The Naked City Blog

The city’s plans to sell 17 acres at its Scaleybark light rail station for transit-related development moved ahead a notch last week. On Wednesday a City Council committee voted 3-2 to recommend one of two proposals. (Yes: Nancy Carter, Andy Dulin and James Mitchell. No: John Lassiter and Don Lochman.)

The recommended (though just barely) proposal is from Scaleybark Partners – a coalition of Pappas Properties, GreenHawk Properties of Raleigh, Shook Kelley, ColeJenest & Stone and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Housing Partnership, among others. The other comes from a coalition of Bank of America, Harris Murr & Vermillion and Urban Design Associates of Pittsburgh.

Financial analysis is ongoing. The headline seems to be: Scaleybark Partners project would cost more now but bring in more revenue later. But let’s talk about design for a minute, specifically retail, and learn a cautionary tale from the Bay Area.

Fruitvale Village is a transit village built on a former Bay Area Rapid Transit parking lot in Oakland, Calif., that “has become a reluctant symbol of the difficulties that transit-oriented development (TOD) can encounter,” says an article in the December issue of New Urban News, an industry newsletter. (To read it, click on “Past Articles.”)

Some cautions: Don’t assume the whole development’s a failure because it’s had problems filling its 40,000 square feet of retail space. The vacant stores are slowly being filled, and the development has been successful in many other ways. And it’s simplistic to single out one factor alone to blame for its retail problems.

BUT – you knew a “but” was coming – here’s what Charlotte should pay attention to. “BART more or less mandated that the main commuter parking garage be built where it would create a short and direct route between commuters’ cars and the station,” says the article. That means transit riders who arrived by car had no incentive to walk past the retail space.

The design from the Scaleybark Partners puts some retail space directly between the parking lot and the rail station. The Bank of American design doesn’t. I hope City Council members, scheduled to choose a developer Feb. 12, look closely at whether the design will make retail success a big uphill struggle.

Oh, and one more thing. The Unity Council, the nonprofit community development corporation that sponsored Fruitvale Village, made some dumb moves. Said Unity Council’s Jeff Pace: “We turned away Starbucks twice.”

So much to say, so little time. So here are two quick hits, then news about an opportunity for East Charlotte’s international corridor, Central Avenue.

Ask and ye shall receive? Saw today that Duke Power will help pay to bury some power lines in Greenville, S.C. Why not Charlotte? Apparently Greenville asked and Charlotte didn’t. After a major 2005 ice storm, Greenville and Duke negotiated for a year. Note this line in the story: Duke Energy Carolinas President Ellen Ruff says Greenville and Durham were the only cities in Duke’s service area to push for overhead lines to be relocated. So now Duke’s starting a “pilot project” on cost-sharing with municipalities – but only in S.C.

Argh! Charlotte (and the rest of North Carolina) had a horrific ice storm in December 2002 that knocked out power for a week or more. During Hurricane Hugo in 1989 almost the whole city lost power, many for two weeks or more (including our house). After the 2002 ice storm the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission and City Council made a few noises about pushing Duke to bury power lines here. But what got buried was the idea, not the power lines.

More design discussions: Architect Manoj Kesavan says the new point8 online magazine is up and running. Its editorial team is made up of artists, designers, writers and enthusiasts. But, it says, “We believe that what you have to say is far more important than who you are.” The goal: “To promote creativity, critique and communication.”

East Charlotte: Local architects hope to work with Central Avenue’s international corridor to help business owners, property owners, residents and the larger community to “address the urban fabric and architectural issues that hinder the area’s development.” They want to help figure out how to make the area more walkable, more economically vibrant and help build an identifiable image.

(My quick two cents: Change the zoning ordinances that apply. The standard business zoning that much of the street carries allows, even requires, auto-oriented design. And you’re shocked when it gets built?)

The Charlotte chapter of the American Institute of Architects plans to spend the first quarter of 2007 studying the area, and meeting with residents, businesses and other interested groups. In late April, San Diego urban planner Teddy Cruz would facilitate a workshop on the area.

To hear more about ideas for the project, come to the Civic by Design forum 5:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13, at the Levine Museum of the New South uptown.

IKEA’s announcement last week that it’s building a store in Charlotte kicked off a frenzy not equaled since Nordy’s finally opted to come here. I’ve never been to an IKEA, so I’m not in a position to rave about their furniture, though I know lots of other people who do.

But a source at the city planning department says there’s a battle, of sorts, going on over the size of the signs IKEA wants. That’s why it’s requesting a very urban-type of zoning (MUDD-O for those of you who know the lingo). That “-O” is key. It stands for optional, and it means you can get permission for all kinds of things that, without the “-O,” you wouldn’t be allowed to do. Such as have very large signs and very tall signs.

In reality, “battle” isn’t the right word since it sounds as if the planners are going to buckle and allow IKEA its gigantic signs. “We have no leverage,” my source said. The building’s architecture is “not negotiable.” According to this source, IKEA’s negotiating stance was essentially “take it or leave it.”

I’ve never shopped at IKEA, so maybe it’s such shopping nirvana that it’s worth breaking all the rules for. It does have plenty of fans. But man, that is one ugly building. And at 345,000 square feet, it’s going to be one very huge, very ugly building – roughly twice the size of the 176,000-square-foot Wal-Mart supercenter to which Waxhaw just gave thumbs down. And did I mention that the building is ugly?

“It is not an attractive building,” said my planning source, who clearly hadn’t gotten the memo from on high to praise all things IKEA. (Or maybe said memo was indeed received. You’ll notice I’m not using the planner’s name.) “It’s a blue and yellow big box. Yeucch!”

It’s a lousy day for doing anything much beyond staying home and reading. (Wish I could do that!) So if any of you are lucky enough to be doing that, here are some things I’ve been squirreling away for a rainy (or freezing-rainy?) day. They’re links to interesting articles folks have sent over the past several months. So, if you’re interested:

– A Brookings Institution study concludes that CEO-led civic organizations have become less cohesive and risk losing their capacity for action. Charlotte’s one of the cities studied. The report includes, for example, a section titled “The Loss of the Hometown Bankers.” ‘Course, it’s the Charlotte banks that have helped create that situation elsewhere … Here’s a link.

– Here’s a link to an article in Metropolis magazine about the relationship between the type of places we live in and chronic health problems.

– And here’s one to an article about the role farmers markets can play in a city. If you’re a devotee of the Charlotte Regional Farmers market, I hope you know it’s open year round, and organic farmers such as Donnie Cline and Dean Mullis are there weekly, selling wintry veggies such as kale, turnips and radishes. In addition you can now buy pasture-raised pork and — sometimes beef and lamb — from farmers in the region.

Happy reading.

My post about REBIC brought this commentary from Lewis Guignard. It helps illustrate how interest groups in general, and REBIC in particular, shape public policy. And it raises a provocative point about representatives of interest groups, and the degree to which they should let those personal interests guide their input to the larger, citizen committees.

Guignard, a Libertarian, ran unsuccessfully for county commissioner in 2002 and 2004 and has been a member of Citizens for Effective Government, a low-tax interest group.

Please note, these are his opinions, not mine. Some of the people mentioned disagree with Guignard’s take on things.

From here on down is from Guignard:

Tim Morgan and REBIC – the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition lobbying group – are an example of how politics work in Charlotte/Mecklenburg. Some years ago the board of county commissioners created the Citizen’s Capital Budget Advisory Committee.

Originally the committee was to make recommendations to the county commissioners on capital budget projects, which include schools, courts, libraries, parks and land banking. Interested citizens apply for a limited number of positions. In the case of the CCBAC the majority of citizens are appointed by the BOCC, while two are chosen by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board.

Any citizen is qualified to serve. Employment is only considered a factor if a particular type knowledge is needed, so people with connections to advocacy groups are not disqualified. When I was appointed almost 9 years ago, REBIC had a member on the committee. When she resigned another REBIC member, Tim Morgan, was immediately appointed. You might say the REBIC seat changed people, because it may as well have been the same person. Through every committee meeting, you could be sure the only point of view would be what REBIC desired. An “individual” did not exist.

Since then other advocacy groups have worked for their members to be chosen. Are these members concerned about the county as a whole, or only their particular piece? For example, REBIC was very concerned in the late 1990s about the issue of setting aside land for open space. REBIC members at the time [not Morgan] worked hard to reduce the amount of “open space” included in the goals for the 1999 Land Banking bonds.

Two other organizations which have found it useful to have seats on the committee are FLAME, an organization formed in southwest Mecklenburg to advocate for more schools for the southwest, and FUME which does similar work in the north. Michael Murdock of FLAME and Rhonda Lennon of FUME received appointments to the CCBAC. Both sought CCBAC membership to further their advocacy for particular schools.

How appointments of people from advocacy groups affect the working of a committee is shown by a particular instance of the CCBAC. The CCBAC was between project proposals and was taking the time to work on a long-term construction schedule for CMS, a project which could have helped the entire county through some very trying times.

Instead of doing that, Mr. Murdock and Ms. Lennon with the help of others, including Morgan of REBIC, worked to subver the process, and made a recommendation supporting FLAME’s and FUME’s individual position on schools.

Later Mr. Murdock became the chair of the CCBAC, and late last year I had occasion to ask him about why he would subvert the process when the opportunity to help the whole county was available. His answer was: “I got my school didn’t I?”
(Murdock phoned this afternoon to say his memory of the discussion with Guignard differed. He says Guignard didn’t ask “Why did you subvert the process?” and that Murdock’s remark took place during a general discussion on election night about advocacy groups FUME and FLAME. The quote was right, Murdock says, but it was ripped from its context.)

Expand this thought process to the many involved in government, including REBIC, the various Chambers, and other advocacy groups and you will understand that our problem of government is that so many people use it to further their personal goals.

Uncle Dennis, an uptown denizen I run into occasionally at places such as the Reid’s wine bar, shares this link to a survey of uptown Charlotte residents.

The survey was sponsored by Charlotte Center City Partners, the Urban Institute at UNC Charlotte, and UNCC’s Center for Real Estate. Bill Graves in the UNCC Department of Geography and Earth Science prepared it.

A quick summary of its findings: Uptown Charlotte residents are younger, more affluent and better educated than Mecklenburg County residents as a whole. More of them moved uptown from Mecklenburg than from other places, and more moved in from the “outer suburbs” than the “inner suburbs.”

Urban amenities were a big draw. Parking for visitors is a big problem, as is the lack of retail. Crime wasn’t listed as a particular worry.

Does this ring true for you uptown dwellers? What about schools — are they a concern for you? And what, if anything, might make you non-uptown dwellers more interested in uptown?

Uncle Dennis, an uptown denizen I run into occasionally at places such as the Reid’s wine bar, shares this link to a survey of uptown Charlotte residents.

The survey was sponsored by Charlotte Center City Partners, the Urban Institute at UNC Charlotte, and UNCC’s Center for Real Estate. Bill Graves in the UNCC Department of Geography and Earth Science prepared it.

A quick summary of its findings: Uptown Charlotte residents are younger, more affluent and better educated than Mecklenburg County residents as a whole. More of them moved uptown from Mecklenburg than from other places, and more moved in from the “outer suburbs” than the “inner suburbs.”

Urban amenities were a big draw. Parking for visitors is a big problem, as is the lack of retail. Crime wasn’t listed as a particular worry.

Does this ring true for you uptown dwellers? What about schools — are they a concern for you? And what, if anything, might make you non-uptown dwellers more interested in uptown?

Turns out REBIC keeps a stuffed possum in its office, in honor of the frequent “Possum” awards it gets from my yearly Urbies column.

As those who read my Urban Outlook column know, every year I give out Urbies and Possum awards. The possum looks like this:

REBIC is the local developers’ lobby, a.k.a. the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition. It gets mentioned now and again, and so far it’s batting 1.000 in always being adorned with the dead marsupial. Our archives show they received their last possum on Oct. 30, 2005, when I wrote:

“REBIC: The local Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition lobbying group, like any of us, is entitled to present its views to elected officials. But REBIC’s views seem to outweigh other folks’. It has tried to weaken just about every environmental protection and open space preservation proposal to emerge from local government. In 1998 it even opposed sidewalk requirements as “too much of a good thing.” In 1999, Huntersville proposed a voluntary pilot project to save rural land. REBIC blasted that gnat with cannon fire. In a shamefully misleading tactic, its lobbyists got legislators to kill the idea by telling them it was an impact fee, which it wasn’t at all.”

REBIC, which used to concentrate on Charlotte-Mecklenburg, has branched out in recent years and now has staffers who also lobby in Union, Cabarrus, Gaston, and across the S.C. border in York, Lancaster and Chester counties. It was REBIC’s guy in S.C., Tim Morgan (brother of Charlotte Chamber chief Bob Morgan) who brought in the possum to REBIC offices and, to my delight, let me visit it and snap its portrait there.

Turns out REBIC keeps a stuffed possum in its office, in honor of the frequent “Possum” awards it gets from my yearly Urbies column.

As those who read my Urban Outlook column know, every year I give out Urbies and Possum awards. The possum looks like this:

REBIC is the local developers’ lobby, a.k.a. the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition. It gets mentioned now and again, and so far it’s batting 1.000 in always being adorned with the dead marsupial. Our archives show they received their last possum on Oct. 30, 2005, when I wrote:

“REBIC: The local Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition lobbying group, like any of us, is entitled to present its views to elected officials. But REBIC’s views seem to outweigh other folks’. It has tried to weaken just about every environmental protection and open space preservation proposal to emerge from local government. In 1998 it even opposed sidewalk requirements as “too much of a good thing.” In 1999, Huntersville proposed a voluntary pilot project to save rural land. REBIC blasted that gnat with cannon fire. In a shamefully misleading tactic, its lobbyists got legislators to kill the idea by telling them it was an impact fee, which it wasn’t at all.”

REBIC, which used to concentrate on Charlotte-Mecklenburg, has branched out in recent years and now has staffers who also lobby in Union, Cabarrus, Gaston, and across the S.C. border in York, Lancaster and Chester counties. It was REBIC’s guy in S.C., Tim Morgan (brother of Charlotte Chamber chief Bob Morgan) who brought in the possum to REBIC offices and, to my delight, let me visit it and snap its portrait there.