Day 26: Pier 39 - San Francisco, CA

Eric Fredericks • Friday July 27, 2007

The countdown to the top ranked photo continues with #5 today: Pier 39 in San Francisco. As I mentioned yesterday, San Francisco is one of my top two favorite cities.

Generally, I’m not a big fan of uber touristy areas, but there’s just something about this photo. I think it’s the ice cream cone man in the corner that I really like. The pedestrian traffic is impressive at Pier 39, and I believe that it is the top tourist attraction in San Francisco. With a city as beautiful as San Francisco is, that’s saying something!

San Francisco is so beautiful, and I’ve taken more photos of it there than any place on earth perhaps, so I’ve decided to include an honorable mention photo. This photo is taken on Columbus Avenue in North Beach, looking back toward the Transamerica Pyramid. You can view it after the jump. >>Continue Reading This Article>>

 

Category: Great Places •• Region: San Francisco •• comments

Day 24: Fruitvale Village - Oakland, CA

Eric Fredericks • Wednesday July 25, 2007

Fruitvale Village has to be one of the most beautiful transit oriented developments in the country. This was the first photo I shot walking off of the train at the Fruitvale BART Station, and it just happened to be my favorite. I got an exclusive tour of the village from one of the site developers and wrote about it in a previous article. I also posted a few additional photos there.

While I certainly had my criticisms of project, I think it is one of the best TODs I’ve seen in person. It looks so beautiful. If you take a tour of the Bay Area on BART, be sure to stop at this station. The rest of Oakland isn’t half bad itself.

This article is a part of the Exploring the Walkability of America in 30 Days photo series.

 

Category: TOD •• Region: San Francisco •• comments

Day 2: Post-Football Game Walking - Berkeley, CA

Eric Fredericks • Tuesday July 3, 2007

Berkeley is one of my favorite cities in the world, and it was rather difficult for me to pick out my favorite. This photo was the most striking to me – perhaps more so when viewed in full-screen mode. It takes me right back to the moment of wandering the neighborhoods of Berkeley following the Cal-Illinois football game in 2005. My Illini had the lead going into the 4th Quarter, but ended up collapsing and losing 35-20. I was wearing my Illini orange, and the Cal frat guys were razzing us as we left the stadium. These fans pictured were much more polite and I really enjoyed walking through Berkeley despite the tough loss.

You can also view an “honorable mention” photo of Berkeley after the jump. >>Continue Reading This Article>>

 

Category: Pedestrians •• Region: San Francisco •• comments

September Website of the Month: The Urban Commons

Eric Fredericks • Saturday September 30, 2006

The Website of the Month for September we’ve selected is fairly local – just a short hop down the Capitol Corridor to Oakland. The Urban Commons is run by Jesse Hudson who describes the site as “an online journal focused on the politics and culture of city life.” Mr. Hudson attempts to “explore cities and urban life through urbanism, the arts, architecture, transportation and economics.” The site is quite entertaining to read, and tends to focus a lot on Oakland and Bay Area issues. If you’re unfamiliar with Oakland, or maybe have only heard the negatives about it (such as the Oakland Raiders miserable start to the season), then you should definitely visit this site. Oakland has several fantastic neighborhoods. The site also discusses topics related to walkability from all over the world. Mr. Hudson just redesigned the site and it looks fantastic.

The Urban Commons will be considered for the 2006 Walkable Neighborhoods Website of the Year award, along with the past and future recipients of the monthly awards.

 

Category: Site of the Month •• Region: San Francisco •• comments [1]

Fruitvale Village: A Transit-Oriented Development in Oakland, CA

Eric Fredericks • Friday June 9, 2006

This week I had the pleasure of visiting Fruitvale Village, a transit-oriented development at a BART station in Oakland, California. I was part of a group that was given a “behind the scenes” tour of the complex by Jeff Pace. Mr. Pace is the Vice President of Finance & Business Operations at the Unity Council, developers of the site. Here are some interesting facts about Fruitvale Village:

-A 257,000 square foot “transit village� built on former BART parking lots.
-An active, retail-lined connector between the BART station and the neighborhood’s primary retail artery. This Pedestrian Street and plaza also serve as a major community-gathering place.
-Forty-seven units of mixed-income housing.
114,000 square feet of community services (clinic, library, senior center) and office space (including the Unity Council’s headquarters).
-40,000 square feet of neighborhood retail (shops and restaurants).
-150 car parking garage within the buildings (plus a large parking structure for BART).

The village also has some very commendable project goals:

-To strengthen existing community institutions and catalyze neighborhood revitalization – physically, economically and socially.
-To reduce poverty, build assets, and contribute to the local economy – by providing a stable source of jobs and income. >>Continue Reading This Article>>

 

Category: TOD •• Region: San Francisco •• Comments

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