Category Archives: weather

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 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

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

Groundhog Day Special: You survived a polar vortex, when…

Posted on February 1, 2019 by

With Groundhog Day tomorrow, here are a few light-hearted, post-polar vortex thoughts from Northwest Lower Michigan. Please feel free to pass along your fun quips too and they will be added. …20 degrees fahrenheit feels like a frigging heat wave. … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, environment, fun, weather | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Icy Wonders of Nature

Posted on January 26, 2019 by

Living “Up North” in Michigan can present some challenges during the winter months. But, it can also often instill a complete sense of awe and wonder. The beauty of freshly fallen snow, the reflective subtleties created by moonlight on the … Continue reading →

Posted in art, environment, fun, geography, nature, pictures, rivers/watersheds, Science, tourism, Travel, weather | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Let’s stop dissing deserts!

Posted on March 14, 2018 by

In response to a recent post about “transit deserts” on The Market Urbanism Report’s Facebook page, I made the following comment: “I think we need to rethink using the term ‘desert’ to describe an area lacking something. Deserts can be … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Animal rights, Animals, climate change, deserts, diversity, ecosystems, environment, geography, history, land use, nature, planning, Science, sustainability, topography, tourism, Travel, weather, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

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

Michigan’s ‘skyscraper’ coastal sand dunes

Posted on April 25, 2017 by

Michigan is blessed with some of the most beautiful and tallest coastal sand dunes on the planet. Below is a list of the tallest dunes as measured about the level of the adjoining lake elevation, many of these freshwater dunes … Continue reading →

Posted in environment, geography, Geology, hiking, historic preservation, history, Maps, nature, place names, planning, Statistics, topography, tourism, trails, Travel, walking, weather, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Canaries in the climate change coal mine

Posted on January 19, 2017 by

I challenge any partisan climate change denier to travel to Alaska and tell the residents of the 31 communities shown on the map depicted above that climate change isn’t real. It’s easy to sit behind a microphone and blow steam … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, civility, climate change, Climate Change, culture, diversity, economics, environment, geography, health, humanity, land use, Maps, nature, planning, poverty, rivers/watersheds, Science, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Rain shadow cities and planning

Posted on May 15, 2016 by

Rain shadows are a fascinating geological and meteorological phenomenon that results from moisture being squeezed out as weather systems pass over higher elevations on the windward side of the mountains, leaving the leeward side much drier, sometimes even with a … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, climate change, environment, geography, Geology, history, infrastructure, land use, Maps, nature, planning, seasons, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments