relationship to Keystone Indicators
The following Unique Places keystone indicators are representative of primary measures of the economic success and social attraction of our unique places over the long term. Although there is a strong high-level correlation between our plan for physical development and these indicators, it is recognized that they will often not be directly applicable to individual development plans or to city initiatives.
Infill and Redevelopment Activity: Infill and redevelopment activity is identified as a key indicator because it extends across many of the themes and ideas that are priorities for this Plan. This incorporates a combination of reduced vacant acreage in core areas of the city combined with evidence of increasing comparative development activity (i.e. building permit value) in these areas. In addition to being applied to the entire core area of the city, this combined indicator can also be used to evaluate sub-areas within the overall infill area as well as to support specific infill projects or initiatives. The detailed components of this indicator are described in Appendix F: Keystone Indicator Profiles.
Existing Downtown Measures: Progress toward making Downtown the economic and cultural center of the region will be critical to the overall success of PlanCOS. In this case, the recommended indicators are those already in place and being measured by the organizations responsible for managing the Downtown program and funding initiatives (currently coordinated through the Downtown Partnership). Key measures at this time include:
- New residential units added annually; and
- Value of building permit activity compared with prior years and with the overall city.
Walkscore®, Bikescore®, and Transitscore®: Improving walkability throughout the city is a cornerstone goal of PlanCOS. Increasing bicycle infrastructure and safety is also a major objective, as is taking transit to the next level especially in key activity centers and corridors. Walkscore® and its related Bikescore® and Transitscore® are nationally recognized measures for walkability and bicycle and transit access in communities. These scores can be calculated city-wide, or for areas of focus, and can be compared with other communities. However, because these measures are primarily based on a calculation of land use proximity, and do not account for the quality and design of walkable infrastructure, care should be taken in interpreting the results.