With wind turbines, a "daylighting" system, and charging stations for electric cars, Chicago's Greenway Self-Park bills itself as the city's first "earth friendly parking garage." John Greenfield asks, can a downtown garage truly be eco-friendly?
Built by Friedman Properties, the eleven-story, 715-space parking garage does not shy from showcasing its "green" credentials. "Its logo features a VW Bug with leaves blowing out of the tailpipes rather than noxious fumes," says Greenfield. But even though it was "constructed from 'local and sustainable' building materials" and rents spaces to Zipcar and I-GO car-sharing services, is there anything green about a facility that makes "it easy for, say, a guy from Naperville to drive solo to work every day in his Lexus, instead of taking Metra commuter rail," asks Greenfield.
Michael Burton, a sustainable transportation activist who co-founded Chicago's Critical Mass ride offers his unvarnished answer: "A green parking structure!" he
emails. "What's next, a LEED-certified strip mine? Any infrastructure
that encourages private automobile use instead of rapid transit, walking
and/or biking is inherently environmentally unfriendly. Using green
technology to market a new parking structure is simply cynical
greenwashing. A s- sandwich with honey mustard is still a s- sandwich."
Dave Lombardi, vice president with garage manager Standard Parking, offers a sound defense: "If the reasoning is we should eliminate all garages, well, that isn't
living in reality. It's easy to stand back and criticize, but Friedman
Properties has put forth the dollars to pass along the message of
environmentalism. In a perfect world all cars would be electric and
there would be no exhaust. But to get to a completely green society
there are some stops along the way."
FULL STORY: Green parking or greenwashing: can a downtown garage be eco-friendly?
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
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Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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