Just outside of D.C., the Capitol Heights Metro station sits among empty parcels with brown grass and tall weeds, as the economic development that was to accompany the station never materialized. Will a proposed Wall-Mart come to the area's rescue?
Luz Lazo profiles the plight of Capitol Heights, in Prince George's County, Maryland, where "[t]he aging single-family homes and auto-repair shops just steps from the
station are signs of how little Metro has brought to the town."
With planners unable to leverage the Metro station, which opened in 1980, to catalyze development, plans to build a Wal-Mart, along with office, retail and residential space, on a 10-parcel just across the border in D.C. are raising hopes for the long-delayed boom.
"For years," says Lazo, "county and local officials have talked about such plans for
mixed-use development in Capitol Heights. None has materialized. The
area's lower income levels and its reputation as a hub for crime have made it harder to attract developers."
"'In Prince George's County, when you leave the Metro station, you go
into a parking lot, whereas in other counties, you go straight into a
shopping center,' said James Wright, a daily Metro user who lives in
nearby Seat Pleasant and is president of the Seat Pleasant Citizens
Association. 'People are kind of tired of being relegated to
second-class status in terms of economic development projects.'"
FULL STORY: In Capitol Heights, little change in spite of ‘a whole lot of planning’ around the Metro
'Transit-Oriented Communities': A New Agenda For L.A. Metro
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) is implementing a new vision for "transit-oriented communities."
Too Much TOD Set to Strain D.C.'s Subway
New development is poised to add thousands of riders to D.C.'s Metro, but rush hour trains are often packed already. Though Metro has proposed $6 billion in fixes, some see better land use planning across the area as the key to solving the problem.
Dream of Suburban D.C. Light Rail a Nightmare to Local Residents
At an open house organized to update the public on plans to build a 16-mile light rail line linking spurs of D.C.'s subway system in suburban Maryland, planners' visions of smart growth where seen as a developer-driven nightmare by local residents.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”
Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.
Platform Pilsner: Vancouver Transit Agency Releases... a Beer?
TransLink will receive a portion of every sale of the four-pack.
Toronto Weighs Cheaper Transit, Parking Hikes for Major Events
Special event rates would take effect during large festivals, sports games and concerts to ‘discourage driving, manage congestion and free up space for transit.”
Berlin to Consider Car-Free Zone Larger Than Manhattan
The area bound by the 22-mile Ringbahn would still allow 12 uses of a private automobile per year per person, and several other exemptions.
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Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)