Category Archives: planning

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

Pendulum Urban Planning – The Wild Ride Between Pro and Anti-development

Posted on March 2, 2019 by

As with nearly every other topic these days, there are strongly held viewpoints in planning circles over development. It seems like either you must be pro-development in all cases, or anti-development in all cases, with no room for middle ground. … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, civility, Communications, culture, diversity, education, gentrification, history, land use, planning, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, urban planning | Leave a comment

Airlines Need to Respect Small and Mid-sized Markets, Too

Posted on February 22, 2019 by

Over the past weekend (Feb.17/18), my wife and I went through airline/airport hell during the latter half of our trip home from a wonderful vacation in Arizona. While we didn’t mind the extra four hours in the sunny Southwest due … Continue reading →

Posted in aerospace, air travel, airport planning, airports, aviation, business, cities, commerce, deregulation, economic development, environment, geography, history, infrastructure, land use, planning, shipping, Statistics, tourism, transportation, Travel, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Snoring and Buttcracks: A Snowstorm Sleepover at O’Hare

Posted on February 18, 2019 by

It’s been a long day…night…day. At the conclusion of our trip to Tucson, Old Man Winter decided to play havoc with airline schedules. A few inches of snow delayed or cancelled many flights in and out of O’Hare International Airport … Continue reading →

Posted in aerospace, air travel, airport planning, airports, aviation, Cities, commerce, infrastructure, planning, product design, tourism, Transportation, Travel | 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

The Descriptive Detail of Inuit Town Names

Posted on December 18, 2018 by

As Inuit town names are being reestablished in the Arctic regions of Canada, Alaska, and Greenland, this author has found them to often be much more interesting and descriptive than the former English or Danish (in Greenland) names. Too often, … Continue reading →

Posted in Arctic, Canada, cities, civics, culture, diversity, environment, Europe, geography, land use, Language, North America, place names, placemaking, planning, topography, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Canada’s Fastest Growing Province/Territory is…

Posted on December 13, 2018 by

No, it is not Pacific sunset British Columbia or energy-rich Alberta. Nor is it Toronto-infused Ontario. As a percentage, the fastest growing province/territory in Canada is the far-north Inuit territory of Nunavut which lodged an impressive a 12.7% increase in … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, cities, civics, demographics, geography, health, Health care, history, Housing, Language, Maps, planning, Statistics, tourism, Travel | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

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 , , , , , | Leave a comment

Geography of Target’s Smaller/Flexible Urban Store Format

Posted on November 26, 2018 by

While visiting Chicago earlier this month, one could hardly miss seeing the influx of major retailers into urban areas. Particularly noticeable was Target with its trending urban and collegiate smaller/flexible format stores popping up over much of the city and … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, architecture, bicycling, Biking, business, cities, commerce, downtown, economic development, gentrification, geography, historic preservation, infrastructure, land use, logistics, Maps, new urbanism, Passenger rail, placemaking, planning, rail, revitalization, shopping, spatial design, Statistics, Trade, transit, transportation, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten Planning Lessons from Detroit’s Eastern Market

Posted on November 8, 2018 by

Anyone fortunate enough to visit engaging Detroit’s Eastern Market knows exactly what I am talking about in this post. Enjoy the list below! Great third places like Detroit’s Eastern Market can and will survive and thrive through both good and … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptive reuse, agriculture, business, cities, commerce, consumerism, culture, economic gardening, economics, entertainment, entrepreneurship, Food, food systems, fun, geography, health, history, infrastructure, land use, placemaking, planning, revitalization, shopping, Small business, social equity, spatial design, sustainability, third places, tourism, Travel, urban planning, walking | Tagged , , | Leave a comment