The Broken Windows Theory: Alive and Well in Downtown Tampa

What is wrong with this picture? A beautiful bridge, leading into a downtown that had been forgotten about for so long, instead is seen an unsightly graffiti-covered mess for years. Ever heard of the broken-windows theory? What a stain on downtown's revitalization, and a result of the lack of care Tampa has had for it's downtown for years.

The graffiti is the result of the University of Tampa's crew facility which hosts some of the nation's best rowing teams, and apparently advertises that they can paint the bridges, sea walls, and anything else near/on the Hillsborough River (another neglected asset in Tampa). Isn't this illegal? There is no way they could be legally allowed to do this, because, I don't believe the University of Tampa owns all of the property, certainly not the Kennedy Bridge or sea walls on the downtown side of the water.

Now that downtown is in the middle of a re-birth, I have called upon the Tampa Riverwalk organization to address this unsightly mess, and I've been told they are drafting an ordinance to make this a "fine-able" offense if on city property, and hopefully requires any business-owned sea wall to be kept clean of graffiti as well. Businesses/building owners will have to step up too.

The Tampa Riverwalk organization is organizing a great thing for Tampa-giving the river frontage back to pedestrians/citizens-and when fully built it will become a needed connector for the amenities of a revitalized downtown Tampa.

But, take the graffiti away from this bridge, and their renderings of the bridge improvements/lighting that they are looking to fund will be that much more impactful.


Maybe the Tampa Downtown Partnership can help enforce?

Which (Light Rail) Line Comes First?

The recently announced update to a light rail study in the Tampa area will evaluate the best options for a "first line." It's either a USF to downtown route, or a Westshore to Downtown route.

Photo from: http://www.tamparail.org/

My thoughts:
The Westshore route to Downtown must include a connection to the airport, and the USF to Downtown route must be routed down Florida Avenue instead of through East Tampa.

Florida Ave runs through a bevy of commercial, residential and community amenities (Lowry Park Zoo/Sulphur Springs Water Tower Park) that would add to the attraction of that line--and a lot of these areas just need that extra push to become highly-regarded neighborhoods in Tampa. They CAN become encouraging places for those that want to live close to the "urban core" can realize their desire, in fact it's already happening.

The East Tampa route admittedly runs through some of the poorest areas of Tampa, does not really reach any area of promise until it hits just north of Ybor, which already has a street car that goes through Channelside into downtown. The one plus is that the right of way is already available from CSX, but I do not feel that getting right of way down Florida Avenue could be a huge issue.

For now, I'll wait for the study to be conducted before I go into any more detail, I will be happy either way...as long as tracks are going in the ground in the best-most impactful-route.

Closer to Kings of Leon

I was asked to attend a Kings of Leon show a few months back. I had heard of them (their sound fit my musical tastes more or less), seen a few live shots (they were wearing skinny jeans), heard some concert review (they are emotionless) and thought they were OK. In leading up to the show, I bought their new album "Only by the Night." I listened to the songs I knew, then took it to track 1 for a complete listen-my normal routine with new albums-and I was hooked. The concert ended up being top notch, leaving me thoroughly impressed with this outfit from the South.

In addition to me listening to this imaginative, envelope-pushing album (probably over 50 times through), I have also read a lot of articles and scoured their website looking at their operation--their band members, styles, recording techniques, etc. I have to say, these guys have a hold onto who they are and where they want to go...a very important trait to a band these days.

Long story short, I recently read an article in Guitar Magazine, and a few quotes really stuck out from the band's front-man, Caleb Followill:

"Who in their right mind forms a band with the goal of being totally average?"

"People want you to stay as you are. They want your fourth record to be just like your first. They get nervous when you change your haircut or tamper with your sound. But we have had to evolve. We don't wanna be this little cult band. Our hunger is bigger than that. Our destiny is larger than that. We want the world. I don't think that's a bad dream to chase."

Kings of Leon: Closer

Water restrictions are no match for green building principles
I wrote this piece for the Florida Green Building Law Blog a few weeks back, and thought I would share here as well. Look for more contributions from Tampa Bay area green building enthusiasts, including myself, in the future.

While the rain begins to hit our roofs almost daily—those afternoon showers that simultaneously cool things off yet make our air more humid—consider the fate of this precious source of water for our region…



Our water infrastructure includes the design of expensive, and extensive, storm water management systems that add huge costs to new development, require expensive/disruptive repairs, and transport the toxins, debris and trash that comes from water hitting our impermeable driveways, streets and gutters. It then goes into the sewer, enters the storm water pipes, is filtered with powerful chemicals at treatment plants, and eventually reaches (and negatively impacts) the precious ecosystems and waterways that Floridians and (and tourists) visit and enjoy daily.

In response to this unsustainable method of collecting and treating surface waters, green building advocates, environmental organizations and individuals mindful of the complicated and costly requirements of an impermeable environment have started advocating for more permeable site design, and employing conservation strategies that once were common remedies when water wasn’t as readily available in the home—rainwater storage/use and grey water recycling.

Tampa Bay Water defines grey water as “untreated household wastewater that has not come in contact with toilet waste and includes wastewater from bathtubs, showers, clothes washers and laundry tubs.” Grey water makes up roughly 50-80% of the water heading down our drain, leaving a large capacity of reusable water that could be filtered easily and efficiently…reducing overall water use in the home by 30% or more!

We are still in a drought; homeowners, businesses and municipalities have been required to eliminate their use of potable water for irrigation and maintenance in order to conserve our dwindling water reserves. People learned quickly that these kinds of limits are not fun for water-hungry landscapes, and cringe at the thought of higher water surcharges—taking a second look at our everyday use of water.

Those that weren’t concerned had already prepared for this predicament—with their rain barrels/cisterns, drip irrigation systems, Florida-friendly landscape and low-flow fixtures helping keep their yard lush and monthly bills low.

Transportation Alternatives Should be the Solution

You learn a lot when you attempt to traverse a city using a form of transportation that has not been catered to for decades. Walking, biking, even 'bus-ing.' The ease with which our cities have attempted to solve the problems of congestion with an added lane on the highway, or roadway, calls to mind many other unimaginative choices that our cities/governments make. Further, the lack of attention to those that choose to get out of their car and use some human-power to move through cities, proves just how lazily our cities continue to use our tax dollars.

As much denser cities are finding, the addition of a lane-and the removal of a lane-do not effect the congestion levels on the road. Let me say that again--neither adding or removing a lane makes a proven improvement on congestion. Examples include the removal of a lane in Midtown NYC for a pedestrian park (video below) and the conversion of an auto lane in Vancouver for pedestrian traffic.

It is difficult to understand how these experiments can prove something that seems to have eluded our city planners, governments and, yes, commuters for so long. Nevermind the unexplained abandonment of street cars, trolleys, meaningful bus services and even responsible growth initiatives in many of our cities-adding a lane is an unsustainable, and highly costly choice that our cities make over and over and over. Never learning that simply adding a lane does not have a lasting impact on traffic.

I recently attended a meeting where the Tampa Downtown Partnership presented the progress and programs of the previous year, and at the very mention of light rail and high-speed rail, coming to Tampa and Florida respectively, and the room lit up.

People are hungry for the sexier, more progressive and "green" transportation alternative that Obama has made a priority. But, I wonder if they really understand the effects that a true commitment to mass transit will have on the city.With examples like Denver, Portland, Charlotte and even Phoenix, it seems that the results are speaking for themselves-now it's time to change the solution.

Why, you ask?

Photo above courtesy Hillsborough County Metropolitan Planning Organization

Midtown NYC takes away lane, adds pedestrian attraction: