"The problem was when a town spends three years working with the state to come up with a mixed use zoning ordinance and the state then sends out a request for proposals, you are led to believe the town is not going to buy the property," he said.
The antidote, in vogue in planning circles, if not in state houses, is mixed-use zoning and mixed-income dwelling, so that people don't have to travel so far to go to work or to buy what they need.
Policy changes encouraging mixed-use zoning and actual mixed land use such as the shift of funds to public transit, the creation of sidewalks and bicycle paths, and the preservation of open spaces are critical to the smart growth concept.
Despite mixed use zoning, developers of housing and commercial projects would have to apply for special exceptions, said Elizabeth Stocker, community development director.
"The corner of Bond and Bowery was an operating gas station and because mixed use zoning was in place, we were able to put up a building that is commercial on its ground floor and residential on Floors 2 through 6".
Compared with areas that do not have elevated mortality following hot days, these 10 ZCTAs have a higher percentage of elderly residents, a higher percentage of residents of low socioeconomic status, more high-density residential and mixed-use zoning, higher surface temperatures, and more recreationally-zoned area.
The town could start by dropping its resistance to mixed-use zoning, since that would allow plans for downtown that are eclectic, old-fashioned and smart -- apartment buildings with storefronts, for example, to house young people and the elderly.
Long Island City, a once-quiet neighborhood where mixed-use zoning has allowed restaurants, bars and clubs to proliferate, has followed this pattern; complaints for the first half of this year were up 44 percent from 2009, with the overwhelming majority in March, April and May.
Q: What cities are turning to mixed-living zoning laws, and are moving away from suburban tract housing development?
The city added a mixed-use zoning category, the first in the city, which could potentially turn the industrial region into a downtown area with dining, entertainment, small businesses and housing.
