[PRCo] Re: P-G on the role of transit in growing neighborhoods

[Gray, George]

Part of the problem may be that the Pittsburgh metropolitan area is
shrinking in population, rather than growing.  So, there is no net
growth to attract to transit lines.  Here in Atlanta, a metropolitan
area which has certainly grown a lot, there has been a modest amount of
commercial and high-density residential development around several
transit stations.  In nearly all cases, the developers are careful to
provide parking as part of the development.  Typically, they wrap the
commercial/residential space around the parking deck, so that the
exterior appearance doesn't show the cars.  This has mostly taken place
in areas where people would want to live anyway; our equivalents of
Homewood have very little development around those stations.

-----Original Message-----
From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
[mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org] On Behalf Of
Derrick J Brashear
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 10:48 AM
To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
Subject: [PRCo] P-G on the role of transit in growing neighborhoods

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09012/941226-147.stm?cmpid=news.xml

It's obvious from their examples that "build it and they will come"
isn't 
true.

Now, if I worked downtown I'd have been in Beechview or Dormont when I 
bought a house; Dormont has fared better. Is it because West Liberty is 
right there, instead of being isolated? Probably. It may be that 
solely-transit-served areas are better suited for bedroom communities,
and 
that's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean, for instance, you 
either need to travel to shop or attract e.g. a small grocery/food
store.

I have no answers but I wish I'd known they were here last week.