Uploaded on 2014-11-13 by sbratton

In the US, we have both shortages of parking, and poor use of space due to extensive lots. The surfaces are impermeable creating excess run-off and water pollution. They raise temperatures, and are unattractive. Churches, sports arenas, and other sites used once or twice a week for large crowds sit empty much of the time. Even household drive ways and parking spaces are used part of the day. We need better design strategies. In the church case, multiple smaller services reduces the need for acres of asphalt, and a few churches have experimented with grass turf for the Sunday morning only areas. Sports arenas are more of a challenge. Among the possibilities are overlapping users, such as having lots for business or even factory workers to use 9-5 during the week, and then converting them to event sites for nights and week-ends. Another idea (of mine) is to turn some lots into solar fields by raising the collectors over the vehicles slots. There is no reason solar panels need to be right next to the ground. I have seen some attempts at week-day use for recreation like basketball, but often restrooms and benches are missing. All these methods though require a high degree of integration between activities. I think that we spend so much time trying to reduce the amount of driving people are doing, we neglect other strategies for reducing impacts. Incidentally, despite the fact that plain asphalt is boring, even ugly, the neighbors would probably, just out of habit resist solar panels. To make a lot an energy collection site would require serious attention to aesthetics, and revising city zoning. The church is in a "bedroom" community of Nashville, Tennessee. [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14158425164845958.jpg