For the long term future of municipal governments, including Toronto, it would be a valuable investment to instal solar roofs or green roofs on all of its public facilities where possible - schools, office buildings, or indoor ice rinks and pools.
While initial capital costs would be expensive, over the extended period the city would reduce its need for coal powered energy, creating buildings that are, at the very least, self-sustaining for their energy use. While the provincial or federal governments likely need to supply the capital costs, setting aside capital costs for solar and green roofs supports their efforts towards meeting energy efficiency demands and other guidelines like the Kyoto protocol. This support and infrastructure looks good to voters, and citizens will see the long-term investment in their community.
There are currently many projects in Toronto currently in the works and finished:
Sick Kids Hospital - "Canada's first hospital-based solar thermal energy site to be installed at SickKids"
Toronto Schools to Power Up Rooftops
City of Toronto: Green Roof Pilot Program
List of examples of green roofs in Toronto
Green Roof Planned for Victoria Park Subway
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Montreal
I have returned froma weekend in Montreal and noticed several things that the city did right.
The street furniture on Sherbrooke is fantastic - planters are built into them, and they feature an interesting design. The benches are nice, cozy, and shaded by the trees on the street.
In a couple areas of Montreal, the street and sidewalk were forged together, creating an area that was mainly for pedestrians, but also allowed for cars. The cars are forced to drive more slowly, as the whole street is essentially a sidewalk.
Two or three parking spaces were removed in a street to allow for bike parking.
On a one way street, a whole lane was taken out that was strictly for bikes. The cars next to the bike lanes were parked.This kind of development could easily be done on a road like Adelaide or Richmond through downtown Toronto. It would create a nice bike thoroughfare.
And Habitat was beautiful and fascinating. On its own, it is an incredible piece of dense housing and architecture (and a neat place to live). It is impossible to tell where one unit ends and another begins. What is not told in these pictures, however, is that Habitat is severely isolated on a peninsula. It is virtually impossible to walk there and is located on what is essentially a highway. While it may be served by buses, it is unfortunately not easily accessible.
The street furniture on Sherbrooke is fantastic - planters are built into them, and they feature an interesting design. The benches are nice, cozy, and shaded by the trees on the street.
In a couple areas of Montreal, the street and sidewalk were forged together, creating an area that was mainly for pedestrians, but also allowed for cars. The cars are forced to drive more slowly, as the whole street is essentially a sidewalk.
Two or three parking spaces were removed in a street to allow for bike parking.
On a one way street, a whole lane was taken out that was strictly for bikes. The cars next to the bike lanes were parked.This kind of development could easily be done on a road like Adelaide or Richmond through downtown Toronto. It would create a nice bike thoroughfare.
And Habitat was beautiful and fascinating. On its own, it is an incredible piece of dense housing and architecture (and a neat place to live). It is impossible to tell where one unit ends and another begins. What is not told in these pictures, however, is that Habitat is severely isolated on a peninsula. It is virtually impossible to walk there and is located on what is essentially a highway. While it may be served by buses, it is unfortunately not easily accessible.
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