‘Grand Boulevards’ Could Ease Housing Crisis

Redeveloping major commercial corridors and adding housing to mixed-use developments could solve the housing crisis, according to Congress for New Urbanism co-founder Peter Calthorpe.

As Robert Steuteville explains in Public Square, Calthorpe calls this the “grand boulevard” strategy, noting that it “could be implemented with a basic form-based code with zero parking requirements.” According to Calthorpe, “A 15 percent inclusionary zoning requirement would create 300,000 affordable housing units in the Golden State.”

That strategy is central to a 2023 California state law, AB 2011, which allows for more mixed-use development and higher density in certain areas. “Using Urban Footprint software, Calthorpe analyzed a 43-mile commercial corridor between San Francisco and San Jose, the El Camino Real. Reimagining this as a grand boulevard allows 3,500 acres of infill development, with up to 250,000 dwelling units—some with ground-floor commercial space.” In fact, infill development on Bay Area commercial corridors could create over 1 million new housing units.

According to Calthorpe, “Transit service would be greatly expanded if larger corridors were served with buses. Water use, energy use, driving, greenhouse gas emissions, and household transportation costs could be substantially reduced, he argues.”