Meet PRN Member Ryan Martyn

In my thesis, I discuss the planning concept of the complete neighborhood, A.K.A. the 20-Minute Neighborhood / 15-Minute City. The concept basically says that if you can reach any daily essential within a 20 minute one way trip via active transportation (walk, bike, public transit), then you live in a complete neighborhood. In the paper, I critique the concept and suggest that the complete neighborhood should focus on a 10-minute round trip by foot to better align with people’s – especially drivers’ – willingness to walk. I also get more specific about what essentials are included in the concept and how essentials vary by culture and identity along with the need to provide essentials to those who are excluded from the free market. 

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Building a U.S. Parking Minimums Database

Using data to inform and reform policies isn’t new. However, in order to analyze data, you need to be able to access the data — even better if it’s already processed and formatted. There’s no unified database for parking minimums in the United States, so we were tasked to build one using automation to speed up the data parsing.

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A congested urban street showcasing car drivers cruising for limited on-street parking

Federal Highway Administration Releases New Findings on Parking Cruising

Using GPS breadcrumb data from smartphones, a recent study found that cruising for parking affects nearly 10% of city traffic during peak hours. This is great news, because with better information, we can advocate more successfully for parking reform in our communities.

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Figure 2: Development possible on existing parking lots (based on current zoning). 82nd Ave between Foster & Powell.

How Much of Portland is Used for Off Street Parking?

Areas with concentrations of parking represent areas with concentrations of destinations. By concentrating people instead of cars in these areas, cities can begin to act on climate and housing goals simultaneously. Converting parking lots to housing creates climate resilience by removing asphalt surfaces that contribute to urban heat while also reducing vehicle miles traveled. A portion of these buildings that replace parking lots will have green roofs, which help with onsite water management and, again, reduced urban heat.

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