Quickie - oil spill

While doing some research for a possible oil spill post over at The Louisiana Personal Injury Lawyer blog, I came across some horrifying information about the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989.  Sadly, the precedent of that scenario does not bode well for the Gulf cleanup or for the possibility of BP actually paying for the damaged it caused (or at least helped cause).  

In short, the legal awards against Exxon have been slashed through appeals over the years, from as much as $5 billion, initially, to $500 million.  Furthermore, as of March 2009 - 20 years after the spill - federal and state governments were still seeking $92 million from Exxon to recoup costs of cleanup and restoration, which have been estimated at a total of $1.5 billion.  

Essentially, accidents such as the BP oil spill and Exxon Valdez are being subsidized - subsidized financially by the government entities who are attempting to remediate and restore the devastated environments and subsidized in terms of "negative externalities" by the businesses and individuals have never been fully or will never fully be compensated for the damage done by the spills.

Denver's New Zoning Code is on the Way

Over the past several years, a task force has been working on a massive overhaul of Denver’s zoning code. The drafting process is now complete, and the adoption process is underway. After months of writing, public input, and rewriting, the code will be presented to Denver’s City Council on May 24.

The new version of the zoning code is a comprehensive revision, replacing piecemeal regulation with a consistent, unified vision. The code is “context-based” - it starts with what is already here. It regulates both use and the built environment so that each is consistent with the respective character and composition of Denver’s existing neighborhoods. The code recognizes what is valuable and critical in these neighborhoods and seeks to protect those aspects.

Why is such a drastic overhaul necessary?

• According to the site dedicated to the new code, “Denver's 53-year-old zoning code is broken and needs to be fixed. It suffers from more than a half century of incremental changes that have made it complicated, inconsistent and cumbersome.” 

• Furthermore, the new code is required to make zoning policy more consistent with city planning documents like the Comprehensive Plan and Blueprint Denver. These documents must work together to provide a unified vision and plan for the city that will allow it to deal with economic, environmental, and social issues. 

• Finally, in the 53 years since Denver has adopted a revised code, the philosophy and theory of city planning and land use has changed, turning back toward community-oriented and mixed-use design instead rather than the separate use philosophy characteristic of suburban planning. This renewed emphasis on community affirms the design and growth patterns evident in the city, particularly in Denver’s older neighborhoods. It represents a renewed recognition of the principles that are naturally present in an urban environment. It also represents a commitment to making Denver a city where residents can live sustainable, healthy lifestyles - environmentally, economically, and socially. 

I would encourage you to spend a few moments browsing NewCodeDenver.org. On that site, you can find the draft of the new code, as well as the previous three drafts. You can also read about the process of how those drafts came to be and the people that have worked on or with the Zoning Code Task Force. You can also keep track of events related to the adoption process.

I find land use and zoning both interesting and pertinent because they can dictate so much about daily life - how far you live from the grocery store, whether or not you must drive there, what the houses on your street look like, etc. As such, this code revision stands to have an impact on many of Denver’s residents and businesses at some point, either directly or indirectly. If you have questions about how the new code might impact your home, business, or community, please contact me.

*Originally published at www.davidmcdaniellaw.com.  Material copyright The Law Office of David McDaniel, LLC, 2010.

Lessons from Free Mulch Day!

Today was Denver's annual mulch giveaway.  Each January, the city waste services collect discarded Christmas trees and turn them into mulch, which they give away free to city residents who are willing to come and scoop it themselves.  That in itself is a nice lesson in reuse and recycling.

But the thing that really struck me while I was filling up our bags with free mulch was an interesting confluence of opposing perspectives.  First, there was certainly an air of self-preservation.  The mulch went fast.  The giveaway started at 8:00 am.  At 8:45 as we were leaving, the last of the pile was gone.  Folks were left scraping bits and pieces off the asphalt.  At the same time, though, there was a noticeable atmosphere of community - of sharing, of common purpose, and of civic gratitude.  In addition to the three giant bags of mulch I brought home, the value of the experience certainly made Free Mulch Day a worthy outing.