[SustainableTompkins] bike to work

[marlo capoccia]

i have only been able to skim this discussion, but haven't noticed  
any discussion about quality of life.  does increasing urban density  
affect crime rates?  are there mental health issues?  i live on  
second street, which is not terribly crowded, and feel like this is  
just about as close to other people as i'm interested in being.  i  
would like to live in the country, but we travel too much into town  
for that to be a good decision right now.

why is population density preferable?  is it for reasons of travel?   
freeing land up for farming?

thanks,
marlo
On May 8, 2008, at 12:44 PM, GayNicholson at aol.com wrote:

>
>
> A good way to get started on increasing density is with in-fill  
> projects  and
> redevelopment of low-density, one-story retail into 3-4 story mixed  
> use
> buildings.  There are many opportunities to do this on State Street  
> for  example.
> But we need to combine this will changing zoning and building   
> codes to allow
> this type of development.  Then we need to connect that to   
> changing the
> parking requirements for buildings.  If we had good public  transit  
> available, we
> could build apartments over retail/commercial spaces and  more  
> fully utilize
> the land for people and urban permaculture instead of parking   
> lots.  Connect
> Ithaca's vision is for exactly this kind of  redevelopment.  And  
> that is why
> they are hosting the international podcar  conference here in  
> Ithaca in
> September.  We need a more user-friendly  public transit system in  
> order to attract
> people into downtown life without a  car.  We also need land use  
> policy that
> makes it difficult to add to rural  sprawl.  Don't follow the  
> Lansing model of
> growth!
>
> Gay
>
>
> In a message dated 5/8/2008 9:38:37 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> andrejs at ozolins.com writes:
>
> Andy  Goodell wrote:
>> ...
>> Short of everyone renting out their space  to more people or  
>> subdividing
> their land to allow for more density, how do you  envision  
> increasing density
> being any better?
> I think these matters really  would be a good first order of  
> business, if
> we're to look for a way out of  this mess. The situation is serious
> enough to warrant a reexamination of  all the premises of our current
> culture. What, exactly, would be wrong  with everyone renting out  
> their
> space to more people? Or subdividing land?  As for how increased  
> density
> would be any better, George has sketched  enough of it to get my  
> attention.
>
>
>> The towns and cities have  been built, and they could have been built
> better, but I don't see an easy way  to change that now.
>
> Probably there is a way to change it now -- are we  actually  
> waiting for
> an *easy* way to do it? But even without changing  what's built, at  
> least
> we could stop building more of the  same.
>
> Andrejs
> _______________________________________________
>
>
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------
> Gay  Nicholson, Ph.D.
>
> 607-533-7312 (home office)
> 607-279-6618  (cell)
>
> 1 Maple Avenue
> Lansing, NY  14882
> gaynicholson at aol.com
>
> Sustainable Tompkins
> Program  Coordinator
> w_ww.sustainabletompkins.org_ (http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/)
>
> Southern Tier Energy$mart Communities
> Regional  Coordinator
> Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County
> 615 Willow  Ave., Ithaca, NY 14850
> agn1 at cornell.edu
>
>
>
>
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Marlo Capoccia
Garden Gate
www.gardengatedelivery.com