Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Evaluation Of An Electric Bike Pilot Project At Three Employment Campuses In Portland, Oregon, Nicholas Kobel

PSU Transportation Seminars

Electric bicycles are growing more popular every year, but little research yet exists on how they might play a role in our transportation systems. Much of the literature on biking for transportation focuses on the standard bicycle and infrastructure to support it, less so on the vehicle itself. This project evaluates an electric bicycle program at three Kaiser Permanente campuses in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area and examines participants' impressions of e-bikes.

Results support the hypothesis that e-bikes allow for a broader participation in cycling and for existing cyclists to go to more places.

Utilizing High Resolution Bus Gps Data To Visualize And Identify Congestion Hot-Spots In Urban Arterials, Nicholas B. Stoll

PSU Transportation Seminars

The research uses high resolution bus data to examine sources of delay on urban arterials. A set of tools were created to help visualize trends in bus behavior and movement, which allowed for larger traffic trends to be visualized along urban corridors and urban streets. By using buses as probes and examining aggregated bus behavior, contoured speed plots were used to understand the behavior of roadways outside the zone of influence of bus stops. These speed plots can be utilized to discover trends and travel patterns with only a few days’ worth of data. Congestion and speed variation can be …

Nonprofit Management, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Nonprofit management has emerged as an important adjunct and/or subfield of public administration, largely due to the increasing use of contracted services by public agencies. In the course of this development, the meaning of nonprofit for public administration has been transformed. This article was first prepared for a PAR-affiliated website and a somewhat different version was subsequently published as a book chapter in the source cited below.

Assessing Travel Plans For Residential Developments, Geoff Rose

PSU Transportation Seminars

A ‘travel plan’ is a travel demand management strategy that contains a package of site-specific measures designed to manage car use and encourage the use of more sustainable transport modes. Much of the existing literature on travel plans focuses on their application in workplaces and schools. Travel plans can be required for new residential developments as part of the land use planning and approvals process. However, there is limited understanding of the extent to which they have influenced travel behaviour. This presentation focuses on the assessment of travel plans developed for new residential apartment developments in Melbourne, Australia. Consideration is …

Managing User Delay With A Focus On Pedestrian Operations, Andrew Kading

PSU Transportation Seminars

Across the U.S, walking trips are increasing. However, pedestrians still face significantly higher delays than motor vehicles at signalized intersections due to traditional signal timing practices of prioritizing vehicular movements. This study explores pedestrian delay reduction methods via development of a pedestrian priority algorithm that selects an operational plan favorable to pedestrian service, provided a user defined volume threshold has been met for the major street. This algorithm, along with several operational scenarios, were analyzed with VISSIM using Software-In-The-Loop (SITL) simulation to determine the impact these strategies have on user delays. One of the operational scenarios examined was that of …

A Decision Model For Recommending Which Building Occupants Should Move Where During Fire Emergencies, Norman E. Groner

Publications and Research

This paper describes a decision model for managing the movement of building occupants during fire emergencies. Currently available guidance from standard practice, egress modeling, codes and the re-search literature, is too general to provide much help to persons charged with the responsibility of where groups of occupants should be located given a fire scenario. The occupant movement decision model described in the paper uses three basic yes–no questions to divide building occupants into groups during a fire emergency. For any particular group, the decision model recommends one of two basic actions:(1) people remain where they are already located; or, (2) …

The Importance Of Housing, Accessibility, And Transport Characteristic Ratings On Stated Neighborhood Preference, Kristina Marie Currans

PSU Transportation Seminars

Travel demand models commonly lack the ability to understand how changing residential preferences influence future housing, land use, and transportation policies. As communities struggle to address social challenges related to increased economic uncertainty, transportation and land use planning have become increasingly centered on assumptions concerning the market for residential environments and travel choices. In response, an added importance has been placed on the development of toolkits capable of providing robust and flexible models to aid in understanding how differing assumptions contribute to a set of planning scenarios and how future residential location decisions may be made.

In this study, we …

An Activity-Related Land Use Mix Construct And Its Connection To Pedestrian Travel, Steven R. Gehrke

PSU Transportation Seminars

Land use mix is a central smart growth principle connected to active transportation. This presentation describes the indicators of local land use mixing and their association with pedestrian travel in Oregon’s Willamette River Valley. It argues that land use mix is a multidimensional construct reflected by the complementarity, composition, and configuration of land use types, which is positively linked to walk mode choice and home-based trip frequency. Findings from this study underline the conceptual and empirical benefit of analyzing this transportation-land use interaction with a landscape pattern measure of activity-related composition and spatial configuration.

The presentation for this seminar was …

Development And Quality Of Life In Cities, Nate Peach, Luke Petach

Faculty Publications - College of Business

Articulating the goals of economic development and defining quality of life has drawn the attention of influential thinkers from Socrates to Sen. Attempts to quantify and compare economies as they pertain to these concepts have largely focused on the macroeconomy. In this study, the Metropolitan Development Index is created to measure development and quality of life in large, urban areas in the United States. The researchers then test the sensitivity of city rankings to the data used in constructing the index. These tests indicate that the index is a substantive conception of development and quality of life. Additionally, the index …

No. 22: The Return Of Food: Poverty And Urban Food Security In Zimbabwe After The Crisis, Godfrey Tawodzera, Liam Riley, Jonathan Crush

African Food Security Urban Network

The nadir of Zimbabwe’s political and economic crisis in 2008 coincided with the implementation of a baseline household food security survey in Harare by AFSUN. This survey found that households in lowincome urban areas in Zimbabwe’s capital were far worse off in terms of all the food insecurity and poverty indicators than households in the other 10 Southern African cities surveyed by AFSUN. The central question addressed in this report is whether food security in Zimbabwe’s urban centres has improved. AFSUN conducted a follow-up survey in 2012 that allows for direct longitudinal comparisons of continuity and change. The status of …

Green Buildings: Lease Structure, Productivity, And Regional Economic Impacts, Eun Kyu Lee

ETD Archive

In an effort to apply the sustainability movement to the built environment, sustainable construction has gained substantial strength and momentum in global society. A growing body of literature reveals the positive effects of sustainable, or green, buildings in terms of real estate market premiums, energy cost savings, employee productivity, and regional economic growth. In this context, my dissertation examines three research topics pertaining to sustainable buildings, and does so in three separate chapters.

The first study discusses the effect of lease structure on the tenant’s willingness to pay for energy-efficient building features, and compares the tenant’s stated willingness to pay …

Cleveland Street Connection: A Transit Oriented Development Plan, Ursp 761 (Studio I), Aidan Quirke, Crystal Castleberry, Elizabeth Greenfield, Haley Angel, Joseph Costello, Jonah Lampkin, Lauren Cross, Lois Milone, Michal Voscek, Michaela Martin, Mina Monavarian, Tyler Walter

Urban and Regional Studies and Planning Reports

The City of Richmond requested a plan that will inform the creation of a vibrant walkable community within a quarter mile of the Cleveland Street Pulse Station. The plan will focus on creating a cohesive, yet unique, station design that will draw together two neighborhoods: the Museum District and Scotts Addition, with Broad Street acting as the binding element. The Cleveland Street Connection will provide a vision for future development and infill in the area. The goals of the plan are to develop a walkable environment, create a distinctive Broad Street corridor, and provide a clear set of standards to …

No. 24: Mapping The Invisible: The Informal Food Economy Of Cape Town, South Africa, Jane Battersby, Maya Marshak, Ncedo Mngqibisa

African Food Security Urban Network

The informal food retail sector, which is diverse in terms of products traded as well as business models utilized, is an important component of urban food systems and plays a vital role in ensuring access to food by the urban poor. Yet, policy frameworks both to address food security and to govern the informal sector neglect informal retail in the food system and, as a result, the sector is poorly understood. This report attempts to identify the characteristics of the sector that impact on its ability to address the food needs of the neighbourhoods in which the businesses are located. …

The Cost Of Poverty: The Perpetuating Cycle Of Concentrated Poverty In New Jersey Cities • A Comprehensive Budgetary Analysis Of Four Urban New Jersey Municipalities, John S. Watson Institute For Public Policy Of Thomas Edison State University, New Jersey Urban Mayors Association, The Anti-Poverty Network Of New Jersey, Fund For New Jersey

Urban Mayors Policy Center

This report examines the problem of concentrated poverty in the State of New Jersey. Both the individual and the long-term economic consequences of concentrated poverty are well- documented in social science research. The report adds to that knowledge by examining the practical, budgetary consequences faced by urban centers that are characterized by high poverty levels. The report focuses on four cities, which are represented in the New Jersey Urban Mayors Association (NJUMA) — Bridgeton, Passaic, Perth Amboy, and Trenton. While these regions vary considerably, they all share one important fact: their poverty rates are double or triple the New Jersey …

What Is The Impetus To Move? Amenity-Rich Residential Clubs And Retirement Housing Aspirations Of The Soon-To-Be Old, Tris Kee

Faculty of Design & Environment (THEi)

Hong Kong’s population is aging rapidly, yet the city is still struggling to provide an adequate housing supply for its soon-to-be old cohort. By examining the needs and aspirations of the soon-to-be old population through the theoretical frameworks for elderly housing and elderly migration, the relationship between amenity-rich residential clubs and retirement housing aspirations of future retirees become clear. This paper finds that the soon-to-be old cohort is aspired to better medical, leisure, and community facilities in their residential vicinities when considering their retirement living environment, underlining the appeal of amenity-rich residential clubs; however, most of the soon-to-old old cohort …

Periodic Atlas Of The Of The Metroscape: Warming Up The City - Mapping The Hottest (Literally) Neighborhoods Of Portland, Vivek Shandas, Jackson Voelkel

Metroscape

Vivek Shandas and Jackson Voelkel show us how urban head varies by characteristics of a neighborhood's built and natural environment. The Atlas reminds us to be aware of the potential impact on those most likely to suffer ill effects from the heat.

Estimates Of Population Age Groups (Ages Under 18 Yrs., 18-64 Yrs., And 65 Yrs. And Over) For Oregon And Its Counties, July 1, 2015, Risa Proehl, Portland State University. Population Research Center

Oregon Population Estimates and Reports

Estimates of Population Age Groups (ages under 18 yrs., 18-64 yrs., and 65 yrs. and over) for Oregon and Its Counties, July 1, 2015. Prepared by Population Research Center, Portland State University, January 2016.

Don’T Try To Inflate House Prices For The Benefit Of The Banks, Lorcan Sirr

Media

When it comes to housing, the constant comparisons with the “peak prices” of 2007 make me wonder whether we’re about to lose the plot again. Perpetual benchmarking against an irrational peak suggests those destructive prices are a target we should aim to achieve, whereas nothing could be further from the truth.

Demographic Data Relating To Deprivation And Inclusion For The Eight Cypsc Regions In Kerry, Denise O'Leary

Reports / Surveys

This document provides population and household data relating to deprivation for the eight CYPSC areas in Kerry. All data are from the 2011 Census, which means that the figures are not current. However these data were chosen because their availability at appropriate geographic level (District Electoral Division), allowing aggregation into Children and Young People Services Committee regions as other, more recent, data is not available at this level of geographical detail. The data can be updated in approximately 18 months using figures from the 2016 census.1 The following information is provided in the report for each of the eight CYPSC …

No. 02: The Urban Food System Of Maputo, Mozambique, Abel Chikanda, Inês Raimundo

Hungry Cities Partnership

The city of Maputo, with a population of around 1.3 million, has been at the forefront of urbanization in Mozambique. While the Southern African country has posted impressive macro-economic growth rates in the last two decades, there has been only limited formal sector employment generation. Most of its working population is absorbed in informal employment and self-employment. The informal food economy is easily the most important source of food in Maputo. Almost all households regularly obtain food from informal sellers; over 90% at least once a week and many on a daily basis. For many households, daily purchasing is necessitated …

The Return Of Food: Poverty And Urban Food Security In Zimbabwe After The Crisis, Godfrey Tawodzera, Liam Riley, Jonathan Crush

Hungry Cities Partnership

The nadir of Zimbabwe’s political and economic crisis in 2008 coincided with the implementation of a baseline household food security survey in Harare by AFSUN. This survey found that households in lowincome urban areas in Zimbabwe’s capital were far worse off in terms of all the food insecurity and poverty indicators than households in the other 10 Southern African cities surveyed by AFSUN. The central question addressed in this report is whether food security in Zimbabwe’s urban centres has improved. AFSUN conducted a follow-up survey in 2012 that allows for direct longitudinal comparisons of continuity and change. The status of …

Migration And Food Security: Zimbabwean Migrants In Urban South Africa, Godfrey Tawodzera, Jonathan Crush

Hungry Cities Partnership

This report examines the food security status of Zimbabwean migrant households in the poorer areas of two major South African cities, Johannesburg and Cape Town. The vast majority were food insecure in terms of the amount of food to which they had access and the quality and diversity of their diet. What seems clear is that Zimbabwean migrants are significantly more food insecure than other low-income households. The primary reason for this appears to lie in pressures that include remittances of cash and goods back to family in Zimbabwe. The small literature on the impact of migrant remittances on food …

No. 01: The Urban Food System Of Nanjing, China, Zhenzhong Si, Jonathan Crush, Steffanie Scott, Taiyang Zhong

Hungry Cities Partnership

With a population of 8.2 million people, Nanjing is the 14th largest city in China. China became a predominantly urban nation in 2011, when its urban population surpassed its rural population for the first time. The declining farming population and area of farmland along with the increased food consumption of urban residents have had significant implications for China’s food security, including in cities such as Nanjing. As with many other Chinese cities, Nanjing’s informal economy has become an important source of income for the poor, including migrant workers. Since the beginning of economic reform in 1978, street vendors have become …

Food Remittances: Migration And Food Security In Africa, Jonathan Crush, Mary Caesar

Hungry Cities Partnership

By drawing attention to the importance of food remittances for urban and rural food security and identifying the current knowledge gaps, this report contributes to the study of the relationship between migration and food security and creates a platform for the design of a new research agenda. Across Africa, there is considerable evidence of a massive informal trade in food, including staples, fresh and processed products. While most cross-border trade in foodstuffs is a result of commercial transactions by small-scale traders who buy in one country and sell in another, an unknown proportion is actually food remittances on their way …

No. 23: The Food Insecurities Of Zimbabwean Migrants In Urban South Africa, Jonathan Crush, Godfrey Tawodzera

African Food Security Urban Network

This report examines the food security status of Zimbabwean migrant households in the poorer areas of two major South African cities, Johannesburg and Cape Town. The vast majority were food insecure in terms of the amount of food to which they had access and the quality and diversity of their diet. What seems clear is that Zimbabwean migrants are significantly more food insecure than other low-income households. The primary reason for this appears to lie in pressures that include remittances of cash and goods back to family in Zimbabwe. The small literature on the impact of migrant remittances on food …

6 Reasons To Relax About Portland's Recent Sell-Offs, Thomas Kerr

Metroscape

Are you feeling nostalgic for Oregon-born companies like Dave's Killer Bread, Little Big Burger, and Precision Castparts? Thomas Kerr asserts that we need not fear the recent rash of acquisitions. New owners often bring fresh ideas and capital to the table while maintaining the characteristics we've come to love about our locally owned companies.

Boom Town: Prioritizing Preservation Under Pressure, Linn Davis

Metroscape

A demolition epidemic? Linn Davis explores the history of architectural preservation in the region, how it intersects with other development issues, and how we might strengthen our ability to protect architecturally important buildings amid Portland's rush to build sufficient housing and commercial space to accommodate our growing needs.

Neighborhood Revitalization And Historic Preservation In U.S. Legacy Cities, Kelly L. Kinahan

ETD Archive

Legacy cities – also known as shrinking, rust belt, and post-industrial cities – are places facing persistent population decline, disinvestment, and structural economic challenges. Scholars and practitioners argue that historic buildings are among the key assets for neighborhood stabilization and revitalization, yet demolition of existing buildings is a dominant public policy approach in legacy cities. Using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods, this three-essay dissertation (1) develops a typology of legacy city neighborhoods across five cities (Baltimore, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Richmond, & St. Louis) and five census decades (1970-2010), (2) identifies patterns of federal historic rehabilitation tax credit (RTC) activity …

From Planning To Action: An Evaluation Of State Level Climate Action Plans, Serena E. Alexander

ETD Archive

Climate change is one of the most daunting problems of our time requiring innovative responses to its causes and consequences. In the United States, the long absence of strong federal leadership along with growing public awareness of the problem created a fertile ground for state-level climate action planning. To date, 34 states have adopted Climate Action Plans (CAPs). The question that this study addresses is: Does state-level climate action have the potential to reduce carbon emissions significantly? This question was examined by assessing the relationships between CAPs, emissions reduction targets, plan implementation and emissions mitigation. My hypothesis was that CAPs …

The Return Of Food: Poverty And Urban Food Security In Zimbabwe After The Crisis, Godfrey Tawodzera, Liam Riley, Jonathan Crush

Hungry Cities Partnership

The nadir of Zimbabwe’s political and economic crisis in 2008 coincided with the implementation of a baseline household food security survey in Harare by AFSUN. This survey found that households in lowincome urban areas in Zimbabwe’s capital were far worse off in terms of all the food insecurity and poverty indicators than households in the other 10 Southern African cities surveyed by AFSUN. The central question addressed in this report is whether food security in Zimbabwe’s urban centres has improved. AFSUN conducted a follow-up survey in 2012 that allows for direct longitudinal comparisons of continuity and change. The status of …