Posts Tagged ‘shade’

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 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…

June 14, 2011

PCA/DPJ Mayoral Debate

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet If you missed last night’s Mayoral debate sponsored by the Phoenix Community Alliance and the Downtown Phoenix Journal held at the School of Nursing at ASU Downtown, here’s my twitter recap of what was said. Not much was different from the Mayoral debate last Thursday sponsored by the Downtown Voices Coalition except for the fact that Anna Brennan, a candidate that did not make the ballot, was present. Learn more about the major candidates and read the Blooming Rock interviews with Mattox, Stanton and Neely. I’ll be posting my interview with Wes Gullett in the next few days. Note:…

June 09, 2011

Downtown Voices Coalition Mayoral Debate

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet If you missed tonight’s Downtown Voices Coalition Mayoral Debate, here’s my live twitter coverage to give you an idea of what all was said: EVERYBODY is here at tonight’s DVC mayoral debate! Wes Gullett’s vision for Downtown: let’s take it to the next level, commercialize, get government out of the way of small business. Jennifer Wright’s vision for Downtown: we need to look at our whole city, not just Downtown. Doesn’t believe we should invest City $ in DT. Greg Stanton’s vision for Downtown: TIF, strong public education, adaptive reuse code, range of housing, walkability, make it a neighborhood…

April 11, 2011

A Different View on Shade

by: Mick Dalrymple

Tweet Today’s post is by Mick Dalrymple giving us multiple, holistic strategies to protect ourselves and our buildings from the upcoming summer heat! Mick Dalrymple, MIM, MBA, LEED AP BD+C and HOMES, BPI is the ASU project manager for Energize Phoenix, a $25MM federally-funded program to upgrade the downtown Phoenix core for significant energy efficiency savings. Dalrymple launched into the green building and sustainability movement in 2001 as a pro-active response to U.S. national security and energy supply issues. He co-founded the Arizona Chapter of the US Green Building Council and recently completed two terms on the national board. His…

February 09, 2011

The Castaway House – A New Project in Collaboration with The Ranch Mine

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet The Castaway House Project Synopsis: Address: 3932 E. Fairmount Ave. Phoenix, AZ 85018 An existing 1000sf painted concrete masonry house, stripped to the studs, “thrown away” by a speculative owner during the economic downturn creating a blight in the neighborhood. The Ranch Mine acquired the property with investor Cycle Development in the hopes of revitalizing not only the house, but restoring life and vibrancy to the neighborhood. In collaboration, The Ranch Mine and Blooming Rock will completely renovate the existing building and add about 900 sf to the house, while creating an exceptional desert outdoor space. Project Mission: Inclusivity:…

September 15, 2010

Claude Mattox on the Sahara Hotel and the Reversible Lanes

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Today’s post is part II of my interview with Councilman Claude Mattox who is running for Mayor in 2011. If you missed part I of the interview, catch it here. Below is the rest of our conversation: Blooming Rock: This is a question I’m sure you get a lot, what are your views on the reversible lanes? Councilman Mattox: My view of the reversible lanes is that they function the way they are designed. In lieu of having another freeway that runs north and south, they decided to do this (the reversible lanes) 40 years ago. My official position…

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 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…

June 30, 2010

Any Building Lacking Passive Solar Design is a Failure

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet “Beginning in the early 1930’s, Chicago architects Fred and William Keck began a decade-long investigation of south-facing windows in residences that became the first to be called ‘solar houses’. During this same period, two internationally reknowned modern architects, Walter Gropius and Marcel Breur, both applied climatic analysis as major design determinants, as evidenced by generous south-facing and properly shaded windows. Frank Lloyd Wright in his Usonian house designs in Wisconsin and simultaneously in his design of Taliesen West in Arizona, all executed in the late 1930s, ingeniously and appropriately applied climatic design elements to diverse and contrasting climates, giving…