Authors
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problogic
- Tuesday Tunes: Out-of-this-world rock band names
- Riding the rails of interstellar discovery at the Very Large Array
- Majestic “mesa” cities and towns around the globe
- Canada’s next supergroup – A Short Walk to Pluto
- Two migration tales of strength, hardship, and tenacity
- An out-of-this-world visit to the Very Large Array (VLA)
- Albuquerque is a national leader in water conservation
- The buzz about America’s “bee-friendly” cities
- Tallest buildings of Greater Washington, DC
- New Mexico’s protected wildlife areas along the Rio Grande
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Category Archives: Housing
Living amid an “Ecology of Fear”
I recently read Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster by the late Mike Davis. It is an intriguing book that switches from whimsical to dark and foreboding at the turn of a page. In fact, the … Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, Africa, Animals, archaeology, art, Asia, book reviews, books, branding, business, Canada, Cars, cities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, climate, climate change, commerce, Communications, culture, demographics, density, diversity, economic development, economics, ecosystems, education, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, futurism, geography, Geology, government, Guns, Handguns, health, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, human rights, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, India, industry, infrastructure, injustice, land use, Latin America, literature, marketing, money, movies, music, natural history, nature, opinion, planning, politics, pollution, poverty, psychology, racism, reading, Religion, revitalization, schools, Science, Science fiction, Sexism, Small business, social equity, Social media, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, technology, Television, theaters, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, transportation, Travel, unemployment, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, weather, Wilderness, Wildlife, Women, writing, zoning
Tagged authors, book reviews, books, California, culture, culture wars, diversity, dystopia, environment, extrapolative, fear, geography, history, hope, inclusivness, literature, Los Angeles, maps, Mike Davis, opinion, planning, safety, security, The Ecology of Fear, writing
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Walkable placemaking with outdoor public stairways
Note: – For purposes of this blogpost, stairways, stairs, and stair-steps are used interchangeably. Post updated 2/16/23 _______ The first time it occurred to me that outdoor stairways could be an important walkability tool for cities was while visiting Edinburgh, … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, Alternative transportation, archaeology, architecture, art, book reviews, books, branding, brewpubs, business, cities, civics, coffee shops/cafes, commerce, culture, demographics, diversity, downtown, economic development, economic gardening, Economy, engineering, entertainment, environment, fitness, fun, geography, government, health, Health care, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, literature, logistics, Maps, Mining, mountains, natural history, nature, new urbanism, pictures, placemaking, planning, product design, recreation, revitalization, shopping, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Stairway networks, Statistics, sustainability, third places, topography, tourism, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing
Tagged Bisbee 1000, cities, environment, fun, geography, history, IceMan Climb Competition, land use, planning, recreational stairways, stair-steps, staircases, Stairizona Trail, stairs, stairways, steps, transportation, travel, walkability, walkable
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Three superb and fresh reads about Los Angeles
“These three books will certainly introduce readers to the width and breadth of mighty Los Angeles. If that entity, however you define it, resists a simple explanation, then so be it. For that may be one of the LA’s most endearing and enduring qualities.” Continue reading
Posted in art, book reviews, books, business, Cars, cities, culture, diversity, downtown, economics, entertainment, environment, fun, geography, government, Highway displacement, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, industry, infrastructure, injustice, land use, literature, mountains, movies, Music, natural history, nature, new urbanism, placemaking, planning, pollution, racism, rail, recreation, Renewable Energy, revitalization, skylines, social equity, songs, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, sustainability, technology, Television, third places, topography, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, trucking, urban design, urban planning, walking, weather, Wildlife, writing, zoning
Tagged arts, book reviews, books, Califronia, fresh, LA, literature, Los Angeles, new publications, reading, writing
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Finding “Los Angeles” amid the aura of “LA”
Downtown Los Angeles with the San Gabriel Mountains in the background – Source: unsplash.com Every city is unique unto itself. Just like human beings, cities have their own character, appearance, identity, flaws, attributes, and aesthetics. As a result, no single … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, bicycling, Biking, books, branding, business, Cars, cities, civics, commerce, culture, diversity, downtown, economic development, engineering, entertainment, entrepreneurship, environment, film, fun, geography, highways, hiking, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, land use, literature, Love, mountains, movies, Music, nature, new urbanism, Passenger rail, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, politics, rail, Railroads, recreation, skylines, skyscrapers, songs, spatial design, sprawl, technology, Television, theaters, third places, topography, toponymy, tourism, Trade, traffic, trails, transit, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, writing, zoning
Tagged book reviews, books, California, cities, freeways, geography, history, LA, La La Land, land use, literature, Los Angeles, megacity, movies, planning, shows, Southern California, writing
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America’s most charming walkable neighborhood is in…
Los Angeles! Yes, you read that correctly. The city known for miles of freeways and lengthy traffic jams is also home to what this retired urban planner feels is the most charming walkable neighborhood in the United States. In fact, … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, books, Cars, cities, civics, culture, density, engineering, entertainment, environment, fitness, fun, geography, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, Maps, mountains, nature, new urbanism, parking, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, product design, recreation, skylines, spatial design, technology, third places, topography, tourism, traffic, trails, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, walking, zoning
Tagged architecture, California, cities, design, High Tower Elevator, history, Hollywood Heights, LA, Los Angeles, neighborhoods, planning, stairways, urban design, walkability, walking, walkways
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Ten planning lessons from LA’s South Bay beach cities
We had the pleasure of visiting the three South Bay beach cities of Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach, and Hermosa Beach over the Christmas holiday weekend. Below are ten planning lessons learned from these charming and beautiful communities. Peace! Esplanade nearest … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Alternative energy, Alternative transportation, architecture, bicycling, Biking, branding, business, cities, civics, climate, climate change, commerce, culture, demographics, density, economic development, Economy, ecosystems, electric vehicles, entertainment, environment, fun, geography, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, industry, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, nature, pictures, placemaking, planning, pollution, recreation, Renewable Energy, revitalization, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, third places, topography, tourism, trails, transportation, Travel, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, walking, water, zoning
Tagged beaches, California, culture, Hermosa Beach, industry, LA, Los Angeles, Manhattan Beach, Pacific Ocean, Redondo Beach, South Bay, surfing, trails
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Tall Timbers – World’s tallest wooden skyscrapers
*This is a republished and updated article from 2020. In recent years, a new trend in high-rise construction has emerged – the development of skyscrapers constructed largely of wood products (can also referred to as mass timber, cross-laminate timber, and/or engineered-wood). … Continue reading
Posted in architecture, art, Canada, cities, downtown, economic development, environment, Europe, geography, history, Housing, infrastructure, land use, nature, new urbanism, North America, Oceania, placemaking, planning, revitalization, skylines, skyscrapers, spatial design, States, Statistics, sustainability, Travel, urban planning, zoning
Tagged Ascent, Brock Commons, buildings, Carbon 12, cities, cross-laminate timber, engineered wood, fire safety, forte, high-rise, HoHo, Light House, mass timber, Mjøstårnet, Sara cultural Centre, Sensation, SKAIO, skylines, skyscrapers, Terrace House, timber, towers, Treet, wood
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From sea to shining sea of wasteful surface parking lots
The images below depict the extent of wasteful surface parking lots that can be found across the United States at many major sports venues, especially those dedicated to football, baseball, and soccer. Much of the land currently set aside for … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, Alternative transportation, Cars, cities, downtown, economic development, engineering, geography, history, Housing, infrastructure, land use, Maps, parking, Passenger rail, placemaking, planning, Portugal, product design, rail, Railroads, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, technology, third places, tourism, traffic, transit, transportation, Travel, UK, urban design, urban planning, visual pollution, walking
Tagged access, AT&T Stadium, automobiles, Aviva Stadium, cars, cities, design, Dodger Stadium, Europe, Hard Rock Stadium, light rail, Lisbon Stadium, Memorial Coliseum, MetLife Stadium, Murrayfield Stadium, parking, parking lots, Progressive Field, rail, stadiums, Stamford Bridge, State Farm Stadium, surface parking, Toyota Stadium, traffic, US Bank Stadium, USA
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Ten planning lessons from the elegant oasis of Palm Springs
Below are ten (10) planning lessons from the beautiful desert city of Palm Springs, California. Peace! Few places have such a dramatic elevation change in such a short distance (up to 9,000 feet in four miles). This makes Palm Springs’ … Continue reading
Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, bicycling, branding, Cities, civics, climate, commerce, culture, deserts, diversity, downtown, economic development, entertainment, Environment, fun, geography, Geology, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, marketing, mountains, natural history, Nature, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, poverty, recreation, skylines, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, third places, topography, tourism, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, urban design, Urban Gondolas, urban planning, visual pollution, walking, weather, xeriscaping, zoning
Tagged architecture, California, desert, design, fashion, mid-century modern, Palm Springs, planning, tourism, travel
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