How does a city make sure it’s ready for investment? A question weighing on many municipal minds is how to organize planning, economic development strategies, and zoning regulations to make it clear to residents, developers, and investors that this is the right place to be. Further, how does a community encourage investment without sacrificing the characteristics that make it an attractive community to its residents?
Metropolitan Boston is poised to be one of the most walkable metro areas in the country. This is one of the exciting findings of The WalkUP Wake-Up Call: Boston, a new report unveiled in Boston today at LOCUS’s first-ever New England Leadership Summit.
The new research defines—for the first time—the form and function of all land use in metropolitan Boston’s 3,100 square miles, identifying 57 regionally significant walkable urban places (or “WalkUPs”) in metro Boston and ranking them based on economic performance, measured by the real estate valuations for each product type and the fiscal revenues generated for local governments, and by social equity performance, measured by accessibility, opportunity, and affordability for residents. Looking ahead to future opportunities, the report also identifies emerging and potential WalkUPs where new development could go.
As shown by substantial and increasing real estate valuation premiums in all real estate product types (office, hotel, rental apartment, retail, and for-sale residential), the report found strong and growing signs of pent-up demand for walkable urban neighborhoods in the Boston area—marking a reversal in real estate development that has long followed the drivable suburban model. Even more remarkable is the fact that these WalkUPs, account for just 6% of the total land area in the Boston metro region.
The 2015 New England LOCUS Leadership Summit: Closing the Next [Smart Growth] Deal on March 11, 2015 in Boston, MA, will bring together real estate industry leaders and public officials from across the region to advocate, network, makes deals, and connect with one another. To frame the event’s discussions, we are excited to announce these confirmed speakers … Continued
Do you know a real estate developer or investor who is creating great walkable places and displays exemplary public leadership in the New England region? If so, nominate them for the 2015 LOCUS New England Leadership Award.
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Looking forward to the real estate and local leaders networking opportunities at the upcoming LOCUS LinkUP in Boston, MA on November 20? Now, there’s even more to be excited about.
Representatives from LOCUS and the Center for Real Estate and Urban Analysis at The George Washington University (GWU) will provide an update to attendees on their ongoing research of Walkable Urban Places (WalkUPs) across the metropolitan Boston area. This presentation will give developers unique insight into where New England’s next walkable places will be built.
The new Boston research to be presented builds on the growing body of work on Walkable Urban Places that LOCUS and The George Washington University have pioneered. Earlier this year, the two partnered to release Foot Traffic Ahead, a report by LOCUS President Christopher Leinberger ranking metropolitan areas by current and future walkable urbanism. In that report, the Boston metropolitan area ranked third.
