Posts Tagged ‘taz loomans’

December 27, 2010

6 Things Phoenix Could Learn from Bisbee

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet You may think Bisbee, AZ is just a podunk town in the middle of nowhere and what the heck could a big city like Phoenix learn from a no-place like that? Well, to some people’s surprise, they get a whole lotta things right in Bisbee and we could take a few pointers from the tiny town here in our mega metropolis. 1. Go Local There’s a big emphasis on local in Bisbee. I know Bisbee is often seen as a tourist trap, but it’s not. In fact, Bisbee has a very strong and loyal local population that makes sure…

December 21, 2010

Good News for Energy in 2011 from the New Tax Bill

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Many of the federal tax benefits for clean energy and energy efficiency were due to come to an end on December 31. This was bad news for the green economy because these benefits are often what grease the wheels of clean energy and energy efficiency companies. When these benefits expire, green energy companies suffer, contract or go out of business, taking countless green jobs with them. Below is a list of 4 items that are seeing a benefit extension for another year which bodes well for the green economy (at least for another year): The Treasury Grant Program, a…

December 20, 2010

FilmBar Phoenix is Approved – the Adaptive Reuse Code in Action

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Read my post on the newly revived Vanishing Phoenix blog about the City of Phoenix’s Adaptive Reuse Code and it’s role in getting Filmbar Phoenix approved: FilmBar Phoenix is Approved – the Adaptive Reuse Code in Action

December 17, 2010

The Ranch Mine Transforms Old Houses into Custom Homes for Generation Y

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Recently I’ve met a few really talented architecture graduates that haven’t been able to find a job at a firm due to the depressed economy. This may sound like an unfortunate thing, but it turns out that these brilliant graduates are making a much bigger difference right out of school then they ever could have if they just found a job at an architecture firm. An example of a very talented architecture graduate I’ve gotten to know this year is Cavin Costello. He is a Master of Architecture graduate from Northeastern University in Boston and he came out to…

December 14, 2010

What Would Paolo Soleri Do?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet “The mechanisms channeling life positively may consist of the replacement of comfort and security by joy.” – Paolo Soleri in his book Arcology: The City in the Image of Man This weekend was the public dedication of the bridge designed by Paolo Soleri in Scottsdale on the Waterfront. I attended a special VIP reception before the public dedication and snapped a photo of the man himself. The next day, I attended a lecture on Organic Architecture by Alan Hess and a panel discussion on Soleri’s Principles in Action that included Will Bruder, John Munier, Jeffrey Stein and Peter Zweig,…

December 08, 2010

What Cohousing can Teach Us about Urban Planning

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet About a year ago, I was asked to be a part of a cohousing effort here in Phoenix and everything that I learned about community-oriented design inspired me tremendously and has informed much of my thinking about neighborhoods and our city. Cohousing is a very specific model of community living that was originally created in Denmark. A cohousing community usually consists of around 12 to 36 units, is designed by a participatory process led by future residents, has extensive common facilities usually in the form of a common house and is ultimately managed by its residents. But there are…

November 23, 2010

Finally, Sustainable Landscape Standards for the Southwest!

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Janet Waibel, landscape architect and owner of Waibel & Associates Landscape Architecture, has done something remarkable, something no one has every done before. She has written down and compiled best practices and standards for landscape management in the southwest, in particular, the Valley of the Sun. Why is this such a remarkable feat? Simply because no one has ever written such a comprehensive and consensus-based text on this subject. Our climate is so unique that our landscape has very specific and different needs than anywhere else in the country. Sure, over the years people have figured out how best…

November 16, 2010

Goldwater Institute Standing in the Way of Arizona’s Solar Future

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet From the Phoenix Business Journal today: The Goldwater Institute is again trying to overturn the state’s renewable energy standard. The group is in Arizona Court of Appeals today arguing that the Arizona Corporation Commission overstepped its bounds setting a standard that requires utilities to have 15 percent of their power produced by renewable resources by 2025. The case, Miller v. ACC, focuses on a surcharge to Arizona Public Service customers monthly bills and argues that the ACC breached its constitutional mandate in establishing the requirement. A Maricopa County Superior Court judge originally ruled the ACC acted within its authority…

November 08, 2010

Eric Corey Freed Talks about the Urgent Need for Green Building

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Eric Corey Freed, licensed architect, LEED ap practices a very special brand of architecture called organic architecture out of his firm organicarchitect in San Francisco. Early in his career, Eric studied under an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright, gaining an appreciation for and adopting Wright’s philosophy of organic design. In his own practice, he has also become deeply involved in ecological and environmentally responsible architecture drawing from ancient design principles and new technological innovations. He has co-developed the Sustainability Programs at the Academy of Art University and the University of California Berkeley Extension. Eric is the author of four…

November 02, 2010

ASU and the City

by: J Seth Anderson

Tweet Today’s post is by J Seth Anderson, a fantastic writer, journalist and fellow urban advocate for the Valley. Seth (first name is John, but he has always gone by Seth) is not a Phoenix native but dang close! His favorite time of year is summer in Phoenix. Seth lives in a mid-century house in downtown Tempe although he lives and breathes downtown Phoenix historic preservation and development. He writes about downtown Phoenix, historic preservation, politics, and LGBT issues on his own blog Boy Meets Blog. Seth also writes for the new Downtown Phoenix Journal magazine debuting this Thursday, November…