Rethink College Park

Image courtesy of the Diamondback

The Diamondback reported today on the continued ownership consolidation of the Knox Boxes just south of campus. A quick search through Maryland’s Real Property database (complete with purchase prices) reveals that Knox Village Partners LLC and Knox Box Realty LLC have acquired over half of 52 dilapidated units in just one year. The Diamondback traced these two companies to one owner, Janet Firth, who stated her intention is only to provide “high quality student housing” by renovating the existing buildings. She cited thousands of dollars in renovations to the buildings as proof of this, but failed to mention that much of that money went towards meeting city fire codes (indeed student David Ellis died in a fire on one of her properties last year).

The Knox Box Area is a slum, plain and simple, and it will be redeveloped. It’s zoned for mixed use and will likely become very high density student housing. We’ll be following this important area closely over the coming months and bringing you schematics of proposed buildings that an architecture masters student has been working on for his thesis.

Update:

We would like to point out two oversights of this post. The first, and most important, is that we mentioned the death of David Ellis without mentioning that in his case, even the existing fire codes would not have saved his life.  The fire did, however, lead to stricter fire code enforcement in College Park and exposed flaws in the system which are still being addressed today (at Santa Fe, for instance).

Furthermore, it should be noted that Mrs. Firth led the way in retrofitting all her basement Knox Boxes with larger windows and housed her tenants in a local hotel during the retrofit. Though Mrs. Firth was Mr. Ellis’s landlord, we did not mean to suggest that Mrs. Firth was a negligent landlord.

Second, we are very excited about the potential redevelopment of this area and see the continued consolidation of these properties as a positive step toward that end.  We are glad to see a local developer taking charge to build what will come to benefit everyone.

At September’s East Campus forum, we reiterated that the campus and surrounding road network could not possibly handle the traffic if yet more students brought their cars. The administrators nodded with approval, but then we noted that the incentives to bringing a car to campus are indeed very strong as there are no grocery stores within walking distance. No, this is not the consequence of a suburban location, as one can easily live without a car in downtown Bethesda or Silver Spring.

Enter Flexcar. Years after the car-sharing service came to Washington, we at the university finally got a taste of its convenience on campus. Though the $9/hour rental rate may seem steep, it’s actually quite sensible to the occasional driver considering the following benefits:

• There are no mileage limitations.
• Flexcar pays for gas.
• Membership includes insurance.
• One needn’t bother with buying a parking permit.
• It’s the Flexcar, not the student’s private vehicle, that is subject to P.G.’s astronomical car theft rate.

Although it’s somewhat taboo in America’s rental car industry to rent to any driver under 25 (and absolutely taboo to rent to any driver under 21), Flexcar is even willing to rent to adults under 21, so long as they meet several requirements and pay a refundable $250 deposit. (Adults 21 and older need not pay a deposit.)

On the occasions we’ve used Flexcar, we were very pleased and the only problems we’ve faced were during booking last-minute trips in the afternoon, when it often seems that every car on campus is taken for several hours straight. We’d like to see more Flexcars on campus and perhaps the university could use a tiny fraction of the parking fine revenues to sweeten the deal for the Seattle-based Flexcar. After all, it’s the university, and not Flexcar, that has the stronger interest in improving the quality of campus life.

The District, by the way, uses specially-painted parking spaces and stylish signs (above) to increase public awareness of its car-sharing programs.

Another residential highrise similar in size and design to the University View is planned for a Route One site located just north of campus. The Northgate project won final approval from city and county officials in June, and the 17-story project will contain 204 condominium units and is estimated to cost $68 million to construct. We hear the project was subject to lengthy debate by the City Council over the size, design, and amount of parking provided. Under approved plans the building will be connected by a trail to the pedestrian bridge located behind the University View. Other specific details are included in the Planning Board’s resolution (PDF) approving the detailed site plan. Click on the images below for a closer look at what is planned.

We’re happy to announce that Rethink College Park is sponsoring a Community Housing Forum with the undergraduate and graduate student governments (both organizations have representatives on the East Campus Steering Commitee). SGA president Emma Simson has been working closely with us over the last several weeks to make the event a reality. The goal is to open up a wider community dialogue on student housing in and around the university. This topic is critically important given the ongoing East Campus Initiative and several private projects in the area.

Here’s a blurb from some of our materials:

The University’s continued transition from a commuter campus to a residential campus has put enormous pressure on the housing stock in College Park. Despite the recent openings of South Campus Commons, University Courtyards, University View and University Towers there are still about 875 students on UMD’s Department of Resident Life waitlist. Market research shows a latent demand for over 2700 University-affiliated beds near campus units including, but not limited to, housing units that are amenable to graduate students. Continually low rental vacancy rates (2.8%) in College Park and associated high rental prices have lead to student encroachment into traditionally family-oriented neighborhoods; causing conflict and discontent among city residents. Students fear that rent stabilization policies, enacted by the City Council last year, will only exacerbate the student housing shortage.

We’ve invited several area developers (including all developers who have expressed interest in East Campus) along with city and university officials so students can share their ideas on the type, cost, size and quality of new housing.

The event will be held on October 30th in the Atrium of the Stamp Student Union at 5:30pm. We hope you decide to join in!

> Students should RSVP on Facebook
> Developers, university, and government officials should RSVP to Rethink College Park Editor David Daddio
> Download the Event Flyer (PDF)

We wanted to note a couple of upcoming events. First, today is one of the DOTS regular Transportation Forum for the campus community. The forum will be held at 1:00 p.m. in the Thurgood Marshall Room in the student union.

Second, we received a notice of the inaugural meeting of a new Real Estate Development Club that is being organized in connection with the School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation’s new masters in real estate development. Although based in the new program the notice says the club is “open and invites participation from all undergraduate and graduate programs” and points out the East Campus Redevelopment Initiative “is one of the most exciting opportunities for students to be engaged in development close at hand.” Furthermore, the club will: “… be bringing entrepreneurs from the development community to campus, arranging for field trips to sites being developed, as well as provide a student advisory role to the new Master’s degree program in Real Estate Development.” The kick-off meeting will be 6:30 p.m. on Monday, October 30 in the Architecture Building Auditorium.

We’ve always noticed something peculiar about the benches that line the ΟΔΚ fountain on McKeldin Mall. Though they are indeed benches, we have spotted more people reclining on them than sitting up straight. We doubt the bench designers intended this.

Had these benches been installed in a less serene and open location (beside a street, for instance) they would not have become the favorite of blanket-poor sunbathers. Still, the low, backless design and quiet placement make these benches among the better designed elements of public streetscape we’ve ever seen.

When the university puts the finishing touches on the East Campus development, we know that a few chic, well-placed benches will enhance the intended urban atmosphere.

Below: These new benches—chairs, actually—on the District side of Friendship Heights recently caught our eye.

Student Government leaders lead university and government officials around campus last night during their annual safety walk. They considered lighting, camera coverage, and overgrown shrubbery that could aid criminals (all topics that we explored briefly a couple weeks ago). Officials repeatedly swayed the conversation on crime to one of its root causes - drinking. A brief jaunt through CP’s crime alerts will confirm their arguments in case you have any reservations about them.

Still, we think a more vibrant and dynamic College Park, with new economic and residential diversity, can vastly alleviate the dire crime situation we find ourselves in. More activity, more people, more eyes on the street can, does, and will stop crime. A police officer on every corner is not a feasible nor a desireable goal.

We’ll defer to the Diamondback opinion staff’s brilliant editorial on “Fixing College Park’s afflictions” through development. Here’s our favorite part:

Until the city and developers can get on the same page, College Park will continue to hemorrhage opportunity with each passing day. And as a result, the city will continue to suffer from heightened levels of crime, underappreciated businesses and worrisome housing conditions - all negative effects of a downtown nowhere near its potential.

Do you bike in College Park? Have ideas about what could be done to make the city more bike-friendly? Local bike advocates will discuss that topic, as well as brainstorm ways to “get more people on their bikes and … encourage local governments to recognize that bikers need more lanes, more racks, and better protection laws” at a free, “no-commitment” bike activism workshop on campus this Wednesday.

The event will feature Dave Snyder from the group the Thunderhead Alliance, and is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. this Wednesday evening in the in the Outdoor Rec Center in the back of the Campus Recreation Center Building. The Thunderhead Alliance is a 127-organization large alliance of groups dedicated to “create, strengthen and unite state and local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations.” The event was organized by Eitan Freedenberg, a Maryland student and program assistant for the Washington Area Bicyclist Association. Eitan described the interest at his table during the First Look Fair as “phenomenal” in an email promoting the event.

In Prince George’s County, the Bicycle and Trails Advisory Group collaborates with a variety of County agencies on bicycle trails and routes, and this county website on the Anacostia Tributary Trail System contains on and off-road bike routes. What would you change to make the campus and city more bike friendly?