Archive for the ‘sustainability’ Category

September 06, 2010

Greg Stanton on Sustainable Economic Development in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet About three weeks ago, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Deputy Attorney General Greg Stanton and talking with him about a sustainable Phoenix, not only in the environmental sense, but in the economic sense as well. Mr. Stanton is currently working for Attorney General Terry Goddard and is working in support of Mr. Goddard’s gubernatorial race. But he is also seriously thinking about running for Mayor in 2011. Today’s post features Mr. Stanton’s positions on economic development, City North and future growth in Phoenix, among some other things. Stay tuned for the rest of the interview in…

September 01, 2010

Developing a Tree Fund is Crucial to the Future of Phoenix’s Urban Forest

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Today’s post is the fifth installment of the Wednesday Phoenix Tree and Shade Masterplan Series. Today’s installment is about the second step outlined to implement the Masterplan – Preserve, Protect and Increase. As you might recall, Raising Awareness was the first step which I discussed two weeks ago. The final step is Sustainable and Maintainable Infrastructure and that will be the subject of next week’s installment. The goal of the Preserve, Protect and Increase phase is to “Preserve, protect and increase the quality and quantity of trees and vegetation, especially large shade trees in appropriate areas” according to the…

August 31, 2010

Mayor Gordon on his Legacy to Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet This morning, I had the honor of sitting down with City of Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and asking him a few questions about future urban development and sustainability. I had asked readers to send me questions to ask the Mayor and I got many really good ones. Unfortunately, the Mayor’s morning was a particularly busy one and I was only able to speak to him for a short time. But I tried to touch on the topics that matter to my readers in the short time I did have with him. Below is our conversation: Blooming Rock: Would you…

August 25, 2010

Planting the Right Tree in the Right Place and Other Keys to a Healthy Urban Forest

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Last week, in the third installment of the series on the Tree and Shade Masterplan, I promised to talk about steps 2 and 3 in the implementation of the plan. But I’ll talk about those things next Wednesday and this is why: just a few hours ago I had lunch with the authors of the marvelous Tree and Shade Masterplan – Ken Vonderscher, Richard v-C Adkins, and Lysistrata Hall – and I learned so much from them that I wanted to share it with you today, while it’s fresh on my mind. Ken, Richard and Lysistrata all work for…

August 18, 2010

Raising Awareness is a Key First Step towards Restoring the Urban Forest in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet This is the third installment of a month-long Wednesday series on The Phoenix Tree and Shade Master Plan. Part I was all about what an urban forest is and Part II, last Wednesday, was about the multiple benefits of a healthy urban forest. Today I’m going to talk about the first step that the Master Plan has outlined towards restoring the urban forest. This is the vision of the Master Plan for the year 2030: By 2030, the view from the northern ridge lines of South Mountain to the desert washes of the Sonoran Preserve reveals the urban forest…

August 17, 2010

Biking Leads to Leaner People and Leaner Cities

by: Willard Williams

Tweet Today’s post is by Willard Williams Jr. (aka Beau), who used to work with me at an architecture firm in Phoenix and who is now a designer for a residential architect in San Francisco. Beau has more than six years of hands on experience with complex design tools, such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), expertise he has applied to a number of projects. Beau is working towards completing his architectural licensing and one day owning his own firm. Beau rides on two wheels whenever he can. (Look for more on biking in Phoenix on an upcoming Blooming Rock interview…

August 11, 2010

Trees Improve Social Connections, Who Knew?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Today is the second installation in a month-long Wednesday series on The Phoenix Tree and Shade Master Plan. Last week I talked about the concept of the Urban Forest and why it’s important. Today I’m going to try to address this notion quoted in the Master Plan: “(The) General public has a limited understanding of the importance of trees.” This may be why most people have no idea or don’t care that our Phoenix urban forest is being destroyed slowly. Planting trees is not in the forefront of people’s minds when it comes to improving livability. Here’s why trees…

August 10, 2010

Why Your Walk Score is More Important than Granite Countertops

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Our new tenant, Theresa Devine, an interactive arts professor at ASU who just moved here from Chicago was telling me about Walk Score yesterday, a website that generates “a number between 0 and 100 that measures the walkability of any address”. She’s in the market to buy a house in Phoenix, our duplex is just a stop on her journey, and is using this site to determine what neighborhood she wants to live in permanently. She’s living proof that people moving to Phoenix are seeking walkability. In fact, Walk Score claims that there is a dollar value attached to…

August 04, 2010

The Phoenix Tree and Shade Master Plan: Restoring the Urban Forest

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Yesterday, I posted this quote on the Blooming Rock Facebook Fan Page: ‎“One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade.” – Clarence Darrow and I learned from Jo Marie McDonald, vice president of the Phoenix Community Alliance, that there is actually a Tree and Shade Master Plan in place for the City of Phoenix. The first step of this Master Plan is to raise awareness. To help with this, every Wednesday for the next month, I’ll be featuring parts of this document on the Blooming Rock blog. With the crippling budget cuts, the City is too understaffed and…

August 03, 2010

Mick Dalrymple on Interconnectedness and the Urgency of the Environmental Crisis

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet You may know Mick Dalrymple as one of the guys behind aka Green, the first-of-its-kind store that was a resource for green building materials and green education in Scottsdale. I know Mick as a leader in the local green building community. Coming from outside the building industry, Mick’s varied background has given him a wider perspective on what works and what doesn’t. Besides his unique perspective, I also appreciate Mick’s deep knowledge of green building. So many people now may go out and get a green building certification and call themselves experts while not really understanding the basics. But…