To read more about how sustainable development is the “root of all our problems” check out this entertaining article in the Deweese Report, a free (not surprising) publication put out by the American Policy Center.  The article is off-base in so many ways, I wouldn’t even know where to begin a rebuttal. The conspiratoriall tone is […]
Not to be a negative nanny, or call attention to anything new, i.e. how awful Seattle townhouse development is, but I think it worth calling out those builders who are for the most part leaving nasty, long-lasting blemishes on Seattle’s built environment. This fine example is by Kohary Construction, Inc. You can see many more […]
 A Seattle Times article today discussed the City’s proposal to install parking pay stations at the West Seattle Junction. Businesses and residents are up in arms – how could they!! Especially after the neighborhood fought hard to remove meters a decade ago. Businesses argue that making people pay for parking is bad for business. I […]
Ever notice how many U.S. Post Offices tend to be outdated single-story structures with very little street appeal, particularly in urban areas. Wouldn’t these often auto-oriented, low intensity uses be perfect redevelopment sites? The Post Office at 23rd and Union seems like a good opportunity, as does the one at Broadway, across from a future […]
A DJC article published on July 1 considered the design of Seattle’s waterfront post-Viaduct. Its central premise is that the design of the public space should happen before the alignment of the surface road is determined. Makes sense. This is a rare opportunity to create a space that can take advantage of all the waterfront […]
 I recently visited our fine neighbor to the north – Vancouver, and unfortunately had to do most of my getting around by car. This afforded me lots of time, as I sat in traffic on just about every street I traveled in the Downtown area, to reflect upon Gordon Price’s famous adage that “congestion […]
 FYI – Some talented web activists in Seattle have developed two new forums, one of which is focused on generating ideas for Obama’s Office of Urban Policy. The other is focused on generating ideas for Obama’s Chief Technology Officer. You can go to either forum and comment on ideas already posted or post your […]
 Here are a couple thought-stimulating quotes from a New York Times article from July 2, 2008, “Fuel Prices Shift Math for Life in Far Suburbs”  “More than three-fourths of prospective home buyers are now more inclined to live in an urban area because of fuel prices, according to a recent survey of 903 real […]
  Velib – Paris’ “Bicycle Transit System” San Francisco is finally getting around to updating its 1997 bike plan. It plans to add 34 miles of bike lanes, almost doubling what it currently has. And to do it, they are looking at removing curbside parking and traffic lanes in some cases. That’s what it […]
 In today’s PI… The Landmark Preservation Board voted 8-1 Wednesday to move forward with the nomination of the former Denny’s at 15th Ave NW and NW Market St (in Ballard) and, if the board affirms the decision at its Feb. 6 meeting, demolition would be blocked, preventing Rhapsody Partners from constructing an 8-story 261 […]
Kind of old news, but worth noting…NYC is first city in country to replace on-street parking with bicycle racks http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/trading-car-parking-for-bike-racks/
 Just took a ride on the Seattle Streetcar!, and as we started at Westlake and Stewart, and immediately stopped at Westlake and Stewart, then started, and immediately stopped at Westlake and 6th, then started, and immediately stopped at Westlake and Virginia St, then started, and immediately stopped at Westlake and 7th,… you get the picture…I […]
 View of South Lake Union (courtesy of Seattle Times) Vulcan, Inc wants the City to increase height limits in South Lake Union from 65 and 85 FT to 160 FT to allow for 12-story buildings that would accommodate Amazon when they move from their Beacon Hill and Columbia Tower locations. The City is moving […]
Modular housing in Seattle – is it the right time and place? Inhabit is a Unico demonstration project of modular housing…pretty neat if not a little heavy on the Scandinavian interior design. This kind of modular multifamily housing would likely be cheaper than typical multi-family housing, but they did not have any cost estimates when […]
