Military planners want to make bases worldwide more walkable

[M II A II R II K]

Military planners want to make bases worldwide more walkable


May 19th, 2012

By Sean Reilly



Read More: http://www.usatoday.com/news/militar...4/1?csp=34news

At military installations, suburban-style sprawl is out and walkable communities are in, under new Defense Department planning guidelines. The guidelines, released this week, call for "compact development" that incorporates mass transit and a mix of residential housing close to shops and other businesses. Energy conservation is a key goal; trees and other greenery should be considered as well. It's "about doing things more efficiently so we can preserve land for future missions," said Dorothy Robyn, deputy undersecretary of Defense for installations and environment. "We think it will improve quality of life, but for us it's also about doing our jobs better."

- The Defense Department has more than 300,000 buildings encompassing 2.2 billion square feet. That physical footprint is about three times the size of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. But if the Pentagon excels at natural land management — its enormous holdings provide habitat to many at-risk species — it hasn't done so well in shaping the installations where hundreds of thousands of service members and their families live. "We have not had a good master planning process," Robyn said. Many bases are "very sprawling, very auto-centric. You have to have to have a car to get around." Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., for example, has 70,000 parking spaces, even though its daily population never exceeds 40,000, she said.

- In development for 18 months, the new guidelines apply to all installation master planning and represent the first thorough rewrite of the Pentagon's policy in a quarter-century. The Defense Department, like other federal agencies, is already under orders from the White House to curb energy use throughout its operations and emphasize sustainable development. The new guidelines build on those requirements, but portray other benefits as well. Transit-oriented development, for example, reduces traffic congestion and lowers the accident rate, the document states. It also promotes healthy communities by encouraging more walking and bicycling. The military has already been trying out some of the new approaches at installations as diverse as Lewis-McChord and Fort Hood, Texas, Gillem said.

.....

[xzmattzx]

Interesting read. Not all military bases are the same, and I'd think that

Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, and the US Naval Academy in Maryland (if that counts as a base). Dover AFB is pretty tight, including the "regular" housing provided, and it seems fairly walkable, although the pizza places and little restaraunts on base aren't necessarily near barrack-style housing (but I'm not entirely sure). MCB Quantico is much more spread out, with housing a couple miles from the main part of the base. I'd think that the roles that these two bases play causes their layouts; Quantico is needed to train Marines, and open land all over the place might be more necessary than on an Air Force Base. Then, the general layout of the main section of the base is spread out. But here, I think going with a more historic-college-campus master plan can work. A campus-like setting is already in place, but the amount of grassy lawns is a little too much, in my opinion. Perhaps a way to densify this with infill to create a more comprehensive campus is the way to go.

I wonder how much security issues will be a factor. Granted, you need permission to be on base (as a civilian) anyway, so it's not like a terrorist can just walk in and put a truck bomb anywhere, but I would think that some buildings need to be spread out for safety.

[mhays]

About time. It's astonishing how behind Joint Base Lewis-McChord is.

[dave8721]

I grew up on Air Force bases and I walked every where. To the parks, pools, shops, movie theaters...etc. Part of that was being a kid whose only option was on foot or on bike being too young to drive and part of that was the 25 (max) mph speed limits and restricted entry making it very safe to do so as a kid.

[Xing]

I also grew up on Air Force Bases, and I found them to be more walkable than most suburban cities, but they still lean toward a more suburban feel. I cant even count how many bases I've been to, but the number is up there.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by dave8721

I grew up on Air Force bases and I walked every where. To the parks, pools, shops, movie theaters...etc. Part of that was being a kid whose only option was on foot or on bike being too young to drive and part of that was the 25 (max) mph speed limits and restricted entry making it very safe to do so as a kid.

I would say that, generally, base housing tends to have better walkability than the rest of the cantonment areas. Schools and recreational activities are generally well-integrated along with some commercial centers (though the PX/BX are as unfriendly as you can get pedestrian-wise). The other portions are what tend to be a lot less walkable. Barracks are not integrated with duty areas and necessitate personal to have cars simply to get to work. Motor pools aren't accessible. Administrative buildings are laid out like a suburban office complex. It goes on.