TOD Should Not Be Transit Agency's Business
This editorial from the Rocky Mountain News argues that the Denver-area Regional Transportation District needs to stay true to its promise that it will not use eminent domain to acquire land for transit oriented development.
"A couple of months ago, we urged the Regional Transportation District to try to avoid using eminent domain as it acquires the property needed to build the West Corridor of the FasTracks light-rail line."
"We continue to believe the district should do all it reasonably can to accommodate landowners and purchase the needed property from willing buyers, not condemn it. But as the timelines to start construction draw nearer, hopes are fading that all these acquisitions can be completed amicably."
"Still, there are reasons for concern. The law does allow some commercial and retail operations on RTD property for the purpose of serving transit riders. That's how coffee shops and small groceries can open their doors inside RTD stations. And legislation the district is proposing for next year would add residential development to permissible transit-oriented uses."
"RTD management says it has no intention of entering the property development business, and that may be true. But that attitude could change in years to come, especially as demand grows to place mixed-use retail, commercial and residential properties near RTD stations in what's known as 'transit-oriented development.'"
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Related News Stories
Debunking The Myths About TOD - May 19, 2008
Transit Agency's Eminent Domain Under Fire - Feb 21, 2008
Transit Agency Needs To Keep Its Focus On Transit - Dec 17, 2007
Denver's Transit Plan Fertilizing Neighborhoods For Density - May 30, 2007
Boulder, Colorado's Big TOD Project Nears Approval - Dec 21, 2006








And 20 years from now (or
And 20 years from now (or sooner), when gas is 10 bux a gallon, the same paper will ask why planners did not do a better job of facilitating TODs. I am reminded of the story in NoVA when an entire community voted to sell itself to a proposed Metro TOD developer because they got a premium for acting in concert.