Here's an introductory Q&A that will explain why you should attend
the upcoming Smart Growth Forum being hosted by the League of Women
Voters. The forum is from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday in the second-floor
Community Room at the Glendale Fire Station, 421 Oak St., Glendale.
Q: Why are there no trees in all these new housing developments
that we see popping up around our towns?
A: Because building codes require enough parking for all the
tenants, and builders are digging below the new buildings for
subterranean parking; subterranean parking makes the existence of
trees impossible because there is no place for their roots.
Q: Why is it important to save trees?
A: Because we breathe the oxygen that trees create -- no trees, no
oxygen. Famed architectural philosopher Richard Neutra also believed
that humans have the need for life among trees encoded in their DNA.
Q: Why don't developers put in above-ground parking, so we can
keep the trees and have real park-like settings in these new
developments instead of a few potted palms?
A: Good question.
Q: We have some wonderful old homes and buildings in Glendale and
Burbank. Will they all have to be torn down for new developments?
A: Historic preservation and reuse of old buildings is a big part
of Smart Growth. Like what Pasadena did with all the old buildings in
Old Town. Yes, according to the L.A. Conservancy and Glendale
Historical Society, our cities need to take serious looks at historic
preservation as we grow, too.
Q: I'm still thinking about that underground parking and tree
issue. Is above-ground parking more expensive than subterranean
parking?
A: Not by a long shot. Subterranean parking probably costs
developers 10 times as much.
Q: Gasoline is up to $2.50 a gallon. How will people afford to
commute any longer?
A: Good question. About time we took a serious look at mass
transportation options, huh? How about "multi-use" work and housing
and shopping developments, so people don't have to drive such long
distances?
Q: I'm still wondering about those trees. If above-ground parking
is less expensive than underground parking, and if above-ground
parking would allow us to save and plant trees, why aren't more
developers putting in above-ground parking in these new developments?
A: I've heard quite a few answers to that question when
questioning city staffs and urban developers. Some told me it is
because citizens don't want the added story that would be necessary
in new buildings in order to accommodate above-ground parking. An
