Halfway to Everywhere

[Nazerac]

I don't know if any of you have read "Halfway to Everywhere: A Portrait of America's First-Tier Suburbs", it's an Urban Land Institute book about first tier suburbs like Berwyn, Evanston, and Oak Park.  I ordered it this week from Amazon, hopefully it will make me a more visionary Berwynite and board member.  I actually like the "Berwyn" Halfway to Everywhere" more than "At the center of life" ... at the center of life is a stretch, halfway to everywhere is a true statement.


Here's a presentation about the subject (go to end to see the ULI's recommendations):
http://www.raleighnc.gov/publications/Planning/Plans_in_Process/Southwest_Update_Open_House_Presentation.pdf


http://www.amazon.com/Halfway-Everywhere-Portrait-Americas-First-Tier/dp/0874209013


FROM: http://www.uli.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Bookstore&CONTENTID=64270&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm
America's Inner-Ring Suburbs on the Brink: Halfway to Everywhere Looks at Divergent Paths Leading to Rebirth or Ruin
WASHINGTON (July 10, 2003) — America's inner-ring suburbs—once hubs of economic and social activity—have been "shortchanged" in the recent urban renaissance, because they have received none of the benefits of the revitalization occurring in downtowns, nor have they experienced the growth of the outlying areas, according to Halfway to Everywhere: A Portrait of America's First-Tier Suburbs, published by the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

Authored by ULI Senior Resident Fellow William H. Hudnut, III, Halfway to Everywhere tracks the plight of dozens of first-ring suburbs nationwide, from Escondido, Calif. to Lincoln Heights, Ohio, to Malden, Mass. While each community has a unique set of challenges and opportunities, these close-in areas are typically characterized by an aging population, aging housing stock, aging infrastructure, and a dire need for reinvestment.

"They (the first-ring suburbs) are suffering from a pass-through mentality. There is a great need for restorative development, and a need to restore human and social capital in these areas," says Hudnut, a widely acclaimed urban planning expert. "Now at a fork in the road, these metropolitan pivot points can continue to decline—and encourage problems of congestion, high taxes, crime and grime in the suburban neighborhoods where so many moved to escape the cities. Or, they can reinvent themselves and become stable communities that are economically competitive, socially vital and fiscally sound."

Gaining sufficient support for economic development in these areas is difficult, because they do not tend to attract the young professionals or empty nesters seeking the excitement of a downtown lifestyle, nor do they attract families seeking green space found in the outer rim. However, despite the obstacles, close-in areas have potential due to their ethnic diversity, resulting in market niche opportunities; and because they are generally accessible to public transit, Hudnut notes. Moreover, there are "signs of hope" resulting from optimistic local officials using "urban acupuncture," Hudnut's description for targeted intervention to create positive change.

"What may be missed as we analyze the numbers on our computer screens and the colors on our maps are the resiliency of the human spirit and the capacity of these communities for self-renewal and reinvention," Hudnut says. "I saw too many examples of positive actions intended to staunch the flood of decline to offer a doom-and-gloom forecast for these places where so many good people—dedicated, innovative, energetic—live and move and have their being."

In Halfway to Everywhere, Hudnut offers several insights on America's close-in communities:

Generalizations about the first tier are precarious. "One typology does not fit all. These are complex systems that resist simple classification. These communities have metamorphosed over the decades since they were built, so assumptions about what they are like that are based on mental pictures from yesterday no longer fit. Metropolitan America has come to resemble a patchwork quilt, no patch being exactly like the others."
The first-tier communities are metropolitan pivot points. "First-tier suburbs exist in a regional context. They are not isolated entities. They are bundled together, with their neighbors on both sides, so what affects one affects all. The first tier relates to the edge and the center, both. The model has changed from heliocentric, where all heads bend toward the sun in the center, to polycentric, where hearts and feet point out from the center to the far horizons."
Unquestionably, the first-tier suburbs are under tremendous stress. "Their populations are growing older, and becoming much more diverse, even to the point in some cases of possibly re-segregating; their tax bases are either shrinking or barely holding their own; their infrastructure is deteriorating; their homes cry out for reinvestment; their commercial outlets are faltering; their households are growing smaller in size and income; their resources to deal with change and decline are limited; their jobs are moving elsewhere and they find themselves isolated from nodes of economic growth; and their human and social capital is frequently wanting. Problems of decline, traditionally associated with inner cities, have appeared, and most first-tier suburbs are struggling to hold their own against these adverse trends."
First-tier suburbs are blessed with strategic locations; they are halfway to everywhere. "The convenience and accessibility that derive from their location is a key strength upon which the first tier can build. Indeed, location may be the salvation of the first tier. It will be a major drawing card as the population rises and people become weary of long commutes. If first-tier suburbs can leverage their central regional locations, they could experience remarkable renewal."
Resiliency and determination of spirit are significant assets that abound in the first tier. "The determination to travel the pathway to new life manifests itself in practically all these first-tier suburbs. Those who plot the life cycle of cities and compare it to that of human beings miss an important point: cities, unlike people who ultimately pass away, have the potential for renewing themselves. They can be reborn."
Halfway to Everywhere is free to reporters and editors. To obtain a complimentary copy, call Trisha Riggs at 202-624-7086, or E-mail: priggs@uli.org. It is available for $29.95 to ULI members; for non-members, $34.95. Copies are available for purchase at ULI's online bookstore at www.bookstore.uli.org; use order number H07.

The following communities are included in Halfway to Everywhere:

Illinois
Morton Grove
Park Forest
Berwyn
Oak Park
Chicago Heights
Harvey
East St. Louis
Evanston




Table from: http://www.uli.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Bookstore&template=/Ecommerce/FileDisplay.cfm&file=ACF1F4B.xls&ProductID=863

median                                                 income                                    median   families &   median   median   median                                    family   unrelated   household   household   household                                    income   individuals   income   income   income                                      1970   1970   1980   1990   2000                                 Berwyn, Illinois                  local median household income   $11,836   $10,018   $17,992   $31,326   $43,833   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   99%   101%   87%   86%   85%                 Chicago Heights, Illinois                  local median household income   $11,153   $9,849   $18,585   $27,551   $36,958   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   93%   100%   90%   76%   72%                 Evanston, Illinois                  local median household income   $13,932   $8,958   $21,715   $41,115   $56,335   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   117%   91%   105%   113%   109%                                 Ford Heights, Illinois                  local median household income   na   na   na   $14,032   $17,500   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   na   na   na   39%   34%                 Forest Park, Illinois                  local median household income   $11,941   $9,603   $17,995   $30,572   $44,103   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   100%   97%   87%   84%   85%                 Harvey, Illinois                  local median household income   $11,035   $9,819   $18,033   $23,201   $31,958   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   92%   99%   87%   64%   62%                 Morton Grove, Illinois                  local median household income   $16,488   $15,558   $29,952   $47,808   $63,511   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   138%   157%   145%   131%   123%                 Oak Park, Illinois                  local median household income   $13,823   $10,845   $20,601   $40,453   $59,183   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   116%   110%   99%   111%   115%                 Park Forest, Illinois                  local median household income   $13,951   $13,401   $23,072   $36,995   $47,579   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   117%   136%   111%   102%   92%                                 Riverdale, Illinois                  local median household income   $12,520   $11,454   $20,028   $29,092   $38,321   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   105%   116%   97%   80%   74%                 Riverside, Illinois                  local median household income   $16,389   $13,913   $28,485   $51,881   $64,931   metro median household income   $11,931   $9,889   $20,726   $36,362   $51,680   local as percentage of metro   137%   141%   137%   143%   126%                                 Note 1: The Census Bureau did not publish median household income data for 1970.   Median family income                 and median income of families and unrelated individuals are both presented.   In general, median household                income would have been closer to the latter.                                Note 2: The definitions of many metropolitan areas have changed from decade to decade, usually by adding                newly urbanizing counties.   No effort has been made to conform metropolitan areas to a standard geography                 except in the case of estimating median incomes for the Nassau-Suffolk NY PMSA for 1970 (italicized).                                 Note 3: Where data could not be verified from published census reports, "na" (not available) was entered.