Splitting the TOD Narrative

I wish there were more stories like this one that start to deconstruct the two narratives for TOD in this economy. The one where real TOD is holding its value better versus the construction of new TOD. I don't think you can compare the keeping of existing home values that are in true TOD versus the issues with constructing it.

As Jeffrey Otteau, a residential analyst, put it in a recent interview, “Nothing has been able to escape the economic and financial collapse we’ve seen over the last year — transit-oriented development included.”

It would be nice to see more of the following statistics in different cities.

“Nine of the top 10 housing markets in the state have rail stations,” Mr. Otteau pointed out in a recent report, adding that “the new tunnel just increases the appeal of downtown living.”

What I would like to see come out of this is more planning so that in the next boom cycle more development is transit oriented. We really need to start thinking about value and allowing people to save money instead of pushing them to spend it in certain sectors such as transportation. That is the whole premise of the green dividend which is one way we need to start thinking about sustainability, that of the pocketbook.