Archive for the ‘urbanism’ Category

August 08, 2011

Phoenix Landmarks…?

by: Ryan Glass

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Ryan Glass: This past 12 months I’ve been blessed with a reason to travel overseas and tour some fantastic cities. Having seen a number of castles, cathedrals, bridges, parks and rail stations, I am most grateful for an expanded sense of how public spaces can both succeed and fail. That said, the first question friends & colleagues ask when I return is always “how was your trip? what was (city) like?”. Inevitably, most people want to hear about the landmark places they expect you to go; “Oh, you were in London? Did you…

July 26, 2011

What’s Happening at Planning and Development at the City of Phoenix?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of sitting down with the Director to Planning and Development at the City of Phoenix, Debra Stark. We talked about all the different things the department is doing to encourage reuse of existing buildings, promote energy efficiency and take away barriers of building for small businesses. Merger of Planning and Historic Preservation with Development Services: The merger of three different but related departments initially occurred because of City budget cuts but according to Debra, it’s proven to be great for collaboration and the streamlining of services. About a year and a…

July 19, 2011

Notes from the Bus: Using Public Transportation and Being a Pedestrian in Arizona

by: Jennifer Gunther

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Jennifer Gunther: Taking the bus, hopping on the light rail and walking have been my usual means of navigating the Valley for the past two years. Every mile I have ridden or block I have walked has offered me a unique experience that driving from Point A to Point B could not. Although driving is its own pleasure, public transportation should be a desirable option for all Phoenix-area residents. It is imperative in the desert heat, which is at its most intense this time of year, that Phoenix and its surrounding suburbs reconsider…

July 18, 2011

Phoenix’s Need for New Public Squares

by: Will Novak

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Will Novak: Phoenix’s park system is something of an enigma: part of it is breathtakingly wonderful, the other part embarrassing. The City’s desert and mountain preserve system is world class and a jewel all Phoenicians should be proud of. However, Phoenix’s “traditional” parks and squares are poorly designed and often don’t even exist where you’d expect to find them. Phoenix has four areas that are either urban or semi-urban (Downtown, Midtown, Uptown & Biltmore), and not a single one of them has a well-designed urban park at their heart. In order for each…

July 17, 2011

What’s All the Haboob About?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet The haboob last week was a sight to see! Thankfully it didn’t do much damage, but it did start me thinking about the intensity of the dust storm and the fact that so little rain was associated with it here in Phoenix. I wrote a series exploring the haboob and its possible connections to urbanization for Firefly Living. Take a look: What’s All the Haboob About? Part I and What’s All the Haboob About? Part II Photo Credit: Photo of the July 2011 haboob by Daniel Bryant.

July 12, 2011

3 Fallacies About Scottsdale Followed by 3 Possibilities

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet I’m currently reading Jill Bolte Taylor’s book, “My Stroke of Insight” about her experience with a stroke that left her with only the right side of her brain functioning. Having lost the use of her left brain, she found out first hand what it was responsible for. One of the things the left part of our brains does is judge whether something is good or bad, right or wrong. For example, Jill, since her childhood, hated squash. But because of her stroke, she sort of forgot that and tried squash again in her adulthood and now she loves it….

July 11, 2011

Getting to Know Phoenix’s Roosevelt Neighborhood

by: Ryan Glass

Tweet Today’s post is by contributing writer Ryan Glass. Last month I discussed the ideas behind meeting all your needs in a hyper-local environment, specifically with transit-oriented development areas in mind. At the end, I challenged everyone to give it a whirl: “See if you can get everything you need, and some things you don’t really need, without ever getting in your car. I bet you’ll like what you find, and your local business-owners will love the support. “ Feeling a need to put my money where my mouth is, what follows is a case-study in doing just that within…

July 10, 2011

11 Bicycle Films

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet A few weeks ago I watched To Live and Ride in LA at Filmbar, a brand new film about aggressive urban cycling in LA. I walked away from the movie entertained but feeling under-represented. It was all about young men, mostly in their early 20s, who ride fixed gear bikes in traffic in LA and in urban races often without breaks. It was thrilling to watch and the accompanying music was great, but what does that reckless kind of biking have to do with me? Plus all the riders profiled in the movie were men, not a single woman…

June 29, 2011

10 Reasons Why Fast, Simple Ethnic Restaurants Create Urban Vibrancy

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet As I drove into my parking spot at the surface parking lot adjacent to the Marriott in Tucson for the Arizona Historic Preservation Conference last week, I noticed a slew of ethnic restaurants across from me. Right off the bat I saw an Afghani restaurant (Sultan Palace) next to a Vietnamese restaurant (Saigon Pho). And from their signange I could tell they weren’t very fancy, and were more over-the counter sort of places. I was absolutely delighted and started devising ways to hit both spots in the short two days I was in Tucson. But seeing these various fast,…

June 27, 2011

The Arizona Organizing Project Gives Phoenix Homeless a Hand Up

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet The urban garden at the Arizona Organizing Project put in place by the Urban Farm’s Greg Peterson. And urban garden, a bike repair shop and a sewing and mending depot in the heart of Downtown Phoenix might sound like a wonderful entrepreneurial cooperative. That it is, but not for who you might think. These are all enterprise training modules for the homeless in Phoenix who are looking to get out of their current situation. Scott Jacobson, along with partners George Roundy and William Black started offering services to the homeless about a year ago. They began with offering survivorship…