Archive for September, 2012

September 28, 2012

Open House this Weekend and More Updates on the David Wright House

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Here are a few important updates on the David Wright House: 1. As a note of interest regarding the attitude of the current owner and his disregard for the public interest in his new acquisition, Jim McPherson reports that, “the current owner of the David & Gladys Wright House invited PHOENIX Mayor Greg Stanton and guests to tour the building and grounds today…the mayor and a few others from the State Historic Preservation Office, Planning Commission, and Historic Preservation Commission (stood) in front of the chain link fence. They couldn’t get in. The property owner did not show up. He did…

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September 26, 2012

Concerns Regarding the Proposed Circle K on Roosevelt and 7th Street

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Circle K is proposing a new 16-bay location on the southeast corner of Roosevelt and 7th Street. There will be a public meeting regarding a use permit for the alcohol sales of this new Circle K tomorrow, Thursday September 27th, at 9am at Assembly Room C of the Phoenix City Hall on 200 W. Washington Street. Kevin Rille, President of the Evans Churchill Community Association, is concerned about this new Circle K in his neighborhood. Below, he tells us why: Blooming Rock: Do you think that the proposed Circle K is good for the neighborhood? Kevin Rille: It was…

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September 24, 2012

What’s Around Housing in Phoenix’s Urban Core Matters!

by: Ryan Glass

Tweet Why does it seem like developers drop down an apartment building in the urban core and overlook the rest of the area within walking distance.  Do they expect that what’s around it won’t really matter to (potential) residents? It’s lease renewal time at Casa Awesomesauce (population 2 humans and 1 troublesome puppy), thus we’ve been looking around and weighing our options before committing to another 12 months at our current residence.  Truth be told, there have been a few interactions with the new management company that didn’t go the way we would have liked them to, and for the…

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September 19, 2012

Historic Preservation Commission Unanimously Recommends Landmark Designatation for the David Wright House

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Yesterday afternoon as a full house with an electric atmosphere at the Historic Preservation Commission meeting at Phoenix City Hall, surprising many of the commissioners who’re used to seeing only a handful of seats taken at these meetings. Everyone was there for the landmark designation recommendation for the David Wright House. It’s a no brainer that the David Wright House is worthy of a landmark designation, but the rub lies in that the owner has not given permission for this designation. And in Phoenix, we don’t normally go through with a historic preservation designation without the owner’s approval due…

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September 12, 2012

An Interview with Andrew Ross, author of Bird on Fire: Lessons from the Least Sustainable City in the World, Part II

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet A while back I interviewed Andrew Ross, the author of Bird on Fire: Lessons from the Least Sustainable City in the World about his book and about his views on Phoenix. I published the first half of the interview on Monday. Below is the second and final part of the interview: Blooming Rock: What are some lessons other cities around the world can learn from your book about Phoenix? Andrew Ross: I think (they can learn from) this pattern of eco-haves and eco-have-nots, which I saw in Phoenix in a very starkly delineated way. It’s a profile that exists…

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September 11, 2012

An Interview with Andrew Ross, author of Bird on Fire: Lessons from the Least Sustainable City in the World, Part I

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Andrew Ross, author of Bird on Fire: Lessons from the Least Sustainable City in the World, made few friends in Phoenix with the title of his book. But that doesn’t mean that Phoenicians shouldn’t read his book or that he didn’t make excellent points that we need to pay attention to. A lot of criticism has been thrown Ross’s way because he’s an outsider finding fault in our fair city. But after having read his book, I have to admit, he knows a lot more about Phoenix than us locals seem to and his insider/outsider perspective is uniquely penetrating. …

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September 07, 2012

My Speech: From Architect to Community Developer

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Yesterday, I gave a talk to the School of Geographic Sciences and Urban Planning Brown Bag Lunch Series. The talk is about how I went from being an architect to becoming a community developer. I thought I’d share it with you: When I was 8 years old I named my 2 goldfish Gorbechev and Reagan. I remember being an avid watcher of the news back then, shortly after my family emigrated here from Mozambique. I was mesmerized by the Iran Contra Affair, learning about places like Nicaragua and people like Oliver North and John Pointdexter. This was my first…

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