3.5 Socioeconomic Statistics

the U.S. It is based on five characteristics of an effective park system: access, investment, acreage, amenities, and equity. The city of Buffalo has partnered up with the TPL to create a master plan that will set the course of parks in Buffalo for now and future generations. The main goal of this plan is to have a park and/or public greenspace within a 10-minute walk (1⁄2 mile) for every resident in the city. As of right now, about 89% of Buffalo residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park, while the national average is at 55%. It is also important to note that there is a race and income disparity in regards to this statistic. Residents in neighborhoods of color have access to 8% less park space per person than the city median and 53% less than those in white neighborhoods. In addition, residents in low-income neighborhoods have access to 8% more park space per person than the city median and 15% less than those in high-income neighborhoods. Our focus area in the University Heights neighborhood is vital in increasing our percentage of residents living within a 10-minute walk of a park, as there is very little to no space available anywhere else in the immediate area due to dense residential neighborhoods. Within our focus area, there is ample room for certain amenities that would increase our ParkScore. Such amenities include basketball courts, a dog park, playgrounds, and a splash pad/sprayground. If we can include these amenities in our area and transform the site into an active public park, it will decrease the high-priority focus area that was highlighted in a map provided by the TPL by almost half. This site needs to be protected in order to move our city up in the rankings, and make it a better place to live no matter what neighborhood you end up in. Data suggests that coronary heart disease and obesity are concerns in the census tracts including and surrounding the site, particularly the latter. Estimated prevalence rates for coronary heart disease for adults aged 18 years and over range from 4.2% to 5.7%. However, the rates are much higher for obesity and physical inactivity. Tracts 46.01 and tract 48 have the lowest estimated prevalence rates of 26.9% and 27.9% for obesity, respectively. The highest two prevalence rates for obesity are 37.4% and 34.9% for tracts 47 and 51, respectively. As for physical inactivity, the lowest estimated prevalence rates come in at 18.9% and 19.8% for census tracts 48 and 45. Similar to the statistics for obesity, tracts 47 and 51 have the highest prevalence rates of 30.2% and 27.3%, respectively. Not only do trails and greenspaces allow people to enjoy the natural environment on a micro level, but they can also improve community health on a larger scale by improving access to the outdoors. Therefore, preserving and developing the Starin Nature Preserve into a trail has immense benefits for community health in the surrounding neighborhoods, and it can connect to the existing Minnesota Linear Park and further connect existing trails.

D. HOME OWNERSHIP VS. HOUSEHOLDS

19Considering the community that will benefit from the Starin Nature Preserve, it is important to know which neighbors are more likely to commit to its long-term maintenance and care versus those who may enjoy it only briefly. Understanding the relationship of owner-occupied and renter-occupied households may enable a more targeted engagement process to determine the design qualities and community values that each type of household is more likely to respond to. In 2019, owner-occupied households made up 64.58% of Erie County households and 40.72% of households in the city of Buffalo.

19 Housing, Renter Occupied, Census Tract 45, Erie, NY. ACS 2019 (5-Year Estimates). Social Explorer. (2019). https:// www.socialexplorer.com/a9676d974c/view.

The 7-tract study area surrounding the Starin Nature Preserve has an average of 61.27% for owner-occupied households, which is 5.3% lower than the county average but 40.3% higher than the city average. Tract 80.03 has the highest rate of owner-occupied households with 88.34%. On the otherhand, tract 47 has the lowest percentage of owner-occupied households of 29.64% due to the higher student population. Renter-occupied households account for 38.73% of households, which is 8.9% higher than the average for Erie County and 41.9% lower than the average for the city of Buffalo. Tract 80.03 has the highest rate of owner-occupied households as well as the lowest percentage of renter-occupied households of 11.66%. The inverse is true for tract 47, which has the highest rate of renter-occupied households of 70.36%. Tract 46.01, which borders University at Buffalo’s South Campus, has the most even distribution of renter- and owner-occupied households with a near 50-50 split. It is important to note that green gentrification and displacement are possible with our plans to preserve and develop the site. The addition of trails and greenspaces can lead to an increase in surrounding property values and rents. People looking to buy homes in the neighboring areas around the Starin Nature Preserve may find it difficult to afford it, and rental households may be particularly affected. Considering the site is in University Heights where a significant number of UB students rent housing, it may cause students to be unable to afford to live there in the future. It is our hope to avoid this issue by implementing equitable community engagement strategies.20

3.6 LAND USE & TRANSPORTATION

The location of the site is significant in that it lies between University Heights and North Buffalo. This offers a unique opportunity to bridge historic physical and social barriers between these two communities. Combined with the state’s current initiatives on expanding trails and greenways, this is a particularly pertinent time for the site to be preserved.

A. LAND USE & ZONING

Currently, the majority of the University Heights neighborhood is located in an N-3 zone, which is considered an urban neighborhood according to Buffalo’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). This zoning code applies to neighborhoods that were originally designed when the streetcar was the primary form of transportation, so it has a classically dense feel to the neighborhood with a mix of both commercial and residential properties. The neighborhood also contains the following zones: D-IL, light industry that popped up around railroads; N-4, single family residential; D-E, educational campus; N-1, urban core; and D-OG, open space. The site itself is zoned D-OG, meaning there are more parks, civic green spaces, or publically accessible areas with trees and landscape framed by an element such as a building facade, trees, or a fence (Buffalo NY, Zoning Map).21

B. COMMUNITY ASSETS

A community asset is a resource that improves a community, and it can include individuals, associations, institutions, physical space, exchange, and culture or history. In the case of our project, commu-

20 Housing, Owner Occupied, Census Tract 45, Erie, NY. ACS 2019 (5-Year Estimates). Social Explorer. (2019). https:// www.socialexplorer.com/a9676d974c/view. 21 Zoning Map, City of Buffalo, Unified Development Ordinance. City of Buffalo. Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning. (2017). https://www.buffalony.gov/DocumentCenter/View/6105/Citywide_Zoning_Map_January2017?bidId=