It’s not that easy being green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that

-Kermit the Frog

Bein’ green might not be that easy for Kemit, but for some development projects it seems all to easy “bein’ green.” In fact it seems easy to be Silver, Gold, or even Platinum, “Green,” or in this case LEED certified.

LEED certification takes into account a number of green practices and technologies. These might include the re-use of materials, utilizing renewable energy sources, the use of energy efficient windows and lighting, weatherization, grey water systems, and numerous other items all of which are a great step towards being green. But missing from LEED certification seems to be a key component of actually bein’ green.

Transportation.  A site can fail any true measure of bein’ “green” if it requires automobile use to access or is for the express purpose of serving the automobile.  Be it the emissions, heavy metals and toxins auto’s spread, oil consumption, storm water impacts due to land use demanded by automobile use, the automobile brings with it negative environmental impacts that need to be taken into account.

A not so green, “green” development is a planned “net-zero” sub division being developed in suburban Chicago. In fact this project, Prairie Ridge Estates, is being developed on farmland forty miles from Chicago. Starting with location, it will require automobile use simply to access the homes. Additionally, as a single-use, single-family subdivision it will require automobile use to get work, for grocery shopping, to access entertainment options, essentially to do any activity outside of the home it will encourage additional vehicular trips. Although the community is being billed as ‘net zero’ in regards to energy use, in truth that’s only if you leave out half of the equation.

Here in Milwaukee, the recently completed parking garage at The Brewery project received LEED Gold Certification, because it used LED lighting and recycled building debris allowing it to receive enough points to meet the standard. No question, it is good the project used these methods and incorporated energy efficient features, but the the purpose of a parking garage should disqualify, or at least severely handicap it, in its ability to receive LEED certification. The building’s primary use is to support, essentially encourage, automobile use, an inherently anti-green function. The LEED standards are a start and a step in the right direction, but it needs continual refinement and improvement if it wants to truly be green.

Nighttime rendering of The Moderne

Following a long-awaited loan guarantee approval from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), construction will soon begin on The Moderne. The $55.2 million tower, which will stand at the southwest corner of Old World Third Street and Juneau Avenue, will contain 203 apartments, 14 condominiums, 204 structured parking spaces (181 apartments, 23 condos), and 7,230 square-feet of first-floor retail.

The City of Milwaukee had previously approved $9.3 million in loans to finance the project, but they were conditional on the approval of a loan guarantee by HUD. The guarantee was expected to be approved in February, but an overwhelming number of applications received by HUD forced an approval slowdown. To gain approval from the Common Council for a loan from the city, developer Rick Barrett (no relation to the Mayor) agreed to increased levels of Business Enterprises (EBE) program participation (25%) and Residential Preferred Preference (RPP) program participation (30%), and a first-lien personal guarantee of $4.35 million.

The majority of the project is being financed by a $41.4 million loan from  Capmark Financial Group Inc and the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust.

The Moderne does not fall within the footprint of the former Park East Freeway, but does fall within the tax-incremental financing district setup after freeway demolition (TID 48). Apartment rents are projected to be $1.94 per square foot in 2013. Average planned sale price for the condos is projected at $939,000. Leasing for the retail space is projected to bring in around $22 per square feet.

The Moderne, designed by Rinka Chung Architecture, tower will stand tall over its surroundings at 30-stories, dwarfing the nearby Bradley Center, Aloft Hotel, and Full-screen4th and Highland Garage. Eventually, the development may not stand alone as the remaining Milwaukee County-owned Park East parcels are developed.

Related Links:

• The Moderne website
• City of Milwaukee Legistar file pertaining to city loans
• Moderne high-rise loan guarantee wins final OK, work to begin soon (August 27th, 2010)
• Activity at The Moderne Site (Jan 4th, 2010)
• The Moderne Gains Common Council Approval for City Loans (Nov 3rd, 2009)
• The Moderne Project Held for Special Committee Meeting (Oct 27th, 2009)
• The Moderne Likely to Receive Public Financing (Sep 15th, 2009)
• Aerial Site Photo (with orange shipping containers still in place)

Station Gateway Plaza

The preparation of the Downtown Plan Update has involved various public input sessions, countless hours of community and stakeholder input, resident surveys, the involvement of the business community, and the work of city staff. The process is still ongoing and the presentation before the City Plan Commission for approval was the next step in the process.

As previously reported the plan update spells out eight catalytic projects designed to increase density, improve connectivity throughout downtown, and create a sense of place. The eight catalytic projects, would as City of Milwaukee Planning and Development Manager Greg Patin, explained build on the catalytic projects from the 1999 plan.

Surprisingly, at the commission meeting there was some opposition. Pat O’Brien, President of the Milwaukee Development Corporation and the President of the M7, argued that the plan should focus on the remaining catalytic projects from the 1999 plan, that the plan should focus on demand generators, and it should prioritize catalytic projects. Vanessa Koster, City Planning Manager, responded to the critisim saying “We don’t prioritize catalytic projects” and indicated that this will allow the market to respond and drive the projects. She added that “we have many pearls downtown,” and that “this plan strings them all together.”

Broadway Connection

Wispark President Jerry Franke, spoke of a need to create a matrix to guide development, specifically to prioritize TIF use, and that the area laid out in the downtown plan was to far reaching.

Alderman Bauman spoke last saying that he was surprised about there being any controversy, stating that “this is a land use plan, this is not a statement of the City of Milwaukee TIF policy.” He added later that he was glad to hear that the M7 and the MDC are interested in demand generators in downtown Milwaukee. In fact he hoped to hear soon that the M7 has changed their position regarding UWM’s expansion in Wauwatosa, and that he looked forward to the subsequent article by Tom Daykin entitled “M7 calls for demand generators in downtown Milwaukee… like the Engineering School.”

Despite calls for the City of Milwaukee to set TIF policy within the land-use plan, the Downtown Plan Update moved forward with unanimous support from the City Plan Commission.

Chicago's newest piece of large-scale public art.

For a city that’s displayed to the world a giant bean, 25-foot tall American Gothic statue, and a massive Picasso statue, a three-story tall eyeball should really come as no surprise. Upon a viewer’s first impression the detail of the piece  seem almost overwhelming. The EYE appears quite realistic with red veins on all sides. From across the street, or when attempting to push the piece over, the EYE appears incredibly lifelike. Thankfully it does not blink.

Unveiled July 7th, the EYE was designed by Tony Tasset and fabricated in Sparta, Wisconsin. As is par for the course with public art, someone must dismiss it by claiming it’s barely art. In this case it’s urbanist author James Howard Kunstler, who has named it his Eyesore of the Month for August 2010. The EYE will keep a watch on State Street shoppers until October. After that it’s fate is unknown, but given Illinois’s track record it might be wise to use it to keep track of the Governor’s office.

Large pieces of public art like the EYE are a breath of fresh air in large cities. They’re often capable of evoking a sense of place on their own. When the right location is selected, a piece of public art redefines the space it occupies. In this case Pritzker Park, a fairly sizable pocket park within the Loop, has been transformed into a destination.

When it comes to large-scale public art, Chicago does it right. Big pieces of art, many of which invite controversy, encourage people by the thousands to go see them. Even if they’re critically-panned, Chicago’s public art installations create a sense of place and make you want to go see them.

Milwaukee has made some inroads on using public art. The controversial orange sculpture The Calling helps define the eastern edge of Wisconsin Avenue and serves as a gateway O’Donnell Park and Milwaukee Art Museum (which makes plenty of a statement on its own). Without the large sculpture, O’Donnell Park is nearly a surface parking lot, a massive piece of concrete. With the orange sunburst it’s at least a defined place, a mildly inviting pedestrian pass-through to the lakefront from downtown.

Coming in 2011 (and almost not at all), Janet Zweig’s Pedestrian Drama flip-sign animation kiosks coming to Milwaukee’s Wisconsin Avenue  will certainly make Wisconsin Avenue a bit more intriguing to walk down. The Milwaukee Riverwalk is adorned with jewelry and the Bronze Fonz (which despite criticism sees a steady stream of tourists).

Milwaukee would be wise to look to take advantage of large-scale public art with some of its urban parks. There are two well-located urban parks that would likely benefit the most, Cathedral Square and Pere Marquette.

Pere Marquette has the permanent gazebo, which functions well as a band shell and wedding photo opportunity spot. Beyond that though, the gazebo doesn’t draw many people into the park.

Cathedral Square has a great location, well-defined street wall surrounding it, and a layout that doesn’t make any sense at all based on park use. During the summer the park’s fountain is entirely covered by a stage for the well-attended Jazz in the Park. During the winter the fountain is turned off as the park is covered in snow and holiday lights. The holiday lights make the park a well-lit destination in the winter, but in the summer the park doesn’t encourage anyone to walk through it with the exception of one week. That one is Bastille Days, where MSOE’s miniature Eiffel Tower introduces a welcoming north anchor to the park and the roads are closed to traffic all around the park. Switching the stage location to the north end of the park would allow the fountain to return to summer operation, encourage more pedestrian activity, and open up the south end of the park for temporary art installations that invite more people into the area.

To take full advantage of public art, Milwaukee needs to start thinking bigger.

UWM

Recently, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Chancellor Carlos Santiago announced his resignation from UWM to become the Chief Executive Officer of the Hispanic College Fund in Washington, D.C. I imagine our long time readers would expect us to be dancing a jig or throwing quite the party at the possibility that his departure could derail the Wauwatosa expansion, but believe it or not, we’re disappointed he’s leaving UWM. Despite our long disagreement with Chancellor Santiago over the expansion in Wauwatosa, his vision of growth and research, as well as many of the initiatives put forward under his leadership are commendable, worthy, and should move forward.

During his time at UWM, the university has seen more development than under many of the previous administrations. The recent acquisition of the Columbia St Mary’s site literally expands UWM’s main campus, will alleviate some of the parking ‘problem’, could allow for more on-campus housing, and provides for more classroom space. UWM has also been pursuing the construction of new student housing on the East Side, which now will provide university housing for over a thousand students that previously had to be denied because of a bed shortage. The Kenilworth Square Apartments, RiverView Hall, and the soon to be open Cambridge Commons have all made UWM a bigger part of Milwaukee and the community, quite literally.

His vision of turning UWM into a first-rate research university is vital for UWM and for Milwaukee. This vision has lead directly to the creation the School of Public Health and the School of Freshwater Sciences, while also driving the desire to expand the Engineering School. In the short run, it has lead to formation of the Southeastern Wisconsin Energy Technology Research Center, which for the first time brings the colleges of engineering from UWM, MSOE, and Marquette together to collaborate on a significant research initiatives. These universities are already working together on cutting-edge research in areas such as wind turbines, Li-Ion Batteries, and CO2 recycling and sequestration via algae.

The School of Public Health will play a role in improving the health of Milwaukee’s inner-city population, while at the same time helping to revitalize downtown Milwaukee. The choice of locating the program at The Brewery will allow UWM to serve the needs of Milwaukee residents, while keeping the program  within a short bike ride or bus trip to the main campus.

A vastly expanded Engineering School is certainly a key part of helping UWM raise its level of research and will allow it to better collaborate with other institutions and industry partners. Our issue is how and where this expansion should occur, not that it shouldn’t occur. It simply would serve Milwaukee and our region better to build on relationships with MSOE and Marquette as that would create a strong engineering core within the region, while building a stronger urban core. Further, this alignment would allow UWM to stake out more of a niche, possibly within advanced manufacturing, energy technology, or possibly nanotechnology, rather than becoming one of hundreds of schools chasing the biotech dream. That said, the goal of increasing the role, size, and scope of the Engineering School is a laudable one that needs to be successful.

Finally, the proposed School of Freshwater Sciences is truly visionary. The School of Freshwater Sciences has a chance to put Milwaukee back on the map as a world leader. This school is a key part of the M7 Water Council’s goals, which despite detractors claims, might be an area where UWM and Milwaukee could differentiate themselves from their peers. The Water Council is already spurring collaboration between UWM and Marquette, and has received funding by area companies including Badger Meter Inc. and A.O. Smith Corp. Although the idea of splitting the school in to two facilities isn’t ideal, the Reed Street Yards location has already gained interest from American Micro Detection Systems Inc., a water industry company, to possibly locate a facility with up to 300 jobs near the school.

Chancellor Santiago brought about many great changes and set a grand vision for UWM. We can only hope that his efforts to establish the School of Freshwater Sciences, his most game-changing initiative, continue to move forward in his absence.

Drawing of the proposed riverwalk segment

The riverwalk segment for the proposed Beerline B Apartments will go before the Milwaukee City Plan Commission on August 23rd. General Capital Group is bringing the riverwalk segment forward for approval before the entire project. The 140-unit project, which recently was awarded $2,345,310 in WHEDA tax credits for 119 low-income units, will occupy the corner of Commerce St and Pleasant St. The site was one-time the location of the proposed Pleasant Street Market anchored around a grocery store, which appeared to halt after the anchor tenant signed a deal on the other side of the river.

The Beerline B Apartments riverwalk segment is the missing piece that will connect all of the Beerline B neighborhood with Schlitz Park and the rest of Westown, East Town, and the Historic Third Ward via the Milwaukee Riverwalk.

Project Files

• Project Narrative (PDF)
• Project Photos (PDF)
• Project Drawings (PDF)
• Beerline TIF Update (12/31/2009)

The rise of obesity in this country largely follows peoples increased use of machines for everyday tasks. This is common sense, less manual labor burns less calories. So it is no question that walking is a large part of the physical activity we get every day. In traditionally designed and urban neighborhoods walking is a key mode of transportation. Wither it’s the 10 min walk to work, the transit stop or walking a block or two to get that gallon of milk. So let’s do a little comparison to see, everything else being equal, how many calories a typical suburbanite will burn vs. a typical urban resident.

Both get up in morning make breakfast and do the normal routine, so let’s say all else is equal till they walk out the door. The urbanite walks to work, let’s say 10 min or a 1/3 of a mile, stops gets coffee, a muffin or whatever. The suburbanite gets into their car and drives to work stopping to get their coffee and pastry from a drive through. Now, let’s say both have two meetings during the day. The suburbanite who works in a suburban office park has no choice but to drive to both meetings, since walking around the office park is sure suicide with no sidewalks and 12 foot wide roads that encourage people travel at 40-50mph. The urbanite has to drive to one meeting at a suburban office park and one meeting is in the urban area so they take public transit, the stops are 2 blocks on either sides of the trip, for a total of 8 blocks. Let’s say those blocks are around 250 feet long, that’s 2000 feet or a little more than a 1/3 of a mile. Lastly, the trip home adds another 1/3 of a mile of walking to the urbanites physical activity for the day. This does not include any trips to the grocery store or other errands like dry cleaning that can be handled with a short walk.

Due to the compact built environment; the urbanite walks an extra “unconscious” mile every weekday. I call it an unconscious because when a person lives in a traditionally designed or urban neighborhood they walk without even thinking about it, it’s built in.

All in all, what does this do for the urban resident? The calories that are burned depend on the weight of the person and the speed of walking. I weight 165, so let’s say 160 and my favorite number is 3, so let’s say 3mph. With these parameters a person would burn an extra 85 calories. Not much right, well given the same weight and running at 6mph, you would need to run ¾ of a mile to burn those same calories.

Remember all of the estimations were rounded down. So by the time a person walks to their dry cleaner or to the store they could be saving themselves from having to run a mile everyday in order to stay healthy.

Guest post by: Matthew Trussoni

Matthew Trussoni, PhD, PE, RA is currently an Assistant Professor in and an alumnus of the Milwaukee School of Engineering’s Architectural Engineering Department. After graduating MSOE he attended the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. where he completed a dual master’s degrees program in the School of Architecture in 2005 earning the degrees of Master of Architecture and Master of Urban Design. In 2009 he earned his Ph.D. in civil (structural) engineering in the Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Department. His professional experience has encompassed both architecture and engineering as he is a Registered Architect and Professional Engineer in the State of Florida.

Working together

Every once in a while one finds a concept that is simple on the surface, but conveys a set of complex ideas. One such term is “urban husbandry” found in the writings of a contemporary urbanist Roberta Brandes Gratz. In Milwaukee, urban husbandry is not just a theory; it is a key component in the approach in the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative.

In her work, Gratz calls for a small scale and incremental approach to neighborhood revitalization that she calls “urban husbandry.” In contrast to the belief in large scale redevelopment projects that have characterized many approaches to neighborhood revitalization, urban husbandry offers a different belief– a belief that places can be improved piece-by-piece, slowly, and organically. Urban husbandry recognizes the inherent value in building around what’s already there and promotes the care, management, and preservation of urban neighborhoods. Gratz demonstrates the advantage of low-cost, modest initiatives – actions that help rebuild neighborhoods, reconnect neighbors, and bring about innovative changes that are within people’s reach.

Working in the garden

For the last several years the groups participating in the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative have been taking urban husbandry seriously in a set of middle market neighborhoods in Milwaukee – places that have inherent strengths but are also vulnerable to negative change.

A key pillar in the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative’s approach in Milwaukee is the small neighborhood project – a prime example of urban husbandry in action. These very local efforts, also called pride projects, are designed to engage neighbors in simple, doable projects that not only make their blocks more livable, but also help bring neighbors together as partners in the care and feeling of those blocks. These projects have included such things as landscaping private and public spaces, alley lighting projects, house lighting projects, coordinated house numbers, the use of house flags, developing small community gardens – all efforts that slowly, but steadily send a message to neighbors and outsiders that the neighborhood is “under control” and that people not only live there but are proud of that fact.

A workday in the garden

A key to urban husbandry is, according to Enderis Park community organizer Bruce Cameron, finding out “what wants to happen” – believing that through a process of engaging neighbors ideas and energies will bubble up….the challenge is to find ways to help those ideas and energies take root.

Unlike many cities that are focused on the “big fix”, Milwaukee city government actually supports these small scale projects both in the neighborhoods participating in the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative as well as other neighborhoods. These projects don’t cost a lot of money – but they do have a substantial impact on not only the physical environment but the social environment as well – as neighbors get to know each other through work on a common task.

For more information on the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative in Milwaukee contact Mike Schubert at mfscds@aol.com

Guest Post By: Michael Schubert

Michael Schubert is currently a consultant to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. He has over thirty five years of experience in community development, working for the last 18 years as a consultant to municipal governments, nonprofits, and foundations. He also served as the Commissioner of the City of Chicago Department of Housing during the first term of Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Tigerbite

Today, starting at 11 am and running until 3 pm, in Cathedral Square, the East Town Association is holding what is hopefully the first of many Food Cart Fridays.

At today’s event you’ll find hot dogs, brats, pizza, egg rolls (yes egg rolls have arrived on Milwaukee’s street food scene), pitas, crepes, and more.  The biggest challenge might just be determining what to get for lunch.

For many years there have been taco trucks and hot dog stands in Milwaukee, but recently new street vendors have been popping up, with more to come.  Although Milwaukee hasn’t reached the heights of street food, like in Portland or L.A., there is a clear trend, and events like these are helping to grow the movement, which can only add to Milwaukee’s street life.

Some of the vendors you’ll see at today’s event include: Tigerbite, George’s Big Dogs, Streetza Pizza, Pita Brothers, and Satellite Crepes.

“First life, then spaces, then buildings—the other way around never works.” – Urban Architect Jan Gehl

Placemaking IS: Function before form; collaborative; visionary; flexible; focused on creating destinations; context-sensitive; culturally aware

Placemaking is NOT: Imposed from above; design-driven; overly accommodating of the car; homogenous; static; gentrification; privatization; a cost-benefit analysis; monolithic development

Source: http://streetswiki.wikispaces.com/Placemaking