Landscape Architect Articles

LASN PMBR News January 200801-15-08 | News

Landcaster City, Pa. Seeks Continuity

Some Lancaster, Pa. city officials would like to see more brick banding for their city, like this strip along North Prince Street in front of Clipper Magazine Stadium.
Photo: Marty Heisey/New Era

The brick band on the walkway at Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster City, Pa. may soon be the city standard. The herringbone brick pattern is recommended in the city’s streetscape design guidelines and could be adopted by the city as law in February or March 2008.

The three-year old guidelines “seek to reinforce a sense of place and economic vitality, and to promote visual continuity” in the downtown area and along the major arteries into the city center. The standards would impose a uniform appearance for the city’s sidewalks, crosswalks and public spaces between building facades and curbs. It would also require public benches, street trees, fences and planters.

The city?EUR??,,????'???s hardscape is now a hodgepodge of brick and stamped concrete. If the standard passes, it would require property owners near the city’s center to install red brick pavers in a 30 to 48-inch wide strip of a designated color when they make exterior property improvements. The estimated cost to install the brick is about $12 per sq. ft.

New NYC Anti-paving Law

The new anti-paving regulations in Queens, NYC calls for, among other things, a stricter maximum slope for new driveways at 11 percent. Sloped driveways and the conversion of turf to pavement has caused water runoff to seep into the city?EUR??,,????'???s already overburdened sewers, leading to widespread flooding.

After years of lobbying from city officials and the Queens Civic Congress, the Department of City Planning has a plan to halt the paving over of front yards. The proposal calls for a minimum percentage of planting in front yards in certain districts, based on street frontage. Other suggestions include requiring certain sizes for back yards and prohibiting driveways on slopes above 11 percent.

The new rules stem from the problem of runoff caused by overpaving. Development has quickened over the last few years, with more parking lots and turning sections of lawns into driveways. Old sewers and infrastructures, coupled with the paving, has caused severe water runoff problems, including severe flooding from an August storm that had parts of Queens declared a disaster area. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offered loans and other assistance.

?EUR??,,????'??I?EUR??,,????'???ve been asking for these changes for about four or five years,?EUR??,,????'?? Bayside Councilman Tony Avella told the Queens Chronicle. ?EUR??,,????'??Normally rain soaks into the earth, but when a yard has been paved, the water is forced onto the street and into the already over-taxed city sewer.?EUR??,,????'??

Urban paving of course also contributes to the heat island effect.
While everybody agrees the new regulations are a positive thing, Corey Bearak, executive vice president of the Queens Civic Congress, cautioned: ?EUR??,,????'??Some of these recommendations are already in place, but aren?EUR??,,????'???t enforced. We need to get the Buildings Department, Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of City Planning to work together to ensure these laws are actually enforced.?EUR??,,????'??

Concrete Thinking Offered at Greenbuild 2007

Research commissioned by PCA and conducted by the CTLGroup, reviewed 45 sets of concrete samples for solar reflectance (?EUR??,,????'??heat island?EUR??,,????'?? effect). PCA believes this is the first time solar reflectance of concrete has been examined in relation to LEED points. White cement had the greatest reflectivity (.87), while black fine aggregate had the least (.22). Limestone aggregate had a .42 factor of reflectivity. Neither fine aggregate reflectance nor coarse aggregate had a significant effect on slab reflectance, the study found.

About 18,000 people attended the U.S. Green Building Council’s 2007 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in Chicago, Nov. 7-9.

While the Portland Concrete Association (PCA) is not the first name you associate with this conference, visitors to the PCA booth learned about the sustainable applications of concrete and had the opportunity to view pervious concrete in action. The PCA booth hosted the ?EUR??,,????'??Concrete Thinking Pavilion,?EUR??,,????'?? which included three PCA members: Holcim (USA) Inc., Essroc Cement and Lehigh Cement.

At a press conference, David Shepherd, director of sustainable development for PCA, and Martha VanGeem, CTLGroup, presented the results of new research on the solar reflectance of concrete and its positive impact on limiting the heat island effect. (?EUR??,,????'??Solar Reflectance of Concretes for LEED Sustainable Sites Credit: Heat Island Effect,?EUR??,,????'?? by Medgar Marceau and Martha VanGeem.)

The research, commissioned by PCA and conducted by the CTLGroup, reviewed 45 sets of concrete samples. All samples, regardless of the mix, met the required criteria for LEED credit. PCA believes this is the first time the solar reflectance of concrete has been examined in relation to LEED points and asserts it is the most comprehensive study of the solar reflectance of concrete to date. PCA cites the many benefits of concrete, including as ?EUR??,,????'??sustainable?EUR??,,????'?? design.

Concrete walls can reduce sound penetrating by more than 80 percent, compared with wood or steel frame construction.
Concrete is readily recycled and reused as base materials.
Concrete is an incredibly versatile material, plus it will not rust, rot or burn.
Pervious concrete allows rainwater to filter through, preventing deposits of oil, grease and other contaminants from entering storm drains and going directly into the water supply. This technology is recognized by the U.S. EPA as a best practice for stormwater management.
As for environmental concerns in the production of concrete, according to the PCA, the cement industry has invested in new technologies and equipment to improve energy efficiency at its manufacturing facilities by 33 percent from a 1975 baseline.