FYI, -K-
A Nobel in our midst When Elinor Ostrom, 76, known for her work on the management of common resources, became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize<http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/>in economics, the Lincoln Institute took special notice. Ostrom, a political scientist at Indiana University who showed how common resources – forests, fisheries, oilfields, grazing lands and irrigation systems – can be managed successfully by the people who use them, rather than by governments or private companies, was a keynote speaker in the 2008 Land Policy Conference on property rights. Her chapter in the ensuing volume Property Rights and Land Policies, "Design Principles of Robust Property Rights Institutions: What Have We Learned?"<http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/PubDetail.aspx?pubid=1576>reviews the design principles for successful self-organized common property institutions, and evaluates how those principles can be applied in more than two-dozen case studies. The Lincoln Institute then supported three associates of Ostrom's - Michael Cox, Gwen Arnold, and Sergio Villamayor Tomas - who extended the survey of the eight principles' applicability in dozens more cases. The research is reported in the working paper "Design Principles are not Blue Prints, but are They Robust? A Meta-analysis of 112 Studies" <http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/PubDetail.aspx?pubid=1707>. Ostrom is also helping organize a future gathering, Evolution of Property Rights Related to Land and Natural Resources, set for September 20-21, 2010 in Cambridge. The conference will bring together prominent scholars in economics, political science, history, and law, to focus on how various property systems are applied to and affect the use of scarce natural resources. Professor Douglass C. North, professor at Washington University in St. Louis and the co-recipient of the 1993 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, will speak at the pre-conference dinner, and New York University professor Thrainn Eggertsson will deliver a keynote address on issues related to property rights institutions and the environment. On Tue, Nov 24, 2009 at 03:00, Anthony Flint <[email protected]>wrote: > [image: At Lincoln House] > To ensure the delivery of lincolninst.edu mail to your inbox, please add > [email protected] to your address book. If you can't view this > email, or *to view this issue online*, click > here<http://www.lincolninst.edu/news/atlincolnhouse.asp> > . > > ------------------------------ > > > 11/24/2009 > > > In This Issue: > > New partners > Boomers and housing > Chicken and bee zoning > Regional growth up north > The aftermath of Kelo > A Nobel in our midst > Past Issues: > > Oct 2009 <http://www.lincolninst.edu/news/atlincolnhouse.asp?f=102009> > Sep 2009 <http://www.lincolninst.edu/news/atlincolnhouse.asp?f=092009> > Aug 2009 <http://www.lincolninst.edu/news/atlincolnhouse.asp?f=082009> > ------------------------------ > > New partners > > [image: HUD Building] A federal sustainability agenda is truly taking > shape in Washington, as agencies that for years have not talked to each > other - HUD, EPA, and DOT - are integrating their efforts. Two senior > officials delivered a clear message at the New England Smart Growth > Leadership Forum Nov. 20 in Boston: large regions and local governments > should be gearing up for this new partnership, to take advantage of new > funding and serve as models for what the Obama administration seeks to > accomplish. > "We want to change the conversation, change the rules, and work with > the willing," said John W. Frece, director of EPA's Smart Growth program, > the under-the-radar team during the Bush administration that will soon morph > into the Office of Sustainable Communities, folding in the EPA's fledgling > green building program. "We realize we can no longer afford single-outcome > actions. We need to align spending and policy with national goals." > The office continues to provide technical assistance on urban form, > zoning reform, and greenhouse gas impacts of development, and publications > such as Smart Growth for Coastal and Waterfront > Communities<http://www.epa.gov/dced/sg-coastal.html>. > EPA also wants to develop sustainability criteria for the SRF clean water > revolving fund. "What's different is we have HUD and DOT sitting at the > table with us," Frece said, as the agencies re-write rules for funding > programs and regulations for a greater emphasis on cities and > sustainability, expanding transportation choices, promoting affordable > housing, supporting existing communities, and minimizing programs working at > cross-purposes. It's a major change for Washington, he said, recalling how > he was asked to review a speech by HUD secretary Shaun Donovan - itself an > inter-agency novelty. "We couldn't improve on it," Frece said. > Jim Lopez, assistant to HUD deputy secretary Ron Sims, agreed it was an > extraordinary time. Although "there are ideas just flying around," two HUD > funding programs - the $150 million sustainable communities initiative, > which includes money for regional planning as well as local code reform, and > $100 million energy innovation fund - are in the works. "We have an aim, > fire, ready approach, to get the ideas out there. We want to model what > works, and get those models to scale." Another big opportunity for > metropolitan regions are the TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating > Economic Recovery) grants, jointly being reviewed by DOT, EPA, and HUD. > although there have been $60 billion in proposed projects for a $1.5 billion > fund set aside in the stimulus package. "It's a bit more like buying a > lottery ticket," said consultant Mark Stout, who addressed the forum on the > uses of stimulus money for smart growth. (Most of the funds went to > repairing or building new highway capacity). Several applications involve > transit-oriented development, in Maryland, Miami, New York, and Utah, and > initially for bus rapid transit along Blue Hill Avenue in Boston until the > application was pulled due to neighborhood > opposition<http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/11/20/state_scraps_plan_to_seek_147_million_in_stimulus_money_for_bus_line/>. > > Aaron Gornstein, executive director of the Citizens Housing and > Planning Association, led a wrap-up session at the forum to explore ways the > New England region, metropolitan planning organizations, and major cities > could better coordinate to respond to the new opportunities in Washington. > Meanwhile, the coordination at the federal level may continue to > expand. Looking ahead, the U.S. Department of Agriculture wants to join the > partnership, and would bring billions for rural development. "The first step > is to talk to each other. It's the least you would expect from your > government," said Frece. Though many top decision-makers already knew each > other working in smart growth before coming to Washington, "it's complicated > - we have different rules, and different cultures. We need to > institutionalize this." > > Boomers and housing > > The crystal balls are out on the housing market, and Dowell > Myers<http://www-rcf.usc.edu/%7Edowell/>sees a dark age ahead. The big > problem is all the housing stock owned by > aging baby boomers, says Myers, professor at the University of Southern > California School of Policy, Planning, and Development, and not enough > homebuyers to soak up the supply once they try to sell in vast numbers. A > saving grace would be immigrants, but tightened policies on immigration are > diminishing their role. > As those born between 1946 and 1964 move into retirement, the "pig > moving through the python" will utterly change the ratio of seniors to > working people, with profound implications for the economy, the workforce, > tax policy, Social Security, Medicare, and the housing market. "The volume > of homes that are going to be releasing is enormous," he says, between now > and 2050. "We need to bulk up the future generation of homebuyers," by > investing in education, particularly for neglected minority populations, and > recognizing the economic power of the foreign-born, whose homeownership > rates continue to grow. "The window of opportunity was at the end of the > Bush administration," says Myers. His book on the subject is *Immigrants > and Boomers: Forging a New Social Contract for the Future of America*. > For the near term, housing prices are rebounding slightly in the > "market clearing" process that has followed the bursting of the bubble that > prompted the 2008 economic meltdown, says Karl "Chip" Case, economics > professor at Wellesley College, and co-founder of the Case-Shiller > Index<http://www.standardandpoors.com/indices/sp-case-shiller-home-price-indices/en/us/?indexId=spusa-cashpidff--p-us---->. > Prices have fallen 30 percent nationally over the last four years, and > "sooner or later, that's what's going to bring people back." The federal > government is doing its part, buying $1.25 trillion in mortgages, extending > the tax credit, keeping the federal funds rate near zero. "Housing remains a > favored investment. It only takes a few optimists to move the market. We are > getting back to the price income ratios we had in 2000," Case says. > Unemployment – 10.2 percent nationally and 16 million people out of work – > remains a drag, however. California shows signs of life, prompting Case to > remove the state from "FCAZN" – Florida, California, Arizona, and Nevada, > which led the nation in steep 50 percent housing price declines. (He now > includes Georgia in that group, creating the new acronym "FANG.") Looking to > the future, with the astonishing run-up in housing prices since the 80s > behind us, Case agrees with Myers that "the big issue is what the baby > boomers are going to do." > Myers spoke at the gathering of Big City Planning Directors Nov. 15-17. > Case addressed the New England Smart Growth Leadership Forum Nov. 20. > > Chicken and bee zoning > > Like other cities, notably Detroit, confronted with rampant home > foreclosures and vacant parcels, Cleveland is not willing to let urban land > lie fallow. In the 77-square-mile area within city limits, there are > currently 18,000 vacant lots totaling 3,500 acres. While the primary goal is > neighborhood redevelopment – including an emphasis on arts and entertainment > and building on anchor institutions such as the Cleveland Clinic and > universities - the city has also launched several initiatives to try to > enhance urban form despite dwindling population and stalled private-sector > activity. Among them: stabilizing vacant lots with urban gardens and native > plantings, demolition of structures while maintaining foundations to allow > the construction of greenhouses, allowing sideyard expansion, and using > vacant lots for geo-thermal wells to heat neighboring structures. But > perhaps the most interesting effort is "chicken and bee" zoning – > dramatically reduced setback requirements for coops and hives on empty > parcels. The city is considering going even further, relaxing rules for > raising roosters, turkeys, geese, goats, pigs, and sheep, and possibly > including new agricultural overlay districts for more intensive urban > farming. Robert N. Brown, director of the Cleveland City Planning > Commission, said that zoning would not be changed to accommodate processing > or slaughtering, but that urban farming was seen as an appropriate use of > the vacant land for now. He made a presentation on the efforts at the annual > convening of city planning directors from the nation's 30 largest cities > sponsored by the Lincoln Institute, the American Planning Association, and > Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. > > Regional growth up north > > Not that long ago, a regional growth plan for the Greater Toronto area > known as the "Golden Horsehoe" wasn't something too many people were excited > about. Local governments from 110 municipalities were wary, developers even > more so, and environmental advocates were still focused on land > conservation. Brad Graham, secretary in the Ministry of Energy and > Infrastructure in the Ontario government, isn't sure exactly when things > turned around, but homebuilders may have led the way, realizing that > intensification – the alluring Canadian term for greater density – was > warranted in the 12,500 square-mile region, expected to grow from to 8.4 to > over 12 million people. Stakeholders realized "they can't wish away the > population growth, and that it's better to plan for it," Graham said at the > Nov. 2 Lincoln Lecture now available on video > here<http://www.lincolninst.edu/news/lectures.asp> > . > The Places to Grow plan, which Graham likes to describe as > "pro-neighborhood and pro-community," includes an emphasis on infill > redevelopment, revitalizing some two-dozen downtowns and major town centers, > "intensification corridors" along transit, and walkable, mixed-use standards > for greenfield development. Local compliance is rewarded with major > infrastructure investments, primarily transportation, but also help with the > integration of what Graham calls "community infrastructure" such as > hospitals and medical centers. "We wanted to raise the bar significantly, > but make sure it was doable," he said. > Graham, an economist who has served in Ontario ministries of municipal > affairs and housing, health, and finance, was recently awarded the 2010 > Ontario Fellowship at the University of Toronto School of Public Policy and > Governance, where his teaching and research will focus on growth and urban > planning, sustainability and the importance of regions in new economic > conditions. > > The aftermath of Kelo > > The decision by Pfizer to abandon facilities in New > London<http://www.courant.com/business/hc-pfizer1110.artnov10,0,5205001.story>– > part of the redevelopment plans that led to the Supreme Court's landmark > Kelo decision in 2005, affirming the use of eminent domain for economic > development projects – has stirred the > debate<http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/12/a-turning-point-for-eminent-domain/>anew > on the use of eminent domain. The departure of Pfizer, which is > relocating to nearby Groton, seems to confirm the frailty of big plans that > require takings for major land assembly. Property rights defenders such as > the Institute for Justice point out that 43 states have passed so-called > anti-Kelo laws, restricting the use of eminent domain for economic > development projects. > But Harvey Jacobs, professor in the Department of Urban and Regional > Planning University of Wisconsin-Madison, recently completed research for > the Lincoln Institute that takes a closer look at the passage of these laws, > and found that the majority are largely symbolic. "The issue is not the > number of these laws, but their impact," he says. "When presented with the > choice of severely restricting the options for local governments to promote > the public interest it is clear that state legislatures lean towards the > benefit of the many over the burden on the few." > The research, co-authored by Ellen Bassett of Portland State > University,will be published soon as a working > paper<http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/default.aspx>and posted at > www.lincolninst.edu. > > A Nobel in our midst > > When Elinor Ostrom, 76, known for her work on the management of common > resources, became the first woman to win a Nobel > Prize<http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/>in economics, the Lincoln Institute > took special notice. Ostrom, a political > scientist at Indiana University who showed how common resources – forests, > fisheries, oilfields, grazing lands and irrigation systems – can be managed > successfully by the people who use them, rather than by governments or > private companies, was a keynote speaker in the 2008 Land Policy Conference > on property rights. Her chapter in the ensuing volume Property Rights and > Land Policies, "Design Principles of Robust Property Rights Institutions: > What Have We > Learned?"<http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/PubDetail.aspx?pubid=1576>reviews > the design principles for successful self-organized common property > institutions, and evaluates how those principles can be applied in more than > two-dozen case studies. The Lincoln Institute then supported three > associates of Ostrom's - Michael Cox, Gwen Arnold, and Sergio Villamayor > Tomas - who extended the survey of the eight principles' applicability in > dozens more cases. The research is reported in the working paper "Design > Principles are not Blue Prints, but are They Robust? A Meta-analysis of 112 > Studies" <http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/PubDetail.aspx?pubid=1707>. > Ostrom is also helping organize a future gathering, Evolution of Property > Rights Related to Land and Natural Resources, set for September 20-21, 2010 > in Cambridge. The conference will bring together prominent scholars in > economics, political science, history, and law, to focus on how various > property systems are applied to and affect the use of scarce natural > resources. Professor Douglass C. North, professor at Washington University > in St. Louis and the co-recipient of the 1993 Nobel Memorial Prize in > Economic Sciences, will speak at the pre-conference dinner, and New York > University professor Thrainn Eggertsson will deliver a keynote address on > issues related to property rights institutions and the environment. > > Follow us on Twitter at landpolicy <http://twitter.com/landpolicy>. > > — ANTHONY FLINT, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy > > ------------------------------ > > Unsubscribe<[email protected]?subject=unsubscribe+from+at+lincoln+house+newsletter>from > this list. > >
