What are the chances that zoning could be changed to allow for that missing middle housing? Also, I see these courtyard buildings as a place to have cafes on the main level, to invite the public in.
Great question... in the case of Southern California the chances are good because, as Scott said these are beloved housing types, and one simply needs to point to them and say there's no logical reason we can't have more of them, especially when you drop the ridiculous parking requirements... so yeah, parking policy reform needs to happen first. Yes, absolutely on the cafe idea. Cheers! John
I moved from Austin to West LA just three months ago, and living here has made me so resentful of the city council. I'm always thinking "how could they have let this happen to this beautiful land". Scott is right about everything, there's basically no public space here-- none. With a couple exceptions there are no city squares, no plazas, no central parks. This city is so deprived of public spaces that kids actually hang out in the parking lots. The housing shortage is so extreme that even with population going down (because people can't afford to live here), the rent prices continue to go up. How can the city council stand by while there are still parking minimums and exclusionary zoning? It's absolutely nuts. There's a light rail station just under a mile from me which I'm very thankful for. However, the intersection right before the train station is a nightmare for pedestrians. A 100ft+ wide road that you have to cross while cars are going 35 mph next to you, and right before you get to the train station, there are massive driveways that intrude over the sidewalk so you feel like you could get hit at any moment. This is where pedestrian friendly design would be the most beneficial, but instead it feels like you're risking your life trying to do the right thing by taking the train. Thank you, Active Towns, for showing me Scott! I want Scott to win in city council. I want Scott to be mayor. Scott please reach more people with your message because there are more people here that are just like me who don't know about you yet. I'm sure it's difficult to campaign in a city with no public spaces.
Thanks so much for watching and for adding to the conversation Marius. You are welcome, I'm so delighted that Josh got us connected and you are quite right of course... they literally paved over paradise. As we talked about it in the conversation - there needs to be a serious effort to reclaim the public realm (the streets) and return them to people-oriented places. As was illustrated in his short video, so much wasted space has been paved over for no reason whatsoever and could be repurposed for more positive outcomes, including pocket parks and green scapes - and yes, that includes addressing the excess amount of parking supply. I'll be sure that Scott sees this. All the best. Cheers! John
I'm not in favour of the Bicycle Box ( 10: 26 ) as a bicycle user or a car user since in the example given in the vid, the bicycle has to filter between the cars to get to the front, meanwhile the lights pop to green and cars starting to move with you still sandwiched inbetween. Yes there is a nice green bit of road for the bicycle that looks fairly wide (which is lovely), but we all have seen drivers in a wrong lane and at the last moment trying to switch lanes, stopped diagonal on both lanes. I think it would be better to have the green bicycle road on the right side of the road, yes you could still have dangerous situations with right turning cars, but at least the cars are all on one side of you instead of all around. You might need to re-engineer how bicycles go left though...
I'm with you on the bike box... I see this primarily as a holdover from an older outdated mentality towards painted bike lane infrastructure - installing authentic protected and separated cycle paths and protected intersections are the ultimate goals. LA is not there yet. But who knows, if Scott gets elected... Thanks for watching and the comments. Cheers! John
A bicycle box can be a good solution, but only when there is ONE car lane. And of course a stop line so cars cannot advance into it. Furthermore there should be a separate bicycle light that turns green before cars get green, so bicycles can go ahead of the cars in all three directions. When traffic is moving you still have a problem with right turning cars, and with bicycles who want to turn left. A completely protected bicycle lane and crossings 'dutch style' is always better.
Really? I've never heard that before. Just did a search and couldn't find anything on it. Do you have a reference that this is the case or is this your personal opinion? Just curious. Thanks! John
@@Cl0ckcl0ck Gotcha! Yeah, so a declarative statement might seem less "clickbaity" in a bad way. I was planning on updating the thumbnail anyways as it is performing (in click-through rate) about a full percentage point below my average Thanks! Learning as I go. Hehe. 😅Cheers! John
@@ActiveTowns Don't get sucked down the TikTok-hole. Just be clear in the thumb and if the audience is there then it will come. It will always be small because it's talking about possible urban planning. If you want the masses gather some kids and puppies and go explore the spring flowers which you never experience from a car and encounter a cat/bear/nice person. Mention the nice sidewalks, the insanity of grass yards, stinky loud cars and such. Probably more likes and views but a big loss to the backbone.
