Uneasy Rhetoric

I couldn’t leave this one alone. The Folsom Auto Mall wants to expand, but Sacramento Regional Transit opposes the expansion (from the Sacramento Bee, January 25, 2006):

RT head Beverly Scott said the site, which sits between 1/4 and 1/2 miles from RT’s Hazel light-rail station, should be developed in a more transit-friendly fashion – typically a higher-density combination of housing, retail and offices – giving more people an opportunity to walk to work or to ride transit rather than drive.

The Board of Supervisors postponed their vote until their staff can analyze documents making the case for more transit oriented development.

It would be foolish of the Board not to maximize the use of developable land close to transit stops. But then, are there any developers ready to build an alternative? I hope so. That fact is much more likely to sway the Board’s decision than any number of reams of analysis.

Update (1/26/2006): Scupper provides some interesting historical perspective on transit oriented development in our region. Also, the Bee editorialized on the Folsom Auto Mall proposal.