Tag: economic

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Up To Speed

What would a trillion fewer driving miles mean?

What would a trillion fewer driving miles mean?.

Despite a stronger economy and more people living in the United States, Americans drove a billion fewer miles in July 2012 than a decade early. The trend of fewer people driving, and existing drivers driving less started in 2004 and has yet to let up. Should trends continue, Americans may be driving a trillion fewer miles annually by 2025. More from Streetsblog:

There are good reasons to believe the current slowdown in driving may persist. A report by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group in April showed that youth are leading the trend toward less driving. While the National Household Travel Survey only allows comparison of driving in 2001 and 2009, it shows that Americans aged 16 to 34 reduced their driving miles by 23 percent between those years. Meanwhile, youth are increasing their use of public transit, biking and walking faster than the general population. Changing patterns in the use of information technology and changing preferences for urban living may be major factors in these shifts.

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Up To Speed

Will Philly learn from Cincinnati’s urban casino experience?

Will Philly learn from Cincinnati’s urban casino experience?.

Like Cincinnati, Philadelphia is struggling with what to do with a proposed casino in its center city. Concerns include potential crime, urban design, historical context, and a worry about such a large area of the urban environment being owned and controlled by one entity. More from Next American City:

Blatstein is the latest high-profile developer to throw his hat into the ring, with the 120,000-square-foot “Provence Casino” plan that would transform the former Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News complex. The former offices would house a 125-room hotel and table games, while former loading docks and a parking area would be expanded into additional casino space and a massive commercial area, topped with an extravagant French-themed rooftop “village” and indoor botanical garden. According to Tower, the project will create 5,300 permanent positions for casino workers, in addition to thousands of temporary construction jobs.

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Up To Speed

In Ohio, Columbus and Cincinnati exceed national average for college graduates

In Ohio, Columbus and Cincinnati exceed national average for college graduates.

As the economy of the United States continues to become more knowledge-based, it is important to have a well-educated work force. The new data, released by the U.S. Census Bureau, shows that Columbus (32.9%) and Cincinnati (29.6%) come in above the national average (28.5%) when it comes to the percent of individuals who are 25 or older with a bachelor’s degree. More from The Business Journals:

The U.S. Census Bureau, which keeps track of everybody’s progress, has just issued its latest update on educational attainment. These are its estimates for the 206.5 million Americans who were 25 or older as of last year. 177.4 million (85.9 percent) hold high school diplomas, and 58.9 million (28.5 percent) also hold bachelor’s degrees…It’s common to find areas where at least 90 percent of all adults have high school diplomas.

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Development News

$450,000 donation from Duke Energy to advance construction at Smale Riverfront Park

Thanks to a $450,000 donation from Duke Energy, the Cincinnati Park Board will be able to move forward more quickly with the development of what was previously called the Main Street Garden at the Smale Riverfront Park.

The area is located immediately south of Great American Ball Park, and is now called the Duke Energy Garden. The narrow piece of park space is expected to be completed by spring 2013, and will connect the Smale Riverfront Park with additional riverfront parkland to the east (Sawyer Point, Bicentennial Commons, Theordore M. Berry International Friendship Park).


The Duke Energy Garden will include 12 “family-sized” porch swings, walking paths, and will help connect the Smale Riverfront Park with additional riverfront parks to the east. Rendering provided.

According to Cincinnati Park Board officials, this connection will be further established with the completion of the Ohio River Trail to Paddlewheel Park in fall 2013.

“The Cincinnati riverfront is more than just an entryway into our community,” Julie Janson, President of Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky, stated at a Monday morning press conference. “It serves as the front porch to Ohio. That’s why Duke Energy, through our foundation, is happy to be able to support the creation of the Duke Energy Garden in the new Smale Riverfront Park.”

According to park officials, the Duke Energy Garden will include 87 trees, thousands of smaller plantings, walking paths, a 150-foot granite seat wall, and 12 “family-sized” porch swings.

The porch swings will be suspended from “undulating” pergolas that will also offer park-users a bit of shade and protection from the elements while enjoying the swings, which have long been anticipated at the park due to their popularity elsewhere throughout the country.


Three additional phases of work are planned to follow the completion of the Duke Energy Garden at Smale Riverfront Park. Image provided.

“Duke Energy’s commitment to the vitality of this region has been demonstrated again and again by the company’s substantial investments in economic development, education, environmental and energy efficiency efforts throughout the region,” said Willie F. Carden, Jr., Director of Cincinnati Parks. “The establishment of the Duke Energy Garden in Smale Riverfront Park is another such gift that will provide a stunning new public greenspace in Greater Cincinnati’s grand new front yard.”

The majority of phase one work at the Smale Riverfront Park was completed in May 2012, but several features of phase one have yet to be funded or built, in addition to future phases of park construction to the west. Some of those features include a transient boat dock, playgrounds, additional gardens and tree groves, a carousel, and more promenades and fountains connecting the central riverfront park with the Ohio River.

Three additional phases of construction work will take place following the completion of the Duke Energy Garden, and it is expected that once fully built out that Smale Riverfront Park will attract approximately 1.1 million visitors annually.

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Up To Speed

What happens when urban farms get too big?

What happens when urban farms get too big?.

Urban farms are all the rage nowadays. Cities across North America have been incorporating them into the cityscape to fill the void left behind by shuttered industry, or abandoned housing. While the benefits seem to have been fully vetted, is there a risk to allowing urban farms to grow too large? More from Grist:

More than a few environmentalists have argued that urban farms must remain small or risk suburbanizing the city. One of the most prominent is Kaid Benfield, a smart-growth guru with the Natural Resources Defense Council. Benfield worries that urban farming, if practiced on a large scale, will dilute the walkability and density that defines cities.

“I support the growing of food in cities, and have even done it myself,” Benfield cautions. But it should be done in ways that support urbanism and not displace it…I’m not sure we’re talking about a city any more if we’re going to have fields of 20 acres and more.” By seeding large farms in the city, he says, “we risk locking in long-term environmental problems in terms of not having a healthy urban core. Central cities are starting to revive.”

One problem is that most of the best para-urban land (or land just outside cities) — which was once seen as ideal for growing food without huge transportation costs — has already been swallowed up by suburban development.