The Growing Metropoltan Areas of the Mid-Atlantic

The Mid-Atlantic from Space
From upper L to R: Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. 
(Richmond and Hampton Roads in VA are also partially visible at the far left and lower left parts of the photo respectively)
Image Courtesy of NASA Johnson Space Center

The  Northeast is one of the most populous and most densely populated regions in the United States. This past spring, the Census Bureau released its 2012 population estimates for the nation's metropolitan areas. The estimated population for the largest combined metropolitan areas (CSA's*) in the Northeast was 50,475,854, or approximately 16% of the U.S. population. The Mid-Atlantic accounts for a significant portion of that total, with a population of 39,823,114 in its three major combined metro areas (New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore-Washington D.C.). A table with the 2012 populations of the largest individual metro areas (MSAs) in the region is posted after the break:

Washington's Skyscrapers: The Tallest Buildings in the DC Metro Area

Updated 08/02/13

Washington D.C. is well-known for its uniform skyline of buildings all built up to around the same height, with the few exceptions being a handful of famous monuments and the U.S. Capitol. The main reason that DC (which currently has a population of over 600,000 residents), doesn't have a towering skyline  like other major cities such as New York or San Francisco is the Heights of Buildings Act of 1910. 

The 1910 Act is the most recent of a series of height restrictions, the first of which was put into law by D.C. Commissioners in 1894 in response to DC's first residential "skyscraper," the 14-story/164 ft. Cairo Hotel (now a condominium building known simply as "The Cairo"). The 1910 Act passed by Congress, which is still in force today, states that maximum height for buildings in DC is 90 feet (27 m) on residential streets, 130 feet (40 m) on commercial streets, and 160 feet (49 m) on a small portion of Pennsylvania Ave.

The Cairo, DC's first "skyscraper"

Over the past decade or so (most recently in 2012) there have been numerous attempts to remove or relax the city's height limit. However, there has also been some vocal opposition, particularly from historical preservationists, that skyscrapers would ruin views of the city's iconic monuments. In general, the District government is very supportive of the removal of height limits in order for it to maintain more control over development, and to maximize land usage in a city that is quickly running out of space to grow and where rent is among the highest in the nation. 

Some proposals have suggested removing the limits in only certain parts of the city, such as east of the Anacostia river. As a big fan of DC architecture I personally wouldn't mind seeing the height limits remaining in place. The uniform-height urban "canyons" that exist downtown on major roads such as K Street and Connecticut Ave are unique to this country and projects an image of orderliness that matches DC's status as the seat of the federal government. Paris also has similar height limits in place for most of the city.

Urban Maryland Development Map

Last summer I created a custom Google map of new high-density development projects (residential, retail, and commercial) in the Maryland side of the Washington Metropolitan Area. I used a smaller map, created by the Bethesda/Chevy Chase Regional Services Center for tracking development in Bethesda, as a template. The map is still incomplete, but after investing a ton of time in it I've managed to add locations/info on over 150 projects.

Included in the map are high-density developments (ranging from large scale multiple building mixed-use projects to single residential buildings) including mid-/high-rise buildings (5+ stories) completed since 2005,  under construction, or in planning stages. For each project there is a photo and description of the project. I'm a stickler for accuracy so to my knowledge all of the info is up-to-date and correct. 

My original plan was to cover all of the urban areas in Central MD from the DC suburbs to Baltimore (and maybe DC and Arlington Co./Alexandria), but with the rapid growth this area is experiencing (although it's currently threatened by a looming sequester) that quickly proved to be impractical. Currently the map includes all high-density projects in the following areas:

- Silver Spring (downtown)
- Bethesda (downtown)
- Friendship Heights/Village
- North Bethesda/White Flint
- Wheaton (downtown)
- Rockville (Twinbrook Area)
- Rockville (downtown)
- Rockville (office parks near Shady Grove Rd)
- other random projects

As I mentioned before, I probably won't be adding many more areas in the foreseeable future due to the amount of work involved (adding what I have currently took far longer than I expected it would). I would like to add certain projects in Gaithersburg and Germantown in Montgomery County, as well as College Park/Hyattsville/Riverdale Park, New Carrollton, and National Harbor in Prince George's County though. I will continue to constantly update projects already marked.



View Urban Maryland Development in a larger map

Maryland loses its fourth Fortune 500 Company in as many years

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Yesterday, Hartford, CT-based Aetna announced that it entered into a definitive agreement to buy Bethesda, MD-based Coventry Health Care for $5.7 billion in cash and stock, a move Aetna said would help it expand further into government-backed programs like Medicaid and Medicare. The deal is considered to be a reaction to the Supreme Court ruling upholding President Obama's comprehensive health care reforms and will help Aetna expand into government-based insurance. Unfortunately for Maryland, the deal also means that the state will lose yet another Fortune 500 company.  

The loss of Coventry will be the state's fourth F-500 company loss in four years, leaving Maryland with only three firms on the list of the 500 largest US companies (in terms of annual revenue). Admittedly, Maryland isn't really known for being a business-friendly state (particularly when it comes to large corporations) since its relatively high taxes and regulations, coupled with a liberal government in Annapolis, are often considered hostile to business. To make matters worse, unlike most other liberal states with stiff taxes/regulations, such as California, New Jersey, and Connecticut, Maryland has a large competitor nearby with just the opposite approach to big business. 

Terminology

For the purposes of this blog I've chosen a set of popular definitions for terms that are likely to appear frequently. Of course many of these definitions vary, but these are the most common and straightforward.

Regional Terms

Metro Area: Area consisting of a highly populated city core and its surrounding suburban (and exurban) counties. Included counties must be at most two counties removed from the principal city or have at least 100,000 residents.

Baltimore Metropolitan Area: Baltimore City (MD), Anne Arundel County (MD), Baltimore County (MD), Carroll County (MD), Harford County (MD), Howard County (MD), Queen Anne's County (MD)

Washington Metropolitan Area: Washington, D.C., Calvert County (MD), Charles County (MD), Frederick County (MD), Montgomery County (MD), Prince George's County (MD), Howard County (MD), Arlington County (VA), Fairfax County (VA), Loudoun County (VA), Prince William County (VA), Stafford County (VA), Alexandria and other independent cities in Northern Virginia

Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area: Baltimore Metro Area + Washington Metro Area

Mid-Atlantic: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Washington D.C., [Northern Virginia]*, [West Virginia]*

New England: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut

Northeast: New England + Mid-Atlantic

*The state of Virginia is commonly defined as Southern, but for the purposes of this blog Northern Virginia will counted as part of the Mid-Atlantic, due to its economic and cultural ties to the Washington Metro Area. West Virginia is a very unique state located almost entirely in the rural geographic Appalachian region, but it shares many cultural traits with it's immediate Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern neighbors. For the purposes of this blog it will be defined as Mid-Atlantic.

Locality Definitions

Major Town: 25,000-50,000 residents

Small City: 50,000-100,000

Mid-Sized City: 100,000-500,000 residents

Large City: 500,000+ residents

Low Density: <5,000 residents/sq. mi.

High Density: >5,000 residents/sq. mi.

Welcome

Updated 05/22/13

Welcome to Urban Mid-Atlantic, a blog created to discuss planned and existing transportation projects/infrastructure and high density urban (and suburban) in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. This blog is very experimental and I can’t predict how dedicated I'll be to it, especially considering that I'm not too fond of writing and busy schedule, but I’ll try to make it work.

About Me

I am currently a resident of Germantown, MD, and have spent the majority of my life in Maryland. I've always had a passion for moving vehicles; first it was trains, then planes, then eventually, cars. Hence, I am considerably knowledgeable about these modes of transportation as well as others, including industry, mechanical, and infrastructure information. Over the past 5 or so years I've also developed an appreciation for urban development, smart growth, and building architecture. 

I enjoy exploring urban areas and  cities in the Baltimore-Washington area and beyond. I’m also a political, geographical, and statistics junkie. I'm a big fan of Wikipedia and will admit its my number #1 source for general information. For statistical information I'll mostly use the Census Bureau website. I'm also a news junkie (mostly development, business, local, and political). As far as travel experience, I've visited every state between Massachusetts and Florida on the East Coast multiple times, as well as California.

Despite the name of this blog being "Urban Mid-Atlantic" the majority of the posts here will probably focus on urban/suburban Maryland and Washington D.C., particularly Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties. The Baltimore-Washington Area on a whole will receive significant coverage.