Less than a year ago (summer 2009) Urban Exchange opened its doors to the very first residents of this impressive new structure in downtown Harrisonburg.  Urban Exchange features 194 apartments in studio, 1 bedroom, 2 bedroom, 3 bedroom and loft configurations -- with over 45 different floor plans. 

The big question that (nearly) everyone asked or wondered was whether there could really be several hundred people who wanted to live in downtown Harrisonburg.  The results are in --- YES, there are a LOT of people who would like to live in downtown Harrisonburg!

A few quick updates, and then enjoy the photos below showing the final product:

• When Urban Exchange opened in summer 2009, nearly 70% of the apartments had already been leased.
• Per signed leases as of today, when Urban Exchange reaches one year of operation (summer 2010), over 95% of the apartments will be leased!
• Approximately 50% of Urban Exchange residents are "young professionals" or downtown employees.
• Approximately 30% of Urban Exchange residents are undergraduate or graduate students.
• Large contingents of Urban Exchange residents are: Rosetta Stone employees, local school teachers, and JMU and EMU faculty and staff.

It certainly is exciting to see the growing enthusiasm that exists for living in downtown Harrisonburg.  Most experts in downtown revitalization would agree that a growing downtown population is an essential part of a vibrant and sustainable downtown district.

If you have questions about Urban Exchange, feel free to call or e-mail Mary Messerley at 877-548-3831 or mary@LiveUE.com.

Of note -- only one of four retail spaces at Urban Exchange has been leased, but several spaces are still available.  If you are interested in details, please contact Mike Hendricksen at 540-908-7528 or mike@cbcfunkhouser.com.


Hardie Plank, corrugated metal, glass, bridges, lavish landscaping, seating areas, and more! 


This glass encased corner includes the mail room, a reading room, the gym, and The Apex.


The west-facing side of Urban Exchange, visible from Main Street near Court Square.


Four floors of apartments joined by a landscaped courtyard over top of double volume retail space.


Western views along Water Street, looking out towards Rosetta Stone.

One way to take a look at what is being built in and around Harrisonburg is by examining the Harrisonburg / Rockingham MLS to analyze listings circa 2009+.  First, or note, a full 14% of listings currently for sale in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County appear to be new construction.  (113 homes out of 793 homes).

Here's a big picture summary of these new homes for sale in our market:

• 51 are single family homes, and 62 are townhomes
• the townhomes are priced between $119,900 and $499,000
• the single family homes are priced between $76,495 and $738,600
• the median square footage of new single family homes is 1,868 SF
• the median square footage of new townhomes is 1,41F SF
• these new dwellings have been on the market an average of 194 days (six+ months)
  

If you're considering buying a new home in Harrisonburg, feel free to call (540-578-0102) or e-mail (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) to consult with me.  I work with quite a few builders and have become very familiar with the new construction process.

Also . . . enjoy the first edition of Harrisonburg Real Estate Radio:

Home Inspections via Harrisonburg Real Estate Radio  [08:38]

 

Have you heard of American Builders Quarterly?  The publication provides a comprehensive look at the nation's entire construction industry by profiling leading companies that consistently perform in all aspects of the building trade.  Take a look at the covers of the last 15 issues (below) and you'll notice one company right here in Harrisonburg, Virginia that was recently highlighted by American Builders Quarterly: Scripture Communities.



This is rather big news, as this publication covers huge developments and developers all over the country --- but they took note (on the cover of the magazine, no less) of this local company that has been building communities in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County for several decades.



The article focused on Scripture Communities' emphasis on building lasting communities focused on market demands.  For years now, Jerry Scripture has been building unique, innovative communities to meet the specific needs and desires of home buyers in many different demographics. 

Communities currently being developed by Scripture Communities include:

• Heritage Estates: 55+ community with stunning French Country architecture, mountain and golf course views, and a community swimming pool.  Single family and paired homes, starting at $339k. www.HeritageEstates.us.
   
  
• The Cottages at Stone Spring:Energy-efficient "green homes" meticulously built to EarthCraft and/orEnergyStar standards.  Single family homes starting at $247k. www.TheCottagesAtStoneSpring.com.
   
  
• The Glen at Cross Keys: Spacious paired homes with high quality interior and exterior features and finishes, with a just released one-level floor plan.  Paired homes starting at $239k.  www.TheGlenAtCrossKeys.com. 
   
  
• Liberty Square: Two and three bedroom townhomes with City convenience, quality interior features many construction options, and several neighborhood amenities.  Townhomes starting at $149k.  www.LibertySquare.biz.
   
  
• Founders Way: One-level upscale condominiums with amenities such as a swimming pool, fitness center and jogging trail.  Construction has begun!  Condos starting at $149k.  www.FoundersWay.com.
  

If you have questions about any of these communities, please let me know (540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com), as I represent Scripture Communities and can either answer your question, or identify someone who can.

ALSO --- STOP THE PRESS!
Don't forget about the Scripture Community Move Up Program, where Scripture Communities will potentially buy your house if you love one of their new communities and want to move up into a new home. 

If you're building a home, what should you use as a driveway material?  There are a lot of options!

• Pavers, Brick or Stone
• Concrete, Stamped Concrete, or Exposed Aggregate
  
• Asphalt
• Gravel
• Dirt

Each has their own advantages and disadvantages, related to cost, appearance, durability, etc. 

Let's take a look at the most common types of driveways in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.  The data source for this analysis is the Harrisonburg/Rockingham Association of Realtors MLS, so it's an inexact analysis, but can still provide some helpful insights. 



The chart above shows that the most common driveway material for single family homes in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County is gravel!  Beyond gravel drives, which are likely found mostly in the County, the most frequently occurring driveway is an asphalt driveway.  Let's take a closer look at driveways of single family homes in the City of Harrisonburg, to exclude the more "rustic" driveways found on homes further out in the County . . .



In the City of Harrisonburg, a full 1 in 5 driveways is still gravel, though asphalt driveways now lead the pack, with a full 10% greater market share than concrete driveways.



The graph above analyzes "expensive" homes --- those sold above $350k in the last year in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.  Here we find an even more overwhelming share of asphalt driveways, though we also see an increase in the percentage of exposed aggregate driveways.



Perhaps most interesting is that when examining homes sold since Jan 1 2000, we find that most have had concrete driveways.  Is this perhaps the sign of a growing trend in our area, or the nation as a whole?


Notes:  In the last year, 570 single family homes sold in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County (per the HRAR MLS), and the analysis above is based on the 534 sales where driveway data was present and usable.

Using data provided by the City of Harrisonburg, the information below is what I am finding on vacant land in the City of Harrisonburg.  Bear in mind that there is a bit more vacant land than referenced below, but I chose to exclude land owned by educational institutions, local government, religious organizations, state government. 

Vacant Land In Harrisonburg:

• 918 Residential Parcels (750 acres)
• 135 Multi-Family Parcels (192 acres)
• 216 Industrial Parcels (484 acres)
• 183 Commercial Parcels (320 acres)
• 14 Large Parcels (88 acres)

This is a total of 1,466 large parcels totaling 1,833 acres.

• The 1,466 vacant parcels account for 10% of the 15,075 total city parcels.
• The 1,833 acres account for 19% of the 9,655 total city acres.
  

Here is a visual to show the amount of vacant land remaining in the City of Harrisonburg:

Almost a year ago I mentioned that a new road connecting Erickson Avenue to Stone Spring Road was moving forward.  Construction is now moving forward, with lots of progress starting on the Erickson Avenue end of the connector.

Below is a map showing where that will be situated (click on the map for a larger version) and this is a web site with more details.

City Portion of Erickson Avenue / Stone Spring Road Connector:



The road shown above lies in the City, but the Connector will continue into the County, all the way to Route 33 East near Boyers Road. 

The map below shows an overlay of the approved map from VDOT over top of both an aerial and road view from Google Maps.  Click on either for a larger view.

Rockingham County Southeast Connector (1 of 2 portions)





As far as I can tell, the County portion will cut through the new campus of Rockingham Memorial Hospital, and then cross through Boyers Road before connecting with Route 33.  From what I have heard, Boyers Road will become a cul-de-sac before reaching Route 33.

Check out these two stories about Urban Exchange that both hit the news today . . .



Downtown living: Urban Exchange sets a new course for Downtown Harrisonburg  (The New Dominion)






Urban Jungle: Urban Exchange Home To City's First ‘Green' Roof  (Daily News Record)

The architectural design of Urban Exchange is exciting, provocative and has received a lot of very positive feedback.  Two key features (among many others) that seem to be universally appealing are the expansive landscaped courtyard and the large windows and doors allowing for loads of natural light.  It is the unique "opposed L" design that allows for the natural light and the fantastic courtyard area --- and you might wonder how the developers stumbled upon such a great concept....

Several years ago, at the very start of the design process for Urban Exchange, the architects visited Harrisonburg to examine the site, and as a result, Philippe created the sketch below.



The architect and the developers then spent months creating a multitude of building styles and designs from which to choose --- but throughout the process, they kept returning to the very concept sketched out above. 

This design allowed for more significant massing on the main streets (Mason, Market) --- the brick areas on the now complete building, and it allows for lots and lots of natural light through the multiple exposed faces of the building.  And of course --- the primary colors of the bridges are now shining brightly in the sunlight, despite their position having been adjusted slightly from this original sketch.

As I have spoken with other architects, I have learned that it's not entirely uncommon for this to have happened --- for the very early inspiration to be the eventual reality.  I suppose the accuracy of this early sketch to the final building is so fascinating because of the large size of this project and the long (multi-year) development process that is just now coming to a close.

Rockingham County, Virginia (not including the City of Harrisonburg) is comprised of (approximately) 46,600 parcels of real estate.  Some of these lots or tracts are very small, in towns such as Grottoes, Dayton or Elkton.  Others are quite expansive and are in the far flung corners of the County.  Below is a visual representation of the distribution of lot sizes of those 46,600 properties --- you might need to click on this link to view the full size document for easier reading.


Here's the summary:

• 20,108 parcels less than a half acre
  
• 6,889 parcels of 0.5 - 1 acre
  
• 9,801 parcels of 1 - 5 acres
  
• 5,513 parcels of 5 - 20 acres
  
• 2,355 parcels of 20 - 50 acres
  
• 1,933 parcels of 50+ acres

There is quite a bit more to break down from this data set, but here are a few interesting surface level observations:

• Almost half (43%) of the parcels in Rockingham County are less than a half acre
  
• 79% of the parcels in Rockingham County are less than 5 acres
  
• There are a lot (1,933) of large tracts of land (50+ acres) left in Rockingham County

And the most interesting facts I've gleaned from this data thus far revolve around the largest parcels in Rockingham County:

• The largest parcel in Rockingham County is owned by the (and is the) U.S. National Forest, with a size of 140,001 acres.
• The second largest tract is 37,980 acres, and owned by the U.S.Department of the Interior --- I'm guessing this is also National Park land...
  
• These two largest parcels combined encompass one-third (33%) of the total acreage of Rockingham County.
• The combined value of these two parcels (though I doubt they pay property taxes!?) is roughly $186 million!
  

Every five years (or so) the Harrisonburg Redevelopment and Housing Authority conducts a detailed analysis of City housing.  In 2005, S. Patz & Associates, Inc conducted the analysis, available here: Citywide Housing Analysis for Harrisonburg, Virginia.

One interesting "housing issue" that is identified as affecting the City of Harrisonburg was identified in the 2000 analysis, and re-confirmed in the 2005 analysis:


I had never considered that this might be occuring --- that most higher price new homes were being built in Rockingham County instead of in the City of Harrisonburg --- but it makes sense, because undeveloped land is generally quite scarce in the City of Harrisonburg.

To confirm (or reject) this conclusion, let's take a look at the homes that have sold each year since 2000, that were built within 3 years of when they were sold (thus, new-ish homes)....

First, here's the break down of where all of these homes sold....

You'll note that the majority of the new-ish homes that were sold (and thus purchased) where in Harrisonburg, as opposed to in Rockingham County with a Harrisonburg address.

Now, let's look at "large" new-ish homes, those with 2500+ square feet....


Here we do indeed find the phenomenon that the report described --- almost all of the large (and thus expensive) homes were built just outside Harrisonburg, and not within the City limits.

Of note --- the City of Harrisonburg identifies this phenomenon as an "issue" because....


For even more reading, read the full housing analysis!

This past week the Daily News Record published an article about the new housing complexes being built to house JMU students.  I believe the uninformed reader of the article would assume that there is a relatively good balance between students and housing --- but according to my calculations there is a significant oversupply of student housing for JMU students!

Here are the numbers...

• On-Campus Headcount has increased (or is projected to increase) by 1,500 students between Fall 2007 and Fall 2009.
• In this same two year time period new housing developments have accounted for 3,340 new "beds".

Why will this oversupply exist?

• The Daily News Record consistently uses enrollment figures creatively to exaggerate JMU growth, though I won't speculate as to whether it is innocent or intentional.  If you compare the figures in the DNR article with JMU enrollment projections, you'll see that they use a lower enrollment metric (students taking classes at the JMU campus) when referring to past enrollment figures, and they use a higher enrollment metric (students taking classes at the JMU campus, or anywhere else) when referring to current or future enrollment figures.  The result is that JMU growth seems more significant than it actually is.  Take a few minutes to see where on the JMU enrollment projections page they pulled the figures in paragraph 3 and 4 of the DNR article, and you'll start to see the errors in their comparisons.  Their "8 percent increase from last fall" is actually a 5.5 percent increase if you use the same metric for the two data points.  Is this simply an error, or does 8 percent sound better than only 5.5 percent?
• Harrisonburg created an incentive (with good intentions) for student housing developers to build now, now, now.  Much of the land in the City that was annexed several decades ago was zoned R-3, which allowed (until recently) a property owner to build student housing (in the form of three-story apartment buildings) without asking for permission.  Much of this R-3 land was adjacent to single family home neighborhoods, and thus Harrisonburg took this "use by right" out of the R-3 zoning classification.  R-3 property owners were left with a three year window of time in which they could build this higher density housing (student housing) without asking for permission -- and thus the construction began!

Don't Build Anymore!  My concern when I read an article such as the one that ran last week in the DNR is that a local (or out of town) developer will read the article and will decide to build more student housing because of the (exaggerated) enrollment growth and the (fictional) even balance between students and housing.  If you're a student housing developer feel free to contact me (540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) to discuss this further --- but please don't start building more student housing before completing a thorough market study beyond the figures reported in the Daily News Record.

Tell Your Friends!  Last week I was told of a (usually) well informed local business leader who was convinced that JMU will be growing to 30,000 and then 40,000 students within the next 5 - 10 years.  This type of casual conversation will lead to an even wider sentiment that we need more student housing in Harrisonburg --- and this individual is often in conversation with student housing developers.

I'm stepping down from my soap box now, but I hope that student housing developers, and those that advise them, will carefully study our market before continuing on a rampage of building college student housing!

Construction is moving along steadily at Urban Exchange in downtown Harrisonburg.  This exciting new mixed-use community will include 194 condos, two levels of structured parking, and approximately 12,000 square feet of retail space.  

Over the past 16 months, we have been excited to see that people crossing nearly every demographic have interest in living at Urban Exchange.  Those having committed to living at Urban Exchange span an age range of 20 to 80, and include retirees, young professionals, university faculty and staff, undergraduate and graduate students, families with children, employees of growing local companies such as Rosetta Stone, SRI, SI, RMH, and more.  

Urban Exchange is comprised of two wings with approximately 100 condos in each, and when we broke ground in February 2008, we did so with the vision of selling the condos in the West Wing, and leasing them in the East Wing.  This past week, however, we made the decision to lease all 194 condos instead of selling half of them --- primarily because of the significant changes in the condominium financing market that have taken place over the past 12 to 18 months.

The West Wing of Urban Exchange is comprised of 98 condos, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines dictate that 51% (soon to be 70%) of such condos must be owner-occupied in order for any purchaser to use a conventional mortgage for purchasing at Urban Exchange.  Furthermore, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not allow loans to close on any condos until 51% of the condos are reserved.

Given these guidelines, we knew that it would be difficult to orchestrate the sale of 70 condos nearly simultaneously, but we were determined to attempt to do so.  Unfortunately, a few timing and logistical factors conspired against us:

1. Construction on the East Wing (for lease) was started two months prior to construction on the West Wing (for sale).
2. Prospective Urban Exchange tenants were willing to sign leases well before their condo was close to being complete.  (In fact, I believe the first leases were signed before we even had a single piece of lumber on the work site!)  As of last week, 75% of the East Tower was leased, and 25% of the West Tower was leased.
3. Prospective Urban Exchange buyers were hesitant to sign even a non-binding reservation agreement until their condo and the building as a whole was nearly complete if not entirely complete.  As of last week, 15% of the West Tower was reserved for purchase.

Last week, when this decision was made, we were at the crossroad we had anticipated for several months.  We were seeing 5 to 6 new leases a week, yet nearly all of the prospective buyers (without reservations) were waiting to commit until construction was nearly complete.  We realized that within the next few weeks we would have to start turning prospective tenants away if were to preserve enough owner-occupied units in the West Tower to achieve the occupancy standards from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  

Given the vast, early demand from tenants to live in Urban Exchange, and the delayed, hesitant demand from buyers --- last week we decided to move forward with leasing all of the condos at Urban Exchange.

We have discussed this change at length with all of the buyers who had reservations at Urban Exchange, but we know that there were quite a few other prospective buyers who had not yet committed to purchase.  If you are one such person, and are still excited about the possibility of buying a condo in downtown Harrisonburg, we'd like to stay in touch with you.  

The developers of Urban Exchange own several other properties in downtown Harrisonburg where they will be developing condos after Urban Exchange is complete.  The next two projects that they will be developing will be considerably smaller than Urban Exchange (15-25 units) and thus will be much more feasible for condo sales.  In approximately six months we will be starting to hold focus groups with any such interested downtown condo buyers, as we begin the design and planning stages of these next projects.  If you would like to know when these focus groups begin, please click here.

Thank you for your continued support of and excitement for Urban Exchange --- while the decision to lease all of the condos marks a slight change in direction, it will still be bringing dynamic change to our downtown district.  In just over a month, the first residents will be moving into Urban Exchange, and as the next few months unfold, we will be building up to over 300 new residents of downtown Harrisonburg in an exciting and diverse community at Urban Exchange

If you have any questions about this change in direction at Urban Exchange, please contact me (Scott Rogers, 540-578-0102, scott@LiveUE.com), and if you have interest in further details on leasing a condo at Urban Exchange please contact Mary Messerly (540-421-9341, mary@LiveUE.com).

A gentleman from New Jersey stopped by our office today asking about the area, and trying to get a sense of where the main growth areas of the city and county are located.  I explained to him, as I have explained to many people lately, that most of the growth in the County is focused just south and east of Harrisonburg in an area bound by Route 33, Port Republic Road, Boyers Road and Cross Keys Road.  It's a diamond shape area (seen above), and within that are you will find many of the subdivisions that have been developed over the last 10-15 years. 

Click on any subdivision in the map above to jump to active listings in that neighborhood.

Listen in as Barry Kelley, one of the developers of Urban Exchange, talks about the impact that Urban Exchange will have on Harrisonburg.



Below is a rough transcription, for those of you reading on mobile devices without video capabilities...

I think the impact on downtown Harrisonburg is one feature that it will have, but I'd have to go even deeper and say that the idea of building an urban environment  and creating more functional urban environments is something that we as a society have been doing for hundreds of years.  It was until 1945, after the war and the baby boomers, that gas prices as they were allowed us to change our life and our lifestyles, and I think we've come to the conclusion that we are paying a big cost for that change in lifestyles.  And so, there seems to be a drawing back to the city centers and the urban environments because of increased use and better use of time and quality times with your children, and your friends and your neighbors. 

And so how does that impact Harrisonburg and downtown Harrisonburg, I think that is all part of the revitalization part, because people are coming to the understanding that maybe living 10, 15, 20 miles out into the county, has some downfalls, and so if you can live a simple life, maybe it can be more fulfilling in a lot of different ways.  So, how is it having an impact on Harrisonburg, I think it has a social impact on Harrisonburg and the surrounding areas, that our whole country is going through that is rather profound and we're just a small part of that.

Despite some rainy days in December (see above), construction is flying along at Urban Exchange --- framing for the fourth floor is being finished on the East Tower (apartments for rent), and the first floor is being framed on the West Tower (condos for sale).

Click here to see the latest construction photos of this exciting project in Downtown Harrisonburg, the future home of 196 condos, and 12,000 s.f. of retail space.

Are you considering buying at Preston Lake?  Some of my clients are exploring the possibility of building a single family home at Preston Lake, and it's been an interesting process . . .



Access to the developer
We have been pleasantly surprised to have the opportunity to work directly with the developer, Richard Hine.  Rich is very invested in the Preston Lake project, is very knowledgeable about the building process, and has been immensely helpful as my clients have explored the possibility of building at Preston Lake.

A flexible design process
While Preston Lake offers a variety of standard floor plans (for rowhouses and single family homes), they are also willing to make almost any modifications you might desire.  We have now been through several different renditions of the floor plans for the "Cape Cod" style home, each time bringing the design a bit closer to what my clients' desires.

Organized communication
The building team at Preston Lake uses an online project management system to organize the design/build process, and to streamline communication.  Even only in these early stages of the process, the use of this tool has been extremely helpful.

Final Pricing, Building Process, Final Product
Still yet to discover --- will the pricing work for my clients, will the building process be as pleasant as the design process, and will the finished home be exactly what my clients envisioned.

Overall, the building process at Preston Lake (or the complemplation thereof) has been a relatively enjoyable and efficient process.  If you are considering buying at Preston Lake, and if you have any questions, please call (540-578-0102) or e-mail (scott@cbfunkhouser.com) me.  Otherwise, stay tuned, and I'll keep you informed on the continuation of this process.

From Wikipedia: "Smart growth is an urban planning and transportation theory that concentrates growth in the center of a city to avoid urban sprawl; and advocates compact, transit-oriented, walkable, bicycle-friendly land use, including neighborhood schools, complete streets, mixed-use development with a range of housing choices.

Smart growth values long-range, regional considerations of sustainability over a short-term focus. Its goals are to achieve a unique sense of  community and place; expand the range of transportation, employment,  and housing choices; equitably distribute the costs and benefits of  development; preserve and enhance natural and cultural resources; and  promote public health."

To summarize, Smart Growth is building in the right place:

• where infrastructure already exists
• with an emphasis on mixed-use development
• with a variety of transportation choices
  

Additional Smart Growth resources:

• Coalition for Smarter Growth
• 23 Guiding Values for the Revitalization of Downtown Harrisonburg
• Urban Exchange - smart growth in downtown Harrisonburg
  

Below are 23 concepts for current (or future) property owners in downtown Harrisonburg to consider as they restore or revitalize downtown properties.



These values are from the vision book entitled "urban values & vision for downtown harrisonburg" produced by Eugene Stoltzfus Architects for the City of Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance.

1. Build density within the City and maintain openness in the County.
2. Use building position and massing to define urban place at a public scale.
3. Use secondary building characteristics to tune-up how buildings relate to and form place at a public scale.
4. Use urban accessory elements to tune-up the subtleties of access and definition of urban spaces.
5. Use pedestrian-scale pavers for areas that are designed for and frequented by pedestrians.
6. Use building transparency to relate inside to outside.
7. Encourage mixed-use development throughout the city.
8. Encourage sidewalk cafés.
9. Develop a strategic parking plan.
10. liminate large surface parking lots, and provide structured parking decks of 4 to 6 stories.
11. Incorporate mixed-use into the sides of parking decks which front on streets.
12. Encourage growth of trees in the city.
13. Coordinate tree management and signage.
14. Uncover and open up Black's Run where possible.
15. Provide more park land in the downtown.
16. Support individual low-tech transport such as walking, bicycles, and scooters.
17. Develop good local public transport.
18. Facilitate an appropriate balance between pedestrian and car movement.
19. Engineer the downtown traffic plan to enhance downtown as a destination.
20. Support green design.
21. Cultivate the value that we are building a city for the long term.
22. Inform private developers about the urban values the city considers important.
23. Maintain in public places, visible displays of Harrisonburg's urban values.

Several new renderings of Urban Exchange are now available at www.LIVEUE.com.

Today's Dailly News Record (09-19-2008) has a very interesting editorial from Jonathan Kiser, a Harrisonburg resident that begins as follows...

I don't necessarily agree with everything Jonathan says, for example,

But Jonathan provides lots of:

• specific observations of questionable development decisions in the recent past
• great principles for thinking about future development

I represent several builders and developers in this area, and thus I am often frustrated when I see the generic "stop growth and development" letters to the editor without anything behind them besides a desire for no growth.  Jonathan's editorial, however, is quite a bit more interesting because he is specific about past development decisions that he thinks could have been better, and he offers constructive ideas for development principles to be utilized as we move forward together as a community.

Definitely worth a read...click here!