September 21, 2011

Valley of the Sunflowers – Enlivening an Empty Lot in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet It’s one thing to complain about the empty lots that plague our city, but it’s a very different thing to actually DO something about it. That’s why I’m so impressed by the A.R.T.S. (Adaptive Reuse of Temporary Space) initiative which aims to activate vacant lots. A.R.T.S. is a project that was spearheaded last April by the Roosevelt CDC and its visionary leaders Cindy Dach and Kenny Barrett. The latest installation of A.R.T.S. is the Valley of the Sunflowers, a field of sunflowers on a 2-acre vacant lot in Downtown Phoenix. Not only will this field be startlingly beautiful in…

September 19, 2011

3 Reasons Why Biking is Preferable instead of Just Doable in my New Neighborhood

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet As you may know, Paul and I moved to Red Mountain, which is just outside the Woodlea Historic Neighborhood, about three weeks ago. We used to live at 3 Palms, in the Avalon neighborhood, between Osborn and Thomas near 16th Street. When we first decided to buy Red Mountain, I knew we’d be a lot closer to my office – Lux Coffeebar. But I didn’t realize how close we’d be to other stuff that we like too. We have one car between the two of us and most days Paul takes it to work. So I have to navigate…

September 14, 2011

Interview with Will Bruder – Third Segment

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Today’s post is the third segment of my interview with architect Will Bruder. If you missed them, make sure to take a look at the first and second segments as well! In today’s segment, Will talks about his vision for transit oriented development in the Valley, what excites him most about our city, the one building type he thinks is in sore need of transformation and finally, who he thinks should be the next mayor of Phoenix. Part VI Will’s vision for transit oriented development: Part VII What excites Will most about Phoenix and the one building type we…

September 13, 2011

Interview with Will Bruder – Second Segment

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Today’s post is the second installment of my interview with one of my favorite architects, Will Bruder. If you missed the first segment, make sure to catch up here. In today’s segment, Will talks about some strategic changes that need to take place to make Phoenix a great city and why he calls Phoenix home. Part IV What would make Phoenix into a great city: Part V Why Will calls Phoenix his home: Stay tuned tomorrow for the final segment of my interview with Will!

September 12, 2011

Interview with Will Bruder – First Segment

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet One of the reasons I love being a blogger is that I have an excuse to talk with the people I admire most about things I’ve always wanted to ask them. I had such an opportunity two weeks ago with Will Bruder, a world renown architect who is responsible for such architectural masterpieces as the Burton Barr Library, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, the Henkel Headquarters, and the Vale among a myriad of other projects and project types. In Parts I, II and III of the interview, shown below, we talked about the role of the architect in society,…

September 07, 2011

The Red Mountain Report: Before and After

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Here are some before and after shots of Red Mountain: Exterior Before: After: Note: The landscaping will be part of phase II of the renovations. It’ll be in soon and I’ll show you photos when it’s ready! The west unit’s kitchen: Before: After: The east unit’s kitchen Before: After: The east unit’s main bath: Before: After: The east unit’s half bath Before: After: The east unit’s living room Before: After: The east unit’s bedroom Before: After:

September 06, 2011

The Red Mountain Report

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet These past two weeks I’ve been immersed in the Red Mountain renovations. We were lucky to get a tenant one month in advance, but this meant we had a hard deadline of being move-in ready by September 1. This gave us about a one-month time frame to complete renovations on two units. I learned a lot in this whirlwind of activity. I was not only the owner, the designer and the project manager, but I was also the general contractor. I was responsible for finding, hiring, and managing subcontractors to make the renovation happen well and happen on time….

August 24, 2011

Brenda Sperduti on Discovering and Celebrating the Heart and Soul of District 5

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Last week I had the pleasure of speaking with Brenda Sperduti, who is running for the District 5 council seat. We talked about some of the critical issues facing that district, which includes much of Maryvale, such as engaging the area’s large Hispanic population, what to do about the foreclosure crisis and changing the negative rap the west side gets. (A big thanks to Sean Sweat for making this interview possible.) Also, don’t forget to vote this coming Saturday, Monday and Tuesday!!! Blooming Rock: Can you tell us about your vision for West Phoenix? Brenda Sperduti: When it comes…

August 22, 2011

Why We Need to Pay Attention to Pollinators

by: Lane Butler

Tweet Today’s post is by Lane Butler. I heard Lane speak about the importance of pollinators about two weeks ago at the community meeting about a demonstration garden at the Audobon Center. I was blown away by what she said and how little the general public knows about these very important creatures. I asked Lane to summarize her presentation in this guest post so more people can find out what pollinators are and why they are so critical to our future sustainability. Lane is a masters student in Plant Biology at Arizona State University. She is studying how riparian nectar…

August 17, 2011

Venue Projects Hits it Out of the Ballpark with the Windsor/Churn Redevelopment

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet On a hot summer day I drove up to this purple building on 9th Avenue and Pierce looking for my beautician. Photo courtesy of Venue Projects. She had gotten her own place and was starting her own gig. She wasn’t in the purple building but she was in the cute little casita right next to it. When I got out of my car, I noticed all the really cool details that had been added to the original buildings, like corrugated metal planters and awnings and the rusted metal fencing. Plus, the color purple was, of course, hard to miss….