Category Archives: downtown

Ten Planning Lessons from Albuquerque

Posted on September 18, 2019 by

We have been enjoying an awesome trip to New Mexico. This post about Albuquerque is the first of several that will be written about the state, is residents, and its communities. Paz! The preservation and protection of the original 1706 … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Advocacy, air travel, airport planning, airports, Alternative transportation, architecture, aviation, bicycling, bike sharing, Biking, Bus transportation, cities, civics, colleges, commerce, Cuisine, culture, density, diversity, downtown, economic development, entertainment, fun, geography, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, new urbanism, Passenger rail, placemaking, planning, rail, Railroads, spatial design, sprawl, third places, tourism, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten Planning Lessons from Orlando/Winter Park

Posted on September 3, 2019 by

In terms of diversity and inclusiveness, the Orlando region of today is much improved compared to the Orlando of 50 years ago. Unlike much of the Orlando area, Winter Park has successfully maintained/employed new urbanism, walkability, and traffic calming techniques … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptive reuse, air travel, airport planning, airports, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, Cars, cities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, commerce, culture, downtown, economic development, entertainment, geography, government, historic preservation, history, human rights, inclusiveness, land use, Maps, new urbanism, pictures, placemaking, planning, skylines, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, third places, tourism, traffic, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking, weather | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten Planning Lessons from Traverse City

Posted on August 25, 2019 by

Now that we have lived in Traverse City for almost four years, it is time to list the ten top planning lessons learned from our hometown. Sometimes, evaluation of the places closest to you are the toughest. Smaller cities and … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Advocacy, air travel, branding, cities, civics, civility, commerce, Communications, culture, demographics, diversity, downtown, economic development, education, entertainment, environment, family, gay rights, geography, government, health, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, human rights, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, placemaking, planning, politics, poverty, racism, Sexism, social equity, spatial design, sustainability, third places, tourism, transportation, Travel, urban planning, volunteerism, Welcome | 6 Comments

Smaller Cities with Taller Skylines

Posted on July 15, 2019 by

  None of these cities currently exceed 100,000 in population, but they each have a surprising number of tall buildings dotting their downtown area skyline. This post is dedicated to these smaller cities who are reaching for the stars…so to … Continue reading →

Posted in architecture, cities, downtown, economic development, fun, geography, land use, new urbanism, placemaking, planning, skylines, skyscrapers, Statistics | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten+ Planning Lessons from Page, Arizona

Posted on July 1, 2019 by

Some might be wondering where the heck Page, Arizona is located and secondly, how could a town founded in 1957 offer up any planning advice. Well, Page sits close to the Arizona-Utah border where the Glen Canyon Dam was constructed … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, archaeology, architecture, bicycling, cities, civics, commerce, culture, deserts, diversity, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, entertainment, environment, geography, Geology, government, health, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Native Americans, nature, placemaking, planning, spatial design, sprawl, topography, tourism, transportation, Travel, zoning | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ten Planning Lessons from Flagstaff, Arizona

Posted on June 21, 2019 by

Following our recent trip to the beautiful Southwestern United States, here are some thoughts on planning lessons one can learn from impressive and beautiful Flagstaff, Arizona. You can have a physically active and exciting city in a colder-weather, high-altitude environment. … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, archaeology, branding, cities, civics, colleges, culture, deserts, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, environment, fitness, geography, Geology, health, history, infrastructure, land use, Native Americans, Nature, new urbanism, placemaking, planning, recreation, spatial design, third places, topography, tourism, transit, transportation, Travel, weather, zoning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Old West Personified in a Town’s Iconic Name

Posted on March 21, 2019 by

Frontier Towns, Chapter 2: Pecos, Texas Few names portray a better image of the Old West than “Pecos.” The Pecos River is the natural dividing line between central and western Texas, as to the west of this iconic river the … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptive reuse, architecture, books, branding, cartoons, cities, civics, commerce, culture, deserts, downtown, economic development, environment, fun, geography, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Maps, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, recreation, spatial design, topography, tourism, Trade, transportation, Travel, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Town That Was Moved Four Times!

Posted on March 13, 2019 by

The first of our new “Frontier Towns” series is about the historic Great Plains town of Julesburg, Colorado. At the crossroads of multiple important and historic transcontinental routes lies the quaint Great Plains town of Julesburg, Colorado. This classic western … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, architecture, bicycling, Biking, branding, cities, civics, commerce, culture, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, entertainment, environment, film, fun, geography, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Maps, movies, nature, Passenger rail, place names, placemaking, planning, rail, Railroads, recreation, rivers/watersheds, signs, Small business, sustainability, theaters, topography, tourism, Trade, trails, transportation, Travel, urban planning, Welcome | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Flint You Don’t Hear About

Posted on January 15, 2019 by

Flint, Michigan has had a tough couple of decades. If the auto plant closings and shutdowns weren’t enough, terrible decisions by the state legislature and officials under the Snyder administration put its residents in jeopardy. Those same residents will be … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, civics, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, geography, health, Health care, historic preservation, history, Housing, human rights, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, placemaking, planning, pollution, poverty, racism, revitalization, Statistics, third places, tourism, Travel, urban planning, zoning | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Tallest Suburban Skyscrapers of the Midwest

Posted on December 3, 2018 by

Criteria for inclusion in this list: Minimum building height of 200 feet. Must be located outside the city limits of the core city(ies) of the metro area – suburban towers within the main city’s limits are not included. Must be … Continue reading →

Posted in architecture, cities, downtown, economic development, geography, history, Housing, infrastructure, land use, new urbanism, planning, skylines, skyscrapers, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, urban planning, zoning | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments