Transit-Oriented Development in the United States: Experiences, Challenges, and Prospects (2004)

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

APPENDIX B DEVELOPER INTERVIEW PROTOCOL

B-3 NATIONAL STUDY OF TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT AND JOINT DEVELOPMENT Telephone Survey of Developers A. INTRODUCTION Hello, my name is _____________, and I’m calling today for a study being sponsored by the Transportation Research Board through the Transit Cooperative Research Program. We’re surveying developers involved in transit-oriented and joint development. We’d appreciate a few minutes of your time to help us answer some key questions. (If not, when could I call back that you would have time?) Thank you for agreeing to help. First, I’d like to confirm some basic information about your firm. 1. Firm__________________________________________________________________ 2. Person Providing Information: Name _____________________________________________________________ Title ______________________________________________________________ Address ___________________________________________________________ Phone_____________________________________________________________ E-Mail ____________________________________________________________ Allow me to define what we mean by transit-oriented and joint development. A general definition of TOD is development concentrated around and oriented to transit stations in a manner that promotes transit riding. Rather than a single real-estate project, it represents a collection (usually mix-use) of projects at a neighborhood scale that are oriented to a transit node. Transit joint development is distinguished from TOD mainly by being tied to a specific real-estate project, venture, or brokered deal and involving the direct participation of a public entity, often a transit agency, in revenue streams and sometimes ownership. Joint development often occurs on a transit agency’s property or in its air rights; however, it can also occur on nearby private land if an improvement is physically or functionally integrated with a transit facility.

B. EXPERIENCE Now I’d like to ask some questions about your firm’s experience with transit-oriented and joint development. 3. What types of real estate development does your firm do? I’ll list a number of types; please answer YES or NO to each. For each type, roughly what percentage of total activity or your portfolio does it represent? Percentage Retail
1 YES
0 NO __________ Shopping centers
1 YES
0 NO __________ Office buildings
1 YES
0 NO __________ Industrial
1 YES
0 NO __________ Single family residential
1 YES
0 NO __________ Condos / townhouses
1 YES
0 NO __________ Multifamily residential (market-rate)
1 YES
0 NO __________ Multifamily residential (below market-rate)
1 YES
0 NO __________ Mixed-use development (defined as combination of residential and at least one commercial use)
1 YES
0 NO __________ Institutional uses
1 YES
0 NO __________ Other (please specify):
1 YES
0 NO __________ ____________________________________________________________________ 4. What percentage of your firm’s activity is in the Central Business District (CBD)?
1 CBD
2 Outside CBD 5. Project Experience A. Have you been involved with either of these types of projects (TOD or TJD)?
1 YES
0 NO B. If NO, then have you been involved with infill or mixed-use developments?
1 YES
0 NO If your answer was NO to both of the above, please answer the following questions in terms of how you think you might approach future development of these types of projects. B-4

6. What projects has your firm developed that are similar to what I’ve described as transit-oriented or joint development? We’d like to know about project type and size, setting, and when it occurred. If it is easier, please mail or e-mail this information to us. Type Size CBD / Outside CBD When? ____________________ __________
1 CBD
2 Outside CBD __________ ____________________ __________
1 CBD
2 Outside CBD __________ ____________________ __________
1 CBD
2 Outside CBD __________ __________
1 CBD
2 Outside CBD __________ C. FINANCIAL ISSUES Next, I’d like to ask about how your firm finances transit-oriented and joint development. 7. How does your firm typically finance the debt for TOD and transit joint development? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ 8. Have any equity funds (e.g., pension funds, REIT funds, foundation support) gone toward TOD or joint development that your firm has been involved with? If so, please identify. _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ 9. What characteristics of TOD or joint development have positively affected your ability to obtain equity funds? A. __________________________________________________________________ B. __________________________________________________________________ C. __________________________________________________________________ D. __________________________________________________________________ B-5

10. What characteristics of TOD or joint development have negatively affected your ability to obtain equity funds? A. __________________________________________________________________ B. __________________________________________________________________ C. __________________________________________________________________ D. __________________________________________________________________ 11. From your perspective, how do each of the following lending standards change for transit-oriented and joint development projects versus more “standard” (e.g., auto-oriented or traditional suburban) types of real estate development? Please be as specific as possible. Interest rate___________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Points (for securing loans) _______________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Loan-to-value requirements______________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Debt coverage requirements _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ B-6

12. Please indicate whether or not each of the following factors significantly affects your firm’s willingness to develop a given project, and if it does, its importance to your final decision: IMPORTANCE TO DECISION Significant? Low Moderate High Adjacent to Transit Station
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Mixed Use Development
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Unsubordinated Ground Lease
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 with Public Agency
0 NO Below Local Parking Standards
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Availability of Tax Incentives
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Limited Developer Experience
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 with Proposed Project Type
0 NO Majority of Local /
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Non-Credit Tenants
0 NO Emerging Market
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Public Sector Participation
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Extent of Real Estate Investment
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Activity in Area or Near Site
0 NO Brownfield Issues
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
0 NO Potential Rent Premium for
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Superior Location / Access
0 NO Supportive Land Use
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Designations
0NO Other (specify):
1 YES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 _________________________
0 NO B-7

13. Have there been any successful TOD or joint development projects that have influenced your decision(s) to go forward with development projects?
1 YES
0 NO Identify the successful project(s) that have influenced you: A. __________________________________________________________________ B. __________________________________________________________________ C. __________________________________________________________________ D. __________________________________________________________________ 14. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the financial track record of TOD and joint development projects to date? (Please rate on a scale of 1 to 7.) Poor Medium Good 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 15. Based on your experience as a developer, how would you characterize the role of the following public agencies and individuals in promoting TOD and joint development—as either obstacle, indifference, supporter, or partner? Choose one for each. Obstacle Indifference Supporter Partner Transit agency
1
2
3
4 Redevelopment agency
1
2
3
4 State DOT
1
2
3
4 Metropolitan planning organization
1
2
3
4 Local planning agency
1
2
3
4 Local elected officials
1
2
3
4 B-8

D. RECOMMENDATIONS 16. Finally, we’d appreciate any suggestions (including public policies) regarding what factors would lead your firm to express greater interest in urban or suburban infill, mixed use, or transit-oriented or joint development: _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND ASSISTANCE B-9