Few cities outside the south are taking steps to cool streets or reduce parking lots even though experts say the reason our cities are hot is because of pavement. Here's what addressing that could look like:
. Shrewsbury is using grant money to analyze existing parking needs and look for ways to reduce pavement.
So Rychel and her husband, Darren Begley, are hosting an asphalt smashing party. About 15 volunteers with the local group,, wield sledge hammers, crowbars and shovels to break up asphalt that covers much of the Rychel Begley yard. Rychel says she thinks the former owners of her home paved for easier maintenance. Paved yards are a trend reported in cities with lots of rental property.“Are we halfway done yet?” asks Begley as he inches up to a straight back.
In dense cities, any significant effort to replace gray surfaces with more green may not be possible without major redesigns.Zimmermann, an architect, described the idea in a 2019for the Urban Land Institute. Zimmermann’s section proposed redeveloping the main shopping area in East Boston, where she lives. Parking lots in front of a grocery store and pharmacy take up a lot of space in this compact neighborhood and add to problems with heat.