldemerath@gmail.com) to let me know what you'd prefer.

Property values and bike paths

Here's an article about how multi-use paths can affect home values, and even provide new ways of looking for a home. Realtors on bikes? Apparently so! (Thanks Maurice!)

Some home buyers' new must-have: a 'bikeable' commute

by Eric Mortenson, The Oregonian

Thursday August 21, 2008, 8:23 PM

Randy L. Rasmussen / The OregonianCyclists -- and prospective home buyers -- leave a Northeast 10th Avenue home en route to the next stop on a recent "Tour de Homes" organized by Portland real estate broker Kirsten Kaufman.

Every house on the market has its issues, and the Northeast Portland home that Emily Gardner was touring with broker Kirsten Kaufman is one of those the real estate fliers delicately refer to as "needs TLC."

It's small, smells bad, needs fresh paint everywhere and the electrical system is funky. Filthy carpeting covers the hardwood floors. The basement has a mysterious puddle, and it looks as though squatters kept a diary on a closet wall.

But the street is quiet and the house has a garage tucked under the main floor -- perfect for rolling bikes in and out to the street. From here, Gardner figures, she could whip down Ninth Avenue to Going Street, hop onto the Vancouver-Williams couplet with its comfortable bike lanes, cross the Broadway Bridge and in 15 minutes be at work downtown at the Bicycle Transportation Alliance.

"It's definitely a trade-off for me," Gardner says, noting that she could afford a "bigger, nicer house farther out."

Realtors notice change
Gardner is among a burgeoning class of prospective homebuyers. In addition to checking price, square footage and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, some now are looking for houses that will allow them to ride a bike to work.

For them, "close to Springwater Trail" replaces "easy freeway access" as a market accolade. In a city that's among the national leaders in percentage of bicycle commuters, real estate brokers have noted the change.

Kaufman, of Prudential Northwest Properties, cultivates buyers who are looking to commute by bike or have the option of hopping on transit and want to walk to stores and services.

She's organized three bicycle tours of available properties, calling them "Tour de Homes." Meeting with about a half-dozen clients at a time, Kaufman has led visits of homes for sale in the Richmond, Sunnyside and Alberta east and northeast neighborhoods.

Besides showing homes, she highlights nearby bike routes, talks about bus, MAX and pedestrian connections, and rides past parks and schools.

"It's a way for people to explore neighborhoods in a way that's different than driving around," Kaufman said. "There's a lot of hype about green real estate right now. You hear about building materials, energy efficiency, solar -- that's all fantastic. But what more green thing can you do than drive less?"

Even Realtors on bikes
Realtor Kria Lacher of Meadows Group in Portland said an increasing number of her clients specify that they want to see "bikeable" properties.

"The other thing is, when I'm hosting my listings, some of the Realtors are coming by bike," she said. "That is new; that is very new. It changes the way you see a neighborhood, too. Your whole body is involved in the process."

Home prices have remained relatively strong in Portland's close-in neighborhoods, which generally have more transit options and better bike path connections than outer suburbs. Median sales prices in North, Northeast, inner Southeast and inner West Portland increased during the past year, according to the July market report issued by the Regional Multiple Listing Service. In most of the metro region, prices dropped.

"There are two significant trends influencing it" said Karl Rohde, public affairs director with Portland's Bicycle Transportation Alliance. "One is high gas prices; people are looking for locations that are less dependent on the automobile. The second one is a growing environmental awareness, the need to do what we can to reduce global warming. People do recognize that reducing automobile use significantly contributes to that effort."

Increasingly, they're doing that by bike. A 2007 city auditor's report showed that bicycle traffic at 31 monitored sites had increased 113 percent since 2000-01. Cyclists make 14,563 daily trips across the Broadway, Burnside, Steel and Hawthorne bridges, according to the auditor's office.

Roger Geller, the city's bicycle coordinator, estimates that 4.5 to 8 percent of Portlanders regularly commute to work by bike. In the central city, as many as 28 percent of commuters use a bike as their primary or secondary mode, Geller said.

Kaufman, the Prudential broker, hasn't yet sold a house she's shown on one of her Tour de Homes. But in June she sold a Clinton Street neighborhood home she had marketed based on its proximity to a bicycle corridor, and last spring sold a house to a couple who moved from Vancouver specifically because the husband wanted to bike to work.

She's sending bike-friendly listings to prospective clients in New York and California.

"There's definitely not a formula," Kaufman said. "When you're looking at a house, there are all sorts of trade-offs you take into consideration. For people who are committed to driving less and using public transportation, it can be a real important factor."

-- Eric Mortenson

Over 20 participants offer ideas on bike and ped planning at DOTD hearing

Jennette Ginsburg, Roger Coley, Denise Gresens, Emma McCarty, Ian Webb, Tim Goeders, Shreveport
Originally uploaded by trudeau

Here's a copy of Alex Kent's story for the Times. The similar Shreveport Blog story is here.

Residents tell road officials to include pedestrians, cyclists

By Alexandyr Kent
akent@gannett.com

Cyclists and pedestrians shared their ideas about transportation safety Wednesday. During a public meeting at the Broadmoor branch of Shreve Memorial Library, they brainstormed and presented their ideas to state officials and consultants.

"We recognize that we have a need to move vehicles, but that cannot come at the cost of personal safety" of pedestrians and cyclists, said Nick Jackson, of the Toole Design Group.

The Maryland-based consulting firm has joined Burt-Kleinpeter, a New Orleans-based firm, to help the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development establish a statewide transportation master plan that's more inclusive of nonmotorists.

"From the very beginning of the project, it is the presumption that it will include bicycles and pedestrians," Jackson added.

Policy priorities will be outlined in the Louisiana Statewide Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan, which will be released in 2009. The public meetings, which are being held in cities around the state, are part of the group's 18-month effort to gather information from residents, plus city planners and transportation officials.

"We think that some of these roads are too fast for pedestrians and cyclists," said Tamila Allen, of Shreveport, as she addressed the group. She termed biking to work "a short and dangerous journey."

She later added the 20-plus residents who attended the meeting should organize.

"This group needs to get back together and form a fairly cohesive group to present (ideas) to the city," she said.

Jeff Wellborn, who works with the local chapter of the Sierra Club, urged the state officials and consultants to listen closely to local concerns.

"We're the ones who need to steer the ship and not them," he said.

Emma McCarty, a physician living in the Highland neighborhood, attended the meeting because she wants to bike to work. She's tried it but found auto traffic prohibitive.

Her group suggested city officials take a firsthand look at the problem.

"Make them all bike to work once a month so they at least understood the issues," McCarty said.

Residents also expressed a general frustration that traffic plans, like those implemented at the Youree Drive shopping corridor, made areas inaccessible to cyclists and pedestrians.

Brian Parsons, bicycle and pedestrian coordinator for La. DOTD, spoke briefly about the idea of taking a "Complete Streets" approach to road planning. If implemented, it would mean that new road or improvement projects would balance the needs of motorists, pedestrians and cyclists alike.

"We have lip service to it, but we're not doing it," Parsons said. He and the consultants hope the Statewide Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan — strengthened by citizen input — ultimately will help make roadways safer for everyone who uses them.

DOTD planning meet open to public input: Wed, July 23, 5 pm, Broadmoor Library

Montessori School for Spt Bike to Work / photo Carolyn Tanner
Originally uploaded by trudeau

Loren Demerath writes, "I´ll be in the air flying home as this meeting happens, but I sure wish I could go. Hopefully Maurice´ll be there, and maybe you, April, Ian, Sally and others too."


In response to increased interest and demand for walkable and bikeable transportation options, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development has begun a planning effort to update their Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan.

The purpose of this effort is to review and recommend POLICY changes to address the needs of all the users of the transportation system, and by doing so, to reduce pedestrian and bicycle crashes across Louisiana. While this plan is not intended to result in a map of a statewide network, or a list of projects, the goal is to lay the groundwork to facilitate a statewide system which accommodates everyone who uses it.

You are invited to participate by attending one of our upcoming Public Meetings:

Shreveport
Wed, July 23rd, 5 - 6:30PM
Broadmoor Library
1212 Captain Shreve Drive

All Pedal, No Gas blog

SHREVEPORT TIMES REPORTER ALEXANDYR KENT TRIES BIKE COMMUTING:

"I’ve gone live with the All Pedal, No Gas blog, which will be featured on shreveporttimes.com.

First, please bookmark the following blog URL and visit it daily. Please invite your friends to check it out!

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=ALLPEDAL