Comments on: CBD Zoning, no longer at ZUC

By: Ken O

Ken O — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 01:33:05 +0000

Here are maps with “context”

By: David

David — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:14:15 +0000

keep on restricting things and you’ll get less business. Instead of figuring all the things that people can’t build downtown, how about allowing anything, and then figuring out if it doesn’t “work.” I’d bet we’d get more jobs and people downtown if the city council laid off for once.

By: John Klein

John Klein — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 02:36:59 +0000

We’ve been begging the City for models to prove their tower-base design at Lakeside Drive really works, i.e., that 170′ towers on 55′ bases will preserve views while allowing tall buildings. Of course, the City claims that it lacks funding to create models. I suspect the City knows that models will prove that the tower-base design doesn’t work – for either protecting views or for providing real development opportunities. The City wins but everyone else loses.

By: V Smoothe

V Smoothe — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:22:59 +0000

Re: Chip. I just don’t have that kind of time.

By: Max Allstadt

Max Allstadt — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 14:20:24 +0000

While your at it, tomorrow you might consider adding in a point-by-point correction of every factual error in Chip Johnson’s column today. Ugh. No pressure on him to get it right, because nobody cares about this topic, I guess.

I’m still baffled that they keep presenting this map with no context. How is anyone supposed to evaluate what’s going on on the outskirts of the CBD map… when the map shows the end of the world at the end of the CBD. There is land beyond the boundaries, with the exception of the lake to the east.

There is land south of the CBD, with buildings and zoning that needs to relate in some way to the CBD. There is land to the west, that also needs to relate. The CBD is repeatedly shown as an island. Great. If we don’t figure out how to tie it in to it’s surroundings, it will stay isolated, and any growth crated downtown will have a hard time spreading out.

Look at the north boundary. 23rd street. This map dead ends there, which is insane. 23rd street is skinny and tiny. It is in no way a reasonable boundary. Push it north to 27th. Or at least show us how the tower that’s entitled on the south side of 23rd between Telegraph and Valley will relate to the one and two story buildings to the north. Crazy.

So, yeah. Message: CBD is not an island. Stop drawing it that way. Stop thinking about it that way.