This document discusses how integrating market realities into community planning can help create better communities. It notes that market research examines the supply and demand factors that shape human activity and the real estate market. These include population demographics, employment trends, infrastructure, and industry shifts. The document cautions that failing to understand market forces can undermine a planning project. It advocates that market research should inform visions, programs, locations, timelines and forms to leverage reality. The document provides two case studies from Middletown, Rhode Island that used market analysis to identify feasible redevelopment options.

1. Integrating Market Realities into your
Community Plan
Darren Mochrie – RKG Associates
David Gray – RKG Associates
Bob Ballou – VHB
Alison Ring, AICP – Town of Middletown, RI

3. market research
what is it?

4. Supply & Demand

5. Supply

6. Size Age
Location
Existing Real Estate

7. Pipeline Projects

8. Rent
Vacancy
Market Conditions

9. Demand

10. Population
Age
Income
Household
Size
Demographics

11. Industry Trends Wages
Establishments Unemployment
Employment Trends

12. Changes in
Human Activity
=
Changes in
Supply & Demand

13. Trends in Human
Activity

14. Declining Household Size
Diversification of
Household Types
Retirement (?) of Baby
Increasing Ethnic
Boomers
Diversity
Demographics

15. Economic Rise of the back office
transition
Old space often poor
match for new
business needs
Business

16. Transit ridership up
Transit funding down
VMT leveling off
Infrastructure crisis
Transportation

17. so what?

18. so what?
i’m a planner.

19. so what?
i’m a planner.
i work in the
real world.

20. change is slow
change is hard
the planner’s reality
politics sometimes
not everyone
trumps
values good planning
good planning

21. market research helps
planners
leverage reality
to create better
communities

22. Case Study
Jim
Anytown

23. Brownfield Site

24. Design Team

25. Charrettes

26. Politics

27. Vision Plan

28. Marketing
RFP
Brownfield
Redevelopment
Opportunity

29. what went wrong?

30. what went wrong?
project lacked
understanding of
market forces

31. Brownfield Site

32. market research
leverages reality

33. how does
market research
shape the plan?

34. vision
& road maps

35. what’s
the program?

36. location really
matters.

37. form follows function.

38. get real—
it’s about the parking.

39. how long
will this take?

40. markets don’t wait.

41. Case Study 1 –
West Main/Coddington Development
Center Master Plan
Middletown, Rhode Island

42. Navy Lodge Study Area
Task:
Find Market-Based Development Alternatives

44. Case Study 2—
Sachuest Beach Pavilion Feasibility
Study
Middletown, Rhode Island

45. Was a new facility feasible?