Cities hate parking decks because parking is a lousy use of downtown land. Hulking decks suck the life out of streets. Plus, a retail complex, hotel or office tower generates much more in property taxes than a parking deck. The street-killing aspect is so recognized these days that some cities require developers to put retail on the ground level of their parking structures. That helps a little, but it would be far better for urban vitality if those upper floors were filled with office workers or hotel guests. That's where Minneapolis' government seems headed with its interest in selling eight of its municipally owned downtown parking decks. The city would just as soon be out of the parking-deck business, and selling these decks could bring welcome cash to the government. But the big reason is the hope that a developer would build something desirable atop, around or near one of the decks. If light rail continues growing in the Minneapolis- St. Paul area, there may be less demand for parking in the future and more interest in redevelopment. In which case, those parking decks could be worth a lot more as structures for people than for cars.
URBAN STUDIES
Close observers of colleges and cities know that, in the past decade or so, the two have rediscovered one another. Well, the romance of town and gown has reached a milestone: A major state university plans to demolish and rebuild its host city's downtown so it's more attractive to students and residents alike. It's the University of Connecticut, whose host community is Storrs. Storrs' population is 11,000, most of whom are students. Nobody attends UConn to experience a classic college town along the lines of Charlottesville, Virginia, Ann Arbor, Michigan, or Lawrence, Kansas. That's because it isn't one. So the university and the larger town of Mansfield, of which Storrs is a part, agreed it was in their mutual interest to create a more desirable setting. The idea is to knock down most of the buildings in Storrs' 49-acre commercial center and create a New Urbanist downtown, with condos, apartments, stores, restaurants and community facilities. Only 15 of the 49 acres will have buildings, the New York Times reported; the rest will be a made-from-scratch town square and other green space. Why would Mansfield agree to such an extreme makeover? Because what appeals to students will also appeal to others, the developer says.
GIVING COUNTRY THE BOOT
In mid-August, just after a Keith Urban song finished on Los Angeles' KZLA, country fans heard what to them was a tragic sound, a song by the hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas. The station had changed formats to one its owners thought would appeal more to Hispanic and other minority women. This change was significant because KZLA was the last country-music station left in the biggest market for country-music sales in the nation. It's not just L.A. that's suddenly without a station playing songs by Kenny Chesney, Faith Hill and Trisha Yearwood. There are no country stations left in a number of major metro areas, including New York and San Francisco. Changing demographics is at the heart of it, especially the rapid increase in Latinos. But technology plays a role, as well. White music lovers are far more likely than minority listeners to have iPods or satellite radio, so they have other ways of getting their Rascal Flatts fix. The result is that stations are chasing a shrinking pool of listeners who still tune in to them. Latinos are one of those markets.
