The "W" Line Opens
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331 Days
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Hello Everyone! This is Bill Spriggs and I have found several news articles, links and blogs that I wanted to share along THE BACK FENCE & beyond in this Wednesday Edition, May 30, 2012. |
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West Corridor, Denver & Region
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[Below: Once again, the Denver Union Station is the heart of the FasTracks system and the West Corridor is one of its arteries].
>Denver Union Station Walking Tour, Saturday, June 2, 2012, 10am This Saturday's tour is special, as it will be the first tour since the opening of the new Light Rail Plaza! On the tour, you'll see and hear about all four aspects of this major project: the transit elements, the public spaces, the renovation of the historic station, and-as you know from following this blog over the past week or so-lots of private-sector developments! Here's how it works: Meet by the flagpole at the corner of 17th and Wynkoop about 9:50am. Whoever shows up, that will be our tour group. The tour starts promptly at 10:00 AM and concludes around 11:00 AM at the new light rail station by the Millennium Bridge. The suggested donation for the tour is $10 per person and all proceeds go to the non-profit Student Chapter of the American Planning Association at the University of Colorado Denver, but you're welcome to attend regardless of what you can donate. So join Join Professor Ken Schroeppel, Univ of Colorado@Denver, for the tour and see you Saturday morning! * * *
HuffingtonPost.com/Denver
Boulder's Evelyn Stevens Wins Exergy Tour, Stakes Claim To Olympic Cycling Berth For Team USA
By John Miller, May 28, 2012
Evelyn Stevens won the Exergy Tour following a final-stage breakaway, firmly cementing her claim to a berth on the U.S. Olympic team for the London Games.
READ MORE...
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National
| TransportationIssuesDaily.com Transportation Bill Excluded from House Summer Legislative Agenda
By Larry Ehl, May 28, 2012
Enacting a new surface transportation bill did not make it onto the list of summer legislative priorities announced last Friday by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. Nor did extending SAFETEA-LU, which expires on July 1, though the memo does mention the House will consider some "stop-gap measures."
Grist.org
The Truth About Renewable energy: Inexpensive, Reliable, and Inexhaustible
By Bill White, May 29, 2012
We've all heard the common myths about renewable energy: It's expensive; it can't be relied upon; there just isn't enough of it to meet our energy needs. But as technological advances and plummeting costs drive explosive growth...real-world experience is shattering long-held assumptions every day. Even ardent supporters of renewables may be surprised by what we're learning.
TheAtlanticcities.com
Why We Pay More For Walkable Neighborhoods By Emily Badger, May 28, 2012 Instinct probably tells you that you'll pay a lot more to live in a downtown apartment, above a grocery store, next to a bar strip and within walking distance of your work place than you will to settle into a comparable home in a bedroom community outside of the city. As this model of compact urban living grows more popular - and every new housing projection reaffirms that it is - walkable places are also growing more expensive... all of this means that truly walkable urban communities are much more economically vibrant than their drivable suburban neighbors.
READ MORE...
MotherNatureNetwork.org
Safe Routes To School Funds on the Chopping Block
By Jenn Savedge, May 29, 2012 Safe Routes to School (SRTS) is a federally-funded national program that aims to make biking and walking to school safer and easier for kids who want to do it. Despite its success, the program funds are now on the Congressional chopping - not in a move to save money, but to redirect those funds to more car-centric projects and activities.
TheAtlanticCities.com
A 30,000-Square-Foot Community Garden, in a Parking Garage
By Sarah DeWeerdt, May 29, 2012
When the organizers of the 1962 Seattle World's Fair imagined the future, they probably didn't envision, among the jet packs and routine space travel, tomatoes growing on the roof of a parking garage.
TheAtlanticCities.com
The Financial Case for Public Art By Dan Rosenfeld, May 28, 2012
Public art in transit-oriented developments presents a valuable marketing opportunity, both for public agencies and private developers. Dollar for dollar, investments in public art may provide the highest financial returns of any funds committed to an aspect of a transit project.
[Comment to below: Just persistent and repetitive advertisements -- the squeaky wheel of consumerism].
ScientificAmerican.com
Why America's Love Affair with Cars Is No Accident
By Jerery Hsu, May 24, 2012 The first commercial self-driving cars may inherit a world already built for automobiles, but they still need to know how to share the road with drivers, bikers and pedestrians, said Peter Stone, director of the Learning Agents Research Group at the University of Texas in Austin READ MORE...
Salon.com
Can Cities Desegregate? By Carl H. Nighengale, May 28, 2012 "Segregation," the preacher paused to let his congregation absorb the full solemnity of his message, "is apparent everywhere." It was December 4, 1910, in Baltimore, Maryland. Members of the largely African American crowd that had gathered in the sanctuary and overflowed onto the steps of the John Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church were grimly aware of what the Reverend Dr. Ernest Lyon was talking about, at least as far as the United States was concerned. READ MORE...
[Note: pls re-read the below article we shared last year - Dec 2011] How Diversity Leads to Economic Growth
Grist.org
Senate Republicans Join House in Second-Guessing Military Leaders on Biofuels By David Roberts, May 25, 2012 Earlier this week, I wrote about the Republican-led House Armed Services Committee voting through a provision that would kill the U.S. military's ambitious biofuels program. Last night, the Senate Armed Services Committee did the same... READ MORE...HumansInDesign.com Humans in the Design of Yellow Lines. May 25, 2012. Ever wonder about those bumpy yellow strips up against the light rail tracks before you board? The technical term is called, "tactile paving" and it seems that there is a whole psychology behind this and other factors; this article does it justice [with pictures, too!]. TheAtlanticCities.com
The Stunning Geography of Incarceration By Emily Badger, May 29, 2012 There are 5,393 carceral facilities in the United States, places where people are held in local jails, state prisons, federal corrections facilities, immigration detention centers - "anywhere where an individual can be sort of confined and locked up," explains Josh Begley, "and, in some of the bigger instances, warehoused in one place." |
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International (when available)
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Af.Reuters.com
Germany Sets New Solar Power Record, Institute Says
By Erik Kirschbaum, May 26, 2012
German solar power plants produced a world record 22 gigawatts of electricity per hour - equal to 20 nuclear power stations at full capacity... the head of a renewable energy think tank said.
READ MORE... Guardian.co.uk
Woman Jailed Over Racist Rant on Underground (Subway).
May 29, 2012 Jacqueline Woodhouse sentenced to 21 weeks in jail for racial abuse of Central line passengers which was posted on YouTube
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Wednesday's Film (when available)
| [I say, old Boy, heading to London for the Olympics? Wow, the instructions are very similar to those in the USA! - Only a hundred years to go before bikes take over the world!!!].
UtilityCycling.org
Learning to Use Bike Sharing Systems
By Melanie Colvavito, May 28, 2012
The City of London has done a fantastic job of explaining and advertising the Barclay's Cycle Hire, which is their local bike sharing system, with this informational video. The video is entirely animated, which gives it an appealing, fun air, and is produced by Transport for London.
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Things you need to know along the West Corridor
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>Denver Union Station Historic Summer Tours, June 14, June 28, July 12, & July 26, 2012 at 4:30pm - 5:30pm
The Denver Union Station Project Authority (DUSPA) will be conducting free guided tours of the Denver Union Station redevelopment site this summer. This guided tour will emphasis the early station history and famous travelers who visited Denver by Train. The tour will also tell visitors about all the exciting new features that will soon be part of, and surround, the historic station. The one-hour tour will start inside the Great Train Hall at the historic station, 1701 Wynkoop Street. Participation is limited to 35 people per tour. To reserve your spot, visit. RSVP here [Scroll down on left]
[Note: in just 11 short months West Corridor residents will be able bike to a West Rail Line station, jump on board with their bikes, get off at Union Station & cycle just six blocks to Coors Field and LEAVE THE CAR BEHIND. But until then, those of you adventurous souls who can commute to downtown, check out the facilities in place this year.] 
2012 schedule of Ride to the Rockies Games June 03, July 01, Aug 05, & Sept 02. All games are Sunday Day games. Over the course of 20 games this season the Rockies along with media partners ROOT SPORTS, 850 KOA and The Denver Post will once again be enlisting players and fans toward making a positive impact on the environment through the 2012 Games of Green initiative. NEXT BIKE TO THE GAME! WHEN: Sunday, June 03, for the game against the LA Dodgers. Bike lot opens at 11:30 a.m. and closes 10 minutes after the game ends.
WHERE: Coors Field, the special Bike to the Game secure parking lot at 21st and Blake St., across from Gate C.
WHAT: Check in at the Bike to the Game Tent at the entrance to the bike lot at 21st and Blake to enter a drawing for great prizes, like a Rockies Batting Practice experience, Rockies tickets, autographed items and more.  >Lakewood, starting Friday, June 08, 2012, 5-9pm; June 09, 10-4pm; June 10, 12-6pm.
Lakewood's celebration of the Arts week starts with a Ribbon-cutting, Arts Exhibit & Community Art Project June 8-9-10. Mark your calendars for the INSPIRE week programs at 40 West Arts! Lakewood's celebration of its arts with a ribbion-cutting and preview of the new 40 West Studios at 7175 West 16th Avenue, Lakewood, Colorado 80214 starts June 08, 2012. The new art studio is located just 0.6 miles - an 11 minute walk, or a 6 minute bike ride from the future Wadsworth Light Rail Station.Click here to learn more Name the Bike Event Contest The RTD FasTracks West Rail Line is having a contest to name a bicycle event to celebrate the opening of their bike path that parallels the "W" Line. Deadline is June 08, 2012
See what happens when you ride a bicycle? Not only do you know you're performing the most efficient form of transportation, you also have this incredible sense of self-awareness of your surroundings which connects you to the community more than driving a car. And, the best part is that you know you're contributing to what builds livable communities. Nice Idea, RTD! Click here to learn more and tell RTD what name you came up with. Currently, this is the only bike map available for the West Corridor
The very popular RTD West Corridor bus tours are back!! All tours will be from 9am to 11am on the 3rd Friday of the month (June thru Sept). Each reservation that is made is for one seat only; please sign-up all attendees individually. You will receive e-mail confirmation within one week of your registration. Click here to register
JUNE 9-15th, 2012 
AUGUST 20-26th, 2012
SEPTEMBER 21-23RD, 2012
Denver Union Station
Construction Cam
Golden Jeffco Station
Construction Cam
Wish You Could Find an Apartment/Condo near a Light Rail Station? As part of TBF's continuing efforts to bring TOD's to the West Corridor & elsewhere, this link from Walk Score.com will now be a permanent feature. Thanks. |
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Commercial Real Estate Assemblages, Land or Buildings Available on The West Corridor
Please note: TBF does not
own or sell any real property.
Prices displayed may not be correct.
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>4917 West 11th Ave Assemblage
>10th Avenue Light Rail Assemblage
>1010 Sheridan Blvd TOD Site
>13th Avenue & Newland St., Light Rail Vacant Land
>5830 West Colfax Ave
>1025 Ammons Complex
>6990 West Colfax Ave Pad Site
THE BACK FENCE supports a corridor wide, regional vision, with individual nodes of unique "places" within that corridor. We hope that the listing of commercial properties available will help to speed this vision to fruition sooner. Learn more about this vision below from the Center for Transit-Oriented Development.
RTD West Rail Line video flyover (entire line from Union Station to the Golden Jeffco Station.
West Corridor Vision
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Things You Need to Know Around the Region
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>What is the Better Block?
The "Better Block" project is a community revitalization effort that temporarily demonstrates how to improve a street with pedestrian and public infrastructure mixed with art, culture, pop-up businesses and street life. For one day, the project will fill vacant storefronts, create pedestrian seating areas, provide landscaping and street furniture, redraw the street, provide live music, and more. Better Block aims to create quick, inexpensive, high-impact changes that lead to permanent solutions for areas in Denver.
>Arvada, Saturday, June 02, 2012, 10am - 2pm
The Colorado Rail Passenger Association & The National Association of Railroad Passengers will hold their spring meeting. The topic: Rail Tourism in Colorado and the Future of Passenger Rail
Standley Lake Public Library
8485 Kipling Street, Arvada, Colorado
For details, contact: James M Souby, President
Colorado Rail Passenger Association (ColoRail)
Denver, CO
303-355-7985
jsouby@comcast.net >Wednesday, June 27, 2012 Bike to Work Day in the Denver Region Get set to win prizes for individual and business challenge categories.
Pedal to Work instead of driving the old burdenmobile.
Remember: A bicycle burn fat and saves you money
A Car burns money and makes you fat. Click here to learn more. |
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