Building a Better Bend, a non-profit organization committed to presenting annual lectures focused on Smart Growth Principles, will host a free lecture by Jeffrey Tumlin on Thursday, April 25. Tumlin is a noted transportation planner, principal of Nelson/Nygaard in San Francisco and author of the book Sustainable Transportation Planning: Tools for Creating Healthy, Vibrant and Resilient Communities, published in 2012.
The lecture, to be held at 6:30pm at the Central Oregon Association of Realtors (2112 NE Fourth Street in Bend), is part of the 2013 Healthy Communities Speaker Tour presented by the Oregon Chapter of the American Planning Association and the Oregon Transportation and Growth Management Program. Local sponsors are Building a Better Bend, City Club of Central Oregon, Commute Options, St. Charles Health System, Miller Lumber and TaylorNW.
While visiting Central Oregon for the April 25 lecture, Tumlin will study the region and bring his real-life experience to bear on issues facing the Bend area. His lecture, entitled “Transportation Planning: Minimizing the Impacts of Growth,” will present innovative ideas for sustainable growth and stimulate a discussion about how to apply these ideas locally.
Tumlin has worked for nearly two decades leading plans for transit station areas, downtown revitalization and university campuses. In past and current projects, he has focused on reducing traffic congestion, CO2 emissions and air pollution while boosting economic vitality. He has worked successfully on projects that have accommodated millions of square feet of growth without adding to motor vehicle congestion.
A general theme to Tumlin’s lecture will be that transportation planning objectives are often in contradiction with one another and do not support our larger goals. To better plan for the future, he says, it is important for stakeholders to be clear about what their values are. Many people are attracted to Bend for its accessibility to the outdoors and walkable urban environment, he says, so it follows that transportation planning should focus on accommodating the car while also creating walkable and ecological street designs.
A sustainable transportation plan does more than try to reduce congestion, says Tumlin. “It is important to look not only at what existing residents need but also at what people will want in the future.” In Bend, one of the smallest cities that successfully competes for a talented work force, he says it will be important to look at what the younger demographic wants, which is mainly quality of life.
Tumlin says continued investment in bicycling will be esssential. “Providing infrastructure beyond just arterial bike lanes will become increasingly important in attracting young people who want a car to be optional,” he says. “In addition, Bend will need to find out how it might become denser, to accommodate pedestrian activity, without losing its unique character.”
Tumlin will discuss answers to these issues and more as he shows how sustainable mobility will allow future generations to enjoy the same privileges we do today, while positively impacting Central Oregon’s real estate values, economic vitality, ecological sustainability, and social equity and quality of life outcomes.
Commute Options promotes choices that reduce the impacts of driving alone. For more information about Commute Options, contact Jeff Monson, Executive Director of Commute Options at 541/330-2647 or visit www.commuteoptions.org.
Annissa Anderson is a freelance writer and PR consultant in Bend.
