For my first blog post in America’s largest city, I introduce a topic that is incredibly small: really nothing more than a label. But it also fits perfectly within its milieu. Strolling down an almost exclusively residential block in the Chelsea neighborhood recently, I came across an apartment building with a huge promotional flag, featuring
A multitude of American cities have experienced resurgences in their urban centers over the last decade. Nonetheless, it typically seems that one city in particular enjoys the lion’s share of favorable publicity for a few years…and then passes the baton to another. New York wore the crown through much of the late 90s, with a
The news over the past few months that Sears Holdings Company is closing a slew (over seventy) of its two primary chains (Sears and Kmart) should come as no surprise to anyone who reads this blog…or anyone with a pulse, for that matter. I’ve rung the death knell on this formerly legendary budget department store
As work commitments prevent me from getting to the sort of articles I want to write, I have to settle for much shorter filler material for the time being. But, unlike most of my blog posts, the photo below is not reflective of any particular location. It could be just about anywhere in the country.
Imagine a major city where owner-occupied, single-family housing dominates the landscape, more than anywhere else in the country. Complete with garages, chimneys, front yards, back yards, one-and-a-half baths (minimum), and more than a few basements. Virtually all the houses sit on lots of equal size, with nearly identical space between them and the exact same
As I prepare for some upcoming significant changes to my blog, I provide a sort of “placeholder” article as make the final modifications, which I will soon publicize. The placeholder motif extends to the content of this blog entry, where a window sign serves much the same purpose within its respective storefront. It’s simply announcing
My latest is up at Urban Indy. It focuses on a charming Victorian double in the historic neighborhood of St. Joseph, immediately north of downtown Indianapolis, perfectly visible in this Google Streetview image. At least, that’s how it looked in the summer of 2009. This is what it looks like now: It’s gone. Demolished. One
Urban murals, once a rarity outside of a few pioneering cities such as Philadelphia, have emerged in the last decade or so as a sine qua non for any big-city civic art initiative. Philadelphia might still be the national (or even global) leader through its Mural Arts Program, but many other cities are trying to
When negotiating the introduction of typically suburban corporate chains in an otherwise urban neighborhood, it typically takes an inordinate amount of fancy footwork. Most American cities have a “Midtown”—either explicitly or implicitly named—that suffered colossal disinvestment from the 1950s onward, or perhaps even as early as the Depression. Now, thanks to their proximity to revitalizing
My latest post is at Urban Indy. It focuses on two small multi-family apartment or townhome developments in Fountain Square and Bates-Hendricks, neighborhoods on the near south side of Indianapolis’ downtown that, while still very gritty, have become increasingly trendy in recent years. Both neighborhoods still have their fair share of dilapidated housing and some
For my first blog post in America’s largest city, I introduce a topic that is incredibly small: really nothing more than a label. But it also fits perfectly within its milieu. Strolling down
A multitude of American cities have experienced resurgences in their urban centers over the last decade. Nonetheless, it typically seems that one city in particular enjoys the lion’s share of favorable publicity for
The news over the past few months that Sears Holdings Company is closing a slew (over seventy) of its two primary chains (Sears and Kmart) should come as no surprise to anyone who
As work commitments prevent me from getting to the sort of articles I want to write, I have to settle for much shorter filler material for the time being. But, unlike most of
Imagine a major city where owner-occupied, single-family housing dominates the landscape, more than anywhere else in the country. Complete with garages, chimneys, front yards, back yards, one-and-a-half baths (minimum), and more than a
As I prepare for some upcoming significant changes to my blog, I provide a sort of “placeholder” article as make the final modifications, which I will soon publicize. The placeholder motif extends to
My latest is up at Urban Indy. It focuses on a charming Victorian double in the historic neighborhood of St. Joseph, immediately north of downtown Indianapolis, perfectly visible in this Google Streetview image.
Urban murals, once a rarity outside of a few pioneering cities such as Philadelphia, have emerged in the last decade or so as a sine qua non for any big-city civic art initiative.
When negotiating the introduction of typically suburban corporate chains in an otherwise urban neighborhood, it typically takes an inordinate amount of fancy footwork. Most American cities have a “Midtown”—either explicitly or implicitly named—that
My latest post is at Urban Indy. It focuses on two small multi-family apartment or townhome developments in Fountain Square and Bates-Hendricks, neighborhoods on the near south side of Indianapolis’ downtown that, while