Category Archives: States

Problems with Charter Townships

Posted on October 17, 2019 by

If you are not from Michigan you may have never heard of the term “charter township.” They are different from standard “general law” townships, in that: “Charter township status is a special township classification created by the Michigan Legislature in … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, civics, commerce, demographics, diversity, economic development, geography, government, history, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, planning, racism, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, States, Statistics, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

City/Town Names Based on Indian Band and Tribal Names

Posted on June 10, 2019 by

The following list of cities, towns, villages, hamlets, and unincorporated communities that were named for Native American Indian tribes and or bands. Several ghost towns are also included. This list also includes translation-corrupted names, Anglicized names, as well as native … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, cities, civics, Civil Rights, Communications, culture, diversity, geography, historic preservation, history, humanity, inclusiveness, Native Americans, place names, planning, States, Statistics | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

A Sad Place Where Mass Incarceration Thrives

Posted on June 14, 2018 by

While there are many famous prisons and penitentiaries in the United States including Leavenworth in Kansas, Sing-Sing in New York State, Alcatraz in California, and Huntsville in Texas, there is one county that contains so many prisons, it can rightfully … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, civics, Civil Rights, Economy, geography, government, history, Housing, humanity, infrastructure, land use, pictures, planning, politics, spatial design, States, Statistics | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

360 Degree Orbital Beltway Cities

Posted on January 15, 2018 by

The following list identifies those cities around the globe that are circled by a full orbital expressway system (a.k.a. beltway, ring road, perimeter highway, loop, beltline etc.) encircling the city 360 degrees. Inland cities have an advantage for being included … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Asia, Canada, Cars, China, cities, economic development, Europe, geography, India, infrastructure, land use, Maps, Mexico, North America, Oceania, planning, South America, spatial design, sprawl, States, Trade, transportation, Travel, UK | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

My Amazon HQ2 prediction

Posted on September 21, 2017 by

Ever since Amazon announced they would be establishing a dual headwaters, a virtual cottage industry of predictions and analyses has developed. Everyone has an opinion on what metro will be selected. Here are my thoughts on the subject: My heart would … Continue reading →

Posted in air travel, airports, Biking, branding, Bus transportation, business, Canada, Cities, civics, Climate Change, commerce, Communications, consumerism, culture, economic development, education, entertainment, entrepreneurship, Environment, fun, futurism, geography, Housing, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, logistics, marketing, North America, placemaking, planning, recreation, revitalization, shopping, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, States, Statistics, sustainability, traffic, transit, Transportation, Uncategorized, urban planning | Tagged , | 9 Comments

247 Smart cities and counting…

Posted on June 7, 2017 by

Above is a map of showing the 247 cities to date (as of 6/6/17) where the mayor has pledged their city will adhere to the Paris Climate Accord commitments on greenhouse gases. I am very proud to say our own … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, Advocacy, Alternative energy, branding, cities, climate change, culture, education, environment, geography, government, health, humanity, Maps, nature, planning, politics, pollution, Renewable Energy, States, sustainability, transportation, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Major US suburbs with most murders

Posted on October 6, 2016 by

Some sobering statistics from the FBI for major suburbs in the United States. Nine of these 12 cities have seen a rise in murders over the 2015 data and this year has several months remaining. It is worthy to note … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, civics, civility, States, Statistics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Birthplace geography of iconic pop/soda/cola brands

Posted on September 12, 2016 by

The following list identifies well-known soft drink brands (pops, sodas, and colas) from across much of North America. The criteria for inclusion in the list includes: Founded a minimum of 40 years ago – Vernor’s leading the way at 150 … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, branding, Canada, commerce, consumerism, culture, economic development, economic gardening, Food, fun, geography, history, Maps, marketing, Mexico, North America, product design, States, Statistics | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Cool map of Can-Am megaregions

Posted on August 10, 2016 by

Found this very cool map of American and Canadian mega-regions on wikipedia.

Posted in Canada, cities, demographics, economic development, fun, geography, history, land use, Maps, North America, planning, spatial design, sprawl, States, Statistics | Tagged | 1 Comment

“Brainbelt” cities

Posted on May 31, 2016 by

I recently completed reading an interested and insightful book entitled The Smartest Places on Earth. Written by Antoine Van Agtmael and Fred Bakker, the book identifies and concentrates on those Rustbelt cities in the North America and Europe that have … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptive reuse, aerospace, aviation, book reviews, books, branding, business, Canada, Cars, cities, commerce, Communications, culture, economic development, economic gardening, economics, education, energy, environment, Europe, EVs and hybrids, geography, government, health, Health care, history, infrastructure, internet, land use, literature, Maps, Mexico, North America, planning, product design, Renewable Energy, revitalization, schools, Science, Small business, Social media, spatial design, States, technology, Trade, transportation, UK, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments