← all posts

posts in "Transportation"

Examining Metro’s Impact on Midtown Houston

Posted on August 09, 2011 by Tadd Miller

I am still curious as to how the Metro line will impact Midtown Houston. I believe the long term viability and impact will be significant, but to date it hasn’t spurred the volume of development that I would have expected. With Midtown linking two of the largest employment centers in Houston (Downtown/Medical Center), it would seem there would be a race to develop everything in its path to house this multitude of employees and commuters. Instead, while development is taking place a couple of blocks away, nothing seems to be happening immediately adjacent to the Metro Line. There is more vacant land and deserted buildings along the Metro in midtown Houston than any other portion of the Midtown area. Why is this?

  • Unreasonable adjacent landowners?

  • Even if you could commute from home to work, you still have to drive everywhere else in Houston. Could you fix this with share car program?

  • Perhaps there isn’t a significant amount of housing in the area. Maybe what housing is there hasn’t been developed in reasonable proximity for people to try the Metro.

  • I wonder how many of the people living at Post Midtown/Camden have actually ever used the Metro. Houston is such a car designed and dependent city; is it just going to take more time for people to get used to this type of travel?

  • Is it just a timing thing with the economic woes of the country? Although, Texas seems to be escaping most of that for now.

When people finally start to realize the advantages of using the Metro to get around the city, the Midtown area will undoubtably reap the benefits. I just wish it was happening faster and am surprised we haven’t seen more!

This entry was posted in Transportation, USA West

Comments

Milhaus Issues Resolution to Support Transit Referendum

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Milhaus Development

It seems like we can't get away from tough fiscal times in our country today. Whether its the national debt issue or a local budgetary constraint, every organization is focused on making dollars go farther. Isn't this the time we need to be even more creative to stimulate the economy at the local level? In one of our original posts at the beginning of this blog last year, we highlighted the importance of efficient transportation to the health of our business and to our city and neighborhoods. Today we added our name to the list of groups issuing resolutions in Indianapolis calling on the Indiana General Assembly to create legislation that will give voters the choice to pay for transit. We believe creating a funding mechanism is the first step to overhauling our transportation system, which ranks among the worst in the world of cities our size. Rethinking how we move around on transit and on highways can only help grow our economy and create jobs (see also Brian Suiter's thoughts on the previous post here about how government subsidizes so much of suburbia). Putting this issue in front of voters is the right thing to do. It affects us all. Please consider adding your business or organization to the list on CIRTA's site. You can find our resolution here.

This entry was posted in News, Our Philosophy, Transportation

Comments

Be part of the transit solution

Posted on June 22, 2011 by David Leazenby

"I want more transit options in Central Indiana.

I’m aware that the demand for public transportation in Indiana is increasing; I also know that traditional transit funding sources are failing to meet today’s demand or support a more transit-ready future. Communities should have the opportunity to increase transit funding to the level their residents desire.

By signing this petition, I am saying:

  1. I want Indiana communities to have the opportunity to choose to fund transit initiatives.

  2. I want the 2012 Indiana General Assembly to authorize voter referenda that would allow communities to create dedicated and adequate funding for transit design, construction, operation and maintenance.

  3. I want voters to have the opportunity to decide whether their communities will dedicate local revenue for transit systems."

All of the above is copied directly from Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority's (CIRTA) website, whereon they have launched a petition to seek support for transit funding. As of this writing, 1,890 people have signed it in just the last week since it's launch. It's really pretty simple when you think about it. Ehren Bingaman, Executive Director of CIRTA, asked recently in a piece he wrote for the Indianapolis Star: "If your car runs out of gas, do you blame it for stopping?" Let's give transit it's place in Indianapolis. Sign the petition and get the funding question out there for our legislature to debate. Also, read more about the plans for transit in Central Indiana at IndyConnect. While you are at it, check out Ehren's recent tweets at @ebingaman from the Transit Initiatives and Communities Conference in St. Louis. Seriously, is anyone working harder for transit in Indianapolis?

This entry was posted in Transportation

Comments

Hundreds of school buses, one parking lot, and a major economic development

Posted on April 04, 2011 by Tadd Miller

IPS Bus Garage MilhausLooking at the former Coca Cola building at Mass Avenue & College Avenue in Indianapolis, a sea of yellow school buses sit idle. There I sit as the 10th car back at the stoplight in the middle of rush hour. The children have already been delivered home and their 100+ buses are parked while traffic inches by. I make the assumption that there are people whose full time job is driving these busses, however their two routes a day leave most of the day unused. Additionally, there are three months of the year when there is no bus service at all. I hear the mass transit debate in Indianapolis, and it appears to me a combined system of IPS and IndyGo buses provide at least an option for increased efficiency and service. Is that really such a big leap?

Aaron Renn talks about successful public transit connecting “transit addressable trips” to create a system that works. It seems to me that there are thousands of students in the downtown area who depend on these busses that are necessary "transit addressable trips" that are already being addressed in a completely separate set of costs. (Makes me wonder...have I seen school buses in Manhattan?) Anyway, with IndyGo’s need to increase routes and cut back expenses, an exploration of this combination seems at least a scenario to consider and do some serious studies to figure out. In addition, it would open up a large tract of developable ground to bring more development downtown Indianapolis.

This entry was posted in Our Philosophy, Redevelopment, Transportation

Comments

Parking Turnstiles and Auto Stacks

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Tadd Miller

auto parking mixed use milhausIn my Asian and European travels, I have realized that they have the same automobile struggles as the US, just on a magnified scale. Providing parking for inhabitants when they are not on the move is one of the main challenges of urban and mixed use development, and we can learn a lot from these countries that have continued to implement creative solutions for urban development.

Turnstile mixed use milhausThe simplistic technology of a turnstile is an interesting, and presumably affordable option to pack parking into tight spaces, allowing tight turning radii to enter and exit garages and busy streets. It seems like you could implement them into tight restoration projects to squeeze cars in corners they may not otherwise fit. You could also locate them on corners of townhome buildings and create a parking situation that would add some development area instead of the need for a cul-de-sac or through street. We're considering both options in some of our upcoming projects as we figure out how to become more efficient with our sites.

auto parking 2 mixed use milhausAnother option that seems to be gaining popularity is the vertical parking stack. I have started to see these in NYC, and in addition we have had discussions with Boomerang, AutoParkIt and others who are building these in other places in the US and Canada. However, they are prevalent all over Tokyo, and I am sure driven by the market characteristics, which are vastly different than the US. Both of these systems seem to be more efficient, and possibly more affordable than traditional parking structures. These options would appear to offer more flexibility as well since cars and trucks are always changing sizes. What reason is there to build every space as 10x20 when some cars fit in an 8x10 space? Although most of our projects don’t necessitate them yet, it seems we could take advantage of these systems and push the density to an even greater level if we tried them. However, the ultimate question is whether or not the consumer will accept them in the US. If we can prove the systems are reliable and start to get some of our projects to take advantage of them, then it seems that it could be a way to lead our market.

This entry was posted in Design, Transportation

Comments

Bicycle Sharing Programs Growing Worldwide

Posted on January 06, 2011 by Tadd Miller

Bike Rental mixed use milhausWalked by a SmartBike stand a couple weeks ago in DC, and then the Millennium Park bike garage in Chicago not long before that, and I've read about the proposed bike facility at City Market in Downtown Indianapolis. MetroBike, LLC, a consultancy that assists cities and organizations around the world in such programs, reports a 49% increase in 2010 in bike sharing services around the world. As a regular bicycle rider for transportation around downtown, I am curious if these bicycle sharing programs will ever be usable for actual business use vs. just recreational. It seems like if enough of these can be placed in the appropriate locations, and if easily identifiable on a smart phone, then when out of town on business, I would likely see myself trying it out instead of foot, taxi’s or subway. I often find myself hoofing it because cabs are full, or the ones available do not look real exciting to step into. Or maybe it’s more likely the fact that I am too cheap to pony up that extra cash for a cab. However, if I have confidence in the location of multiple Smartbike-like locations I think I would consider their use very often. They have to be cheaper and smell better than cabs!

Most bicycle rental places that I have seen are tourist trap locations with tandems and 6 person bikes, but not just normal bicycles. And the rates with these are significant hourly commitments, returnable to the same place, most likely also a place you rent paddleboats or other touristy accommodations.

For residents and business travelers, the other programs seem to work to allow very short usage stints, cheap enough rates to make it worth the consumer’s while, and the locations are easily identifiable. I hope that I continue to see more of these options available, as I think it is a cool trend in the right direction, and the next time I see one of these, I am going to take it on a spin just to test it out and understand the workings even better.

This entry was posted in Lifestyle, Transportation

Comments

Where are the trains headed now?

Posted on November 18, 2010 by David Leazenby

We'll continue to update you here on issues that we believe are important to our cities and their economic development. As we noted previously this year, high speed rail has the potential to dramatically change the development patterns in some areas of the country. With new leadership coming into Congress, we wanted to take a look at where it stands today. It is interesting that the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) released a study days before the election calling attention to the number of Americans willing to ride high speed trains. Along with the survey, they announced that $2.5 billion dollars would be available soon in grant funds to continue moving rail projects forward. Their press release, with survey details, is here. From the responses of over 24,000 people, they reported that nearly two-thirds of adults (62 percent) said they would definitely or probably use high-speed rail service for leisure or business travel if it were an option.

Then, a week later, after some elections were won with rail being a campaign issue, we read that rail funding from the stimulus bill will be reevaluated by the new Congress. We hope the new leaders can come to agreement on priorities of projects in the next year and get the country moving in the right direction. There is much as stake. Energy prices, gas prices, and major roadway infrastructure and maintenance costs are weighing on the economy. Getting better, more efficient access between our urban centers will pay huge dividends in our future development. Let us know what you think.

This entry was posted in Transportation

Comments

MidTown Miami

Posted on September 19, 2010 by Tadd Miller

I question whether or not big box should be a component of the urban core. However, it provides a necessary service and product that the residents of the urban core often demand. So if big box is going to come to the urban core, this project seems to be a good start at designing a dense enough solution. It is not the enviable 2 story Target and Marshalls, however, let's be realistic, the operating costs with 2 story targets is incredible, and if you want to get these things done, you have to be realistic about making the project work for all parties.

This is still just a box with rooftop parking, with the auxiliary entourage of Target and Marshalls followers. Although it didn't appear highly active, it was 10:00 am on a Tuesday morning when Milhaus visited, and there was already a decent amount of foot traffic as well as vehicles in the garage. These types of project that squeeze a lot of retail activity in a small section of space seem to be a good alternative if you are going to have big box retail in your core. It would have been nice to have more residential abutted right up near the project, however, I would assume that part of that is just time, and the fact that there was enough residential going on, and likely some of the plans for adjoining retail may have been intended, but just never got complete based on market place.

This entry was posted in Design, Retail, Transportation

Comments

A visit to Dallas and the Denton A-Train

Posted on July 27, 2010 by David Leazenby

mixed-use-dallas-downtown-300x215On the road (and rail) in Dallas today. Like Raleigh last week, the metropolitan area is quite large and relatively low dense. However, there is great promise here in the Dallas Area Rapid Transit and the effects on the built environment around the transit stations. Also, Robert Voelker mentions a few other notable projects in the Dallas area on his blog today. One area of our focus on this trip will be the A-Train line, which connects to Denton. By next year one will be able to commute from this suburban college town of over 100,000 people to jobs in Dallas by rail. The A-Train will parallel Interstate 35E and extend the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Green Line at Trinity Mills Station in Carrollton. It will be operated by the Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA). The DCTA A-train passenger rail system will connect Denton County with the DART system and the rest of the North Texas region, creating an economic development mechanism for Denton County and the region as a whole. The A-train project, a central element of DCTA’s service plan includes phased construction of 21 miles of regional rail, five rail stations, an adjacent bicycle/pedestrian trail, and a regional rail operations and maintenance facility. The A-train project will be complete in the summer of 2011 when revenue service opens to downtown Denton. Tomorrow, I’ll be in Denton and hope to learn more about what this will mean for this booming community.

This entry was posted in Transportation

Comments

Is driving really more convenient??

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Tadd Miller

urbanbikerBeing forced to do something different can open your eyes to better things. I sent my car to auction 4 weeks ago. Intentions were to replace my expensive SUV with something new, warranted, fuel-efficient, and low mileage. However, this forced a bike ride to work the next day, and four weeks later, I just locked my bike at my office front door before posting this message. My wife reminded me this weekend that “we need to go buy a new car,” and I can honestly say that buying a car had simply slipped my mind and I hadn’t even thought about it.

I can’t lie, I assume I will be a new car owner soon, but I am heavily questioning how badly we need to be a 2 car family! I have only borrowed my wife’s car on 3 occasions in a 4 week period, and, I have already saved a month of parking, insurance, plates, and gas. Most importantly, as long as the weather is decent, I have found that it is actually faster and less hassle for me ride my bike or walk to work than dealing with the one way streets and the parking garage, so even if I buy a new car, I think it will be reserved for those north side meetings. Sometimes you just have to be forced to try something new, and you will find the alternative is sometimes better!

This entry was posted in Lifestyle, Sustainability, Transportation

Comments

Older Posts

06.30.10 - Live, Work, Play and Help the Environment by Tadd Miller
06.11.10 - Million Dollar Commute by Tadd Miller
06.08.10 - Was that a commuter bus? by David Leazenby
06.04.10 - Cultural Trail – Indianapolis by Tadd Miller