Building Apartments and Condos to Alleviate San Diego's Housing Problems

The affordability of housing is a difficult issue for San Diego as the costs of housing and rent are reaching beyond what the average person can afford. The problem has become so exacerbated that one has to wonder if it will someday, if not already, have an impact on recruitment and retention by employers that limits future economic growth. The problem of San Diego's housing move beyond surface solutions and more into the fundamental design of the city. Rethinking that design may be helpful in creating a more sustainable future.

San Diego is designed like a suburb but has limited coastal space. Encouraging the development of apartment housing can be beneficial for building up and consolidating people into better managed areas. Instead of wasted space well designed housing can put people in smaller areas without jeopardizing their comfort.

Condos work the same way as apartments. Well designed facilities can not only save space for more housing but also offer opportunities to include fitness, pools, and aesthetically more pleasing grounds. Condos help support property ownership in the city turning renters into buyers who are likely to stay in the city longer

When designed properly apartments can easily convert into condos when neighborhood demographics change. Offering opportunities to switch housing from renter to owner when the market demands it provides the right kind of flexibility in neighborhood management. Having a mix helps create a sense of community where people can stay many years through the different stages of their life.

Empty commercial buildings offer opportunities to develop mini offices for a trendy new crowd of entrepreneurs. Sometimes old commercial buildings can be transformed into housing for urban hipsters. You can find examples of where this worked well in places like Milwaukee and Chicago. Instead of letting buildings run down find new uses for offices, recreation, and housing.

Creating better people management also helps save on San Diego's expensive infrastructure bill. More people in smaller areas means that transportation, roads, water, sewer, electricity, Internet and other infrastructure changes can apply economies of scale allowing for effective use of tax dollars. Getting more bang for government buck is half the battle.

San Diego has suffered its share of droughts, scorching weather, and water shortages. Properly designed apartments and condos can offer green solutions to electricity, water, and land management. Instead of spreading large amounts of concrete  across massive ground space solutions such as natural rooftops, solar panels, water catches, and recycling provides new opportunities saving long-term problems.

Most people love to live in aesthetically beautiful places that offer park like atmospheres, fountains, green space, and social areas. Apartments and condos can offer something previous single-family housing could not. Within arms reach people can have all of the aesthetically pleasing amenities and daily services they need making complexes more appealing.

Cost is based on demand and supply. There is a shortage of housing that is jacking up the cost of living for people and this is limiting the opportunities of businesses to recruit and retain qualified candidates. Offering more housing at different price points helps to alleviate that problem for different demographics. Without new spaces the price will continue to limit San Diego's opportunities.

In city management there are no easy solutions and most will take years if not decades to effectively convert. However, by having a general plan of action helps to start making the right zoning, permit, infrastructure decisions that develop a more sustainable tomorrow. The trends in urbanization and its appeal among a new generation isn't likely to change soon and making better use of time and resources helps in alleviating the cost of housing and city management in the future.

Policy and Infrastructure Improves National Growth

The development of nations occurs on a constant basis. The policies leaders put in place have a huge impact on the success of any nation and can have long-lasting impacts. A paper by Carmignani & Chowdhury (2010) discusses how specific and broad focus impacts growth. They elaborate on four scenarios of development and the outcomes of each. 

Positive Growth and Decreasing Inequality: Occurs when there is growth in the economy but greater mobility of the classes. 

Positive Growth and Increasing Inequality: Occurs when there is growth in the economy but that growth impacts one class over another. 

Negative Growth and Decreasing Inequality: Occurs when growth is negative but there is greater mobility among the classes. 

Negative Growth and Inequality: Occurs when growth is negative but it impacts one class over another. 

The authors found through their analysis that strong policies and infrastructure improvements help create the right opportunities for a positive growth and decreasing inequality situation. Countries are not limited by their geographical locations, resources, or population. Any country can improve their standing by having the right policies and infrastructure.

Policies have legal implications for businesses and help create an environment for growth. The way in which companies structure, operate and develop are based in part on how they work within particular environments. Policies should focus on business and employment growth and ensure that the environment allows for proper wealth distribution and class mobility. 

Likewise, the infrastructure of a nation naturally can impact the success of business within a particular environment. Proper infrastructure will help ensure that products move quickly, information is transferred appropriately, and money moves easily. Infrastructure encourages growth from the foundations of an economy.

Carmignani, F. & Chowdhury, A. (2011). Four scenarios of development and the role of economic policy. Journal of Developmental Studies, 47 (3).

Economies Fly High with the Kite Model

International competitiveness doesn’t exist in a vacuum. There are many components such as the internal clusters, national methodology, and the cultural grouping of countries to consider. A paper by Yu-Jen and Hsiao-Fong helps to develop higher levels of understanding of how these factors work together to raise the development properties of a nation (2012). Their work focuses on combining the Flying Geese Theory and The Diamond Model to develop a more holistic framework.

Flying Geese Theory:  The theory was developed by Japanese economist Akamatsu Kaname to categorize countries into leading nations, middle countries, and follower countries (1962). Less advanced countries will attempt to move up in the V pattern but may fall backwards based upon their abilities. The pattern is not set. Countries that adapt new technologies, higher skilled labor, better structures, and greater education will lead the flock.

The Diamond Model:  The Diamond model was developed by Michael Porter (1990) to explain how countries become more competitive. He looked at clusters and history of development. His analysis took into account Factor Conditions, Demand Conditions, Related/Supporting Industries, Firm Development, Government and Chance. The factors work together to create a type of diamond pattern. 

Both theories have their limitations and therefore do not do well in isolation describing concepts of a country in an international market. The Diamond Model can be seen as inner clustered workings of a country while the Flying Geese Theory can be seen as a country working within an international environment. Clusters help create the competitive nature of the country and like geese they jockey with related countries for position. 

The Kite Model seeks to integrate the Diamond and Flying Geese approaches into a more comprehensive framework. A country that develops must compete with others within their group for more influence and access to resources. The Kite Model has the following components:

Body: The integration of all the elements of the kite. 

Frame: Support the kite through infrastructure and human capital. 

Wings: The balance of forces that include international ties and domestic endowments. 

Tail: The fundamental aspects of an economy that allow the economy to rise. This includes government efficiency, law, regulation, political stability, capital formation, investment, ideology, policies etc. 

String: The guiding force of government that encourages movement in a particular direction. 

The largest benefit of the Kite Model is that it doesn’t leave a large gap in the analysis. Clusters, internal/external factors, and the cultural groupings of countries do have an impact on overall success of countries. These do not stand along and influence each other in varying ways. The model is not meant to be a “save all” but does help decision-makers to formalize the various economic components that lead to growth. 

Kaname, A. (1962). Historical pattern of economic growth in developing countries. The Developing Economies, 1 (1). 

Porter, E. (1990). The Competitive Advantage of Nations. Free Press: NY

Yu-Jen, C. & Hsiao-Fong, C. (2012). Kite model for national development strategy. The Journal of Contemporary Management Research, 6 (2).

The Economic Development of Platforms in History

It can sometimes be fun to think of where society is heading. Perhaps it is more wishful thinking than concrete concept but there is often a little bit of science behind projections. If we look at the trends of data development, global warming, and global business trajectories we may find that pressures will create impetus to redevelop the declining urban cores into something more economically and ecologically sustainable. Decision-makers are seeking opportunities to raise economic activity and lower costs while reducing pollution. The next economic platform will be based in the varying pressures of the environment in which it develops.

Economic platforms often mirror city planning through the design and development of a city’s infrastructure. City planning is something that has existed before the Roman Empire all the way back to Plato’s Republic. Europe is full of cities that once started off of the Roman designs and continued to develop beyond these platforms to create mazes of unique chaotic charm. This is one reason why you can find narrow streets mixed with eclectic shopping districts. The American system is newer and may be in the process of transformation. 

Each platform is related to the economic and social needs of the people. In ancient history, early settlements focused on protecting individuals from nature’s elements and predators.  As people moved away from simple hunting- gathering societies and into agrarian existence they naturally sought marketplaces where they could sell their items and seek protection from invading groups. Most cities were located in agricultural land, near waterways, or nestled in easily protected areas.

Eventually cities moved beyond agriculture to include the production of cottage industry goods and industrialization. It was these cottage industries that grew into the mega-corporations of today. This required expansion of slim roadways previously designed for horse and buggy to those that could handle larger vehicles and goods. Airports, railways, industrial complexes, and skyscrapers became part of the mainstream. Those who did not like the industrial core moved out to the suburbs creating economic hubs around cities. The dirty and polluted urban core was abandoned by those who had access to wealth.

The next development of economic platform is not so easily defined and is open to considerable debate. There is greater opportunity to develop the high data and eco-city that reduces its carbon footprint while increasing the economic capacities of its habitants. Old skyscrapers will be rejuvenated, new technology implemented, and suburbs will be drawn back into the city through civic, resource and data connectivity. Sprawl will decline as resources move inward back to their urban centers where strong infrastructure investment can be pointed. 

The eco-city will be designed as an economic hub that uses existing rail and roads with new data systems to create higher connectivity between various components. Wi-Fi, fiber optic cables, mini parks, creative spaces, coffee shops and other improvements will match to larger industrial sectors to interconnect economic activity and development.  A good idea can come from anywhere and businesses will capitalize on them.

As a nation, we were once worried about exploiting our natural resources. We are now more concerned about competing on an international market and will need to match creativity with practical production to develop better products and services. This cannot happen unless the infrastructure of a city encourages creative activity, proper social relationships, and economic advancement. Such economic centers will connect to other areas to draw in physical and virtual resources for development. 

The Information Age is marked more by the rapid and proper use of data streaming into the powerful hands of the individual user. Each person will be more connected to the system and able to control their education, time, economic opportunities, and development. Cities will be better managed with higher levels of interactivity that allow people to work virtually with much less energy. Economic strength will be enhanced through collective effort. 

These systems are based on the ability to provide the platforms needed for economic and ecological growth. Today’s businesses are more information oriented than in the past and use physical resources at a much more efficient pace.  Maximum development will require the connection of the individual to worldwide economic activity through small shop and large organizational pathways. The individual within the larger economic structure will take precedence through greater development of the virtual organization. Education and training will be on the top of the list for human capacity development while greater balance between small and large business will be sought to ensure pipelines of innovative ideas.