cities growing smaller 71 (Terry Schwarz) - Cleveland Urban Design ...

Soil-based lead and other environmental toxins are prevalent in Cleveland. Abatement
and remediation efforts are typically tied to redevelopment projects. This kind
of strategic, targeted remediation is essential because the city lacks the resources to
remove environmental pollutants on a comprehensive, city-wide basis. However,
there are many parts of the city with no major development plans on the horizon.
In these neighborhoods, long-term, lower cost remediation strategies are needed
for vacant land and buildings to reduce the exposure of Cleveland residents to toxic
substances. For example, phytoremediation techniques use plants to extract heavy
metals and other pollutants from the soil. Over time, these techniques could gradually
reduce environmental hazards in city neighborhoods, especially on properties
that lack short-term development demand and the resulting resources for environmental
clean-up.
Vacant sites with exposed soil contribute to airborne lead levels in Cleveland
neighborhoods, especially in the summer months when more children are outdoors,
windows are open for ventilation, and dry soils get picked up and blown around in
the wind. In many Cleveland neighborhoods, over 30% of children test positively
for lead poisoning each year. This is a public health crisis and a major social and
economic challenge. Planting low-maintenance native turf grasses on vacant sites is
one technique that would reduce the amount of lead particles that become airborne
and lessen the extent to which Cleveland residents are exposed to lead. Lead is not
the only environmental pollutant that is prevalent in Cleveland. We face challenges
from ozone and fine particulate matter in the air and other contaminants in our soil
and water. Because of the variety and volume of environmental issues that need to be
addressed, Cleveland has the potential to become a major center for remediation research
and development. Experimental soil and water remediation techniques could
be created and tested here on vacant sites throughout the city. The most effective
techniques could then be commercialized for use in other cities.
Residential demolitions have led to significantly reduced population density in
some Cleveland neighborhoods. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Planners and
urban designers tend to oppose de-densification out of a fear that this will lead to
the “suburbanization” of the city. While suburban-style development patterns can in
some cases undermine the character of the city, the statistical reality of Cleveland’s
on-going population decline obligates us to be more flexible and open-minded about
what good urban form means for our city in this period of transition. This year
alone, the city plans to demolish 1,000 houses, creating approximately 110 acres of
additional vacant land. As vacant land continues to grow more prevalent within the
city, we have opportunities to accommodate and integrate urban, suburban, and
even rural development patterns and a wide range of lifestyle choices within the city’s
existing footprint—the dispersion model is taking shape right before our eyes.
cities growing smaller 81