Tracking sustainability news and events in Savannah, Georgia (and beyond)
Category
Neighborhoods
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08.24.10Class presents ideas that could make strip mall sustainablePerhaps there's no type of building that better signifies suburban sprawl than the strip mall. Well, maybe a McMansion would do, but the strip mall has been with us longer and its very form and purpose transmits the essence of sprawl. The buildings are low and long, surrounded by parking lots and, in most cases, reachable safely only by car. Whitemarsh Plaza is a smaller specimen, but it's location along a multi-lane high speed roadway is common for this variety of commercial development. Whitemarsh Plaza became the focus of SCAD graduate students. And things continued from there, as SCAD professor Scott ...
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07.22.10Barton predicts Food Lion store will be an oasis in a food desertTom Barton wrote about the new Food Lion supermarket, slated for construction on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, in his Savannah Morning News Column yesterday and reveals it was his first encounter with the concept of a food desert, which he describes as "an area where residents must travel vast distances to do their grocery shopping." Perhaps a better name for this neighborhood and others like it is a food swamp, "a geographic area where the overabundance of high-energy foods (for example, caloric snacks sold at convenience stores) inundate healthy food options." Whatever the term, studies have linked the preponderance of ...
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07.21.10Want to improve conditions for walking and cycling in Savannah? Have your say today!What four words would you use to describe a community that is ideal for bicycling? What four words would you use to describe a community that is ideal for walking (or using a wheelchair)? You can provide the answers to these questions and others designed to solicit input for the Metropolitan Planning Organization's Non-motorized Transportation Plan. What in the world is that? Non-motorized transportation includes walking or using a wheelchair, bicycling, skating, and using pedicabs. The Non-motorized Transportation Plan, as part of the Total Mobility Plan, will serve as an update to the MPO’s Bikeway Plan of 2000 and as well as providing ...
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06.04.10Would oil off our coast cause us to change our ways?In the early days of the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe, some local media reported the Gulf Coast's loss could be the Atlantic Coast's gain, in the form of tourists reconfiguring their summer vacation destinations. These stories usually included mandatory expressions of sympathy for the region dealing with the environmental catastrophe. Still, the disaster was down there. The major consequence for us would be more difficulty finding space to plant our chairs and umbrellas on the more crowded beaches of Tybee Island, right? Interviews were conducted just to make sure we were in the clear. But now the story may be changing. ...
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05.20.10If you ride your bike to work only one day this year, make it this FridayOver the last several years, I've had the opportunity to talk with elected officials, community groups and individuals aboutthe tremendous benefits the city could accrue from encouraging more citizens and visitors to take to our streets on bicycles. While I think most people can get their heads around the general idea, there's a disconnect for some who can't imagine riding a bike to work, to the store or to school. It doesn't compute for them. They nod and smile, but in the back of there minds, I can tell they are thinking, "Wouldn't it be easier to drive?" It's important to ...
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05.19.10Local journalist makes the connection between street design and danger to pedestrians. Almost.Local media outlets, over the last several years, have published and aired scores of stories about the dangers faced by pedestrians on our streets. These accounts usually follow the death or injury of a pedestrian and almost always include quotes from law enforcement officials warning pedestrians to use crosswalks, even when doing so would require a pedestrian to walk miles out of his or her way. Even when there's no compelling evidence a pedestrian would have been safer in a crosswalk. Local journalists have seemed unable to make the connection between pedestrian casualties and streets that are dangerous by design. ...
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04.28.10April 29 community forum examines health effects of infrastructure, transportationHealthy Savannah is sponsoring a community forum on April 29 at 6 p.m. at the Savannah Civic Center. The forum takes an important, but not often examined (at least locally) angle on community health. Instead of focusing entirely on personal nutrition and exercise, the forum will examine the health impacts of infrastructure — specifically related to transportation — along with physical activity, nutrition and smoking. A press release describes the goal of the forum "is to help people understand what factors have the greatest impact on our health in Savannah. Keynote speaker Dr. Evelyn Lewis will provide an opportunity for citizens ...
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04.16.10Hundreds of cyclists will take to Savannah streets April 17 for Earth Day Wheelie rideThe streets are filled with happy bicyclists, unconcerned about the threat of aggressive or districted drivers. Handlebar bells ring cheerfully as hundreds of people move through a city, unique in its beauty because it was designed long before the needs of cars came to dominate the built environment. People of all ages are present, enjoying the freedom and fun of traveling under their own power and at their own pace. A utopian fantasy? Not on Saturday, April 17 at 4 p.m. It's difficult to describe how special the Savannah Bicycle Campaign's Earth Day Wheelie bicycle ride has become. Not only is it ...
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03.20.10The return of Ellis Square, Savannah’s next great public spaceStanding in Ellis Square yesterday evening, it was a little difficult to remember the ugly parking garage that occupied the square for decades. It was even harder to imagine more than 1,000 parking spaces below all the grass, trees and people having fun. And there were plenty of people having fun. A ribbon cutting, staple of dedication ceremonies, followed remarks by Mayor Otis Johnson and other government officials. However, instead of sticking to the usual script in which the audience observes dignitaries cutting the ribbon, scissors were distributed to the crowd allowing the public to take ...
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03.15.10The usual blaming of the victim follows latest pedestrian deathThis sequence of events is becoming awfully easy to predict: Pedestrian is killed or injured on a local street that's dangerous by design. News media coverage of the incident uncritically repeats law enforcement warnings that pedestrians should use crosswalks. Readers and viewers of news media coverage jump at the chance to share stories about "stupid" pedestrians who represent "a nuisance to motorists" because they don't use crosswalks. One interesting thing about WTOC-TV's coverage was the only cursory mention of a vehicle that hit the pedestrian and left the scene. Instead of exploring that important detail, the report instead spent time blaming the pedestrian ...
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About
Transportation, land use, local farming and green building are all potential topics for Sustainable Savannah. The goal is to aggregate content about local events and projects, so there will be a central place to review everything that’s happening. The site is aimed at encouraging collaboration and information sharing between groups and individuals currently engaged in sustainability efforts. The site can also provide a snapshot of Savannah for green-minded people who are considering visiting or moving to the area.
