urbanism
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This is Flint, Michigan, in all its pain and all its glory
Buick City parking lot, 2010.Photos: Wes Janz, except when notedCross-posted from Places [at] Design Observer, an online journal of architecture, landscape and urbanism, published in partnership with Design Observer. “Distressed are big chunks of Detroit, Flint, Gary, Chicago, East St. Louis, and Cincinnati.” This is what I wrote after completing the weeklong Midwess Distress Tour with […]
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Peter Calthorpe on why urbanism is the cheapest, smartest way to fight climate change
Peter Calthorpe.Cities may be the trendy topic du jour, but Peter Calthorpe has been talking about the benefits of urbanism since the 1970s. In 1993, he was one of the founders of the Congress for the New Urbanism, an influential national organization that promotes walkable, mixed-use, transit-rich development. Now Calthorpe has come out with a […]
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An arts district brings life to Syracuse — and it’s green, too
Photo: SALT District Cross-posted from the Natural Resources Defense Council. Coauthored by Aaron Welch. Take one part Paducah (arts-driven revitalization), one part Old North Saint Louis (incremental restoration of abandoned historic properties), mix in some serious winter weather, and you might just come out with something a lot like the Syracuse (NY) SALT District, an […]
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Keep the Solar Decathlon on the National Mall!
The Solar Decathlon on the National Mall in 2009.Photo: NREL Solar DecathlonThe National Mall has long served as the nation’s front yard, a place where citizens can gather and display what’s important to them — whether it’s a protest to end wars, a rally to restore sanity, or even a celebration of mid-Atlantic maritime communities. […]
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The soul of a city is in its people
We've got to figure out how to make our cities more livable and sustainable without triggering the seemingly inevitable march of gentrification.
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A failure to communicate: Urbanists should accentuate the positive
Urbanists prattle on about sustainability as if the economic meltdown of the last few years didn't even happen. No wonder it's not working.
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Jerry Brown to live in walkable neighborhood for his new stint as California governor
California's new governor is getting some urbanist love for his choice of dwelling.
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Follow-up on Seattle's proposed deep-bore tunnel
A roundup of basic info on the impending decision to build a huge, car-centric mega-tunnel under downtown Seattle.
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Seattle's impending car-centric mega-tunnel: a chat with urbanist Cary Moon
Despite their ostentatious talk on climate, many Pacific Northwest political leaders don't seem to be making the transportation connection. Nowhere is that more evident than in the fight over how to replace Seattle's crumbling Alaskan Way Viaduct, a two-mile-long elevated stretch of State Route 99 running along the city's waterfront. The alternative with the most momentum is a gigantic bored tunnel -- a concrete-heavy, emissions-intensive, multi-billion-dollar piece of old-school highway infrastructure devoted almost entirely to cars, shuttling suburban drivers past the urban core. Sustainable urbanism advocate Cary Moon explains WTF.