Tucked away in Fairfax County, Virginia’s extensive park network is one by the name of Brookfield. Fairfax Park Authority maintains an abundance of green space that shields this urbanized county from a state of near 100% buildout. With 43,000 acres managed by either the County, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the regional system (NOVA Parks), or
Whether it offers breathtaking natural features, a historic landmark, or simply a place for viewing other phenomena, a park can serve as an amazing magnet and catalyst for economic development. A destination park—usually state or national, and one that typically requires admission fees to enter—can yield such spinoff economic benefits that it invigorates the neighboring
A strip mall is usually the most predictable and omnipresent of low-density suburban commercial land uses. Every American over the age of ten knows what one looks like: a row of shops, usually low-slung (one-story), a sidewalk linking the storefront entrances, and an abundance of parking out front. They’ve gotten more aesthetic in recent decades,
Potomac Mills, in the heart of the vast Washington DC suburbia that is Northern Virginia, continues to show remarkable resiliency amidst the widespread decline of many—perhaps even most—conventional enclosed shopping malls. Dead and dying malls are, obviously, a familiar subject on this blog; even from the earliest days in the late 2000s, I explored Lafayette
December 2025 has proven to be the most challenging and taxing month for meeting my blogging objectives in at least six years; I rarely struggle to get my five obligatory articles completed like I did here at the end of the year. I am not going to allow January to give me these same challenges,
The last ten days have involved a hiatus from this blog that’s lasted longer than just about any lapse since my Afghanistan days. I have been overseas—and still am—with even more limited Wi-Fi access than I expected, and I didn’t expect much. Therefore, the lapse hasn’t just involved posts, it has included comments, consolidation of
All the contextual evidence suggests that Hagerman, Idaho is a minor city of at least a few thousand people. Viewing a map or aerial, the street grid shows at least forty blocks. People in the metropolis of Boise (almost 100 miles to the northwest) seem to know about the place, at least from my passing
Many, many moons ago, during the breezy period right out of schooling when I lived in Southern Louisiana, I had to evacuate from a hurricane or two. (“Breezy” takes on a new meaning.) Though I was indeed a New Orleans resident during the most ill-fated of hurricanes in anyone’s recent memory—Katrina—I coincidentally was out of
It’s been less than a year since my article on the The Block, a small food hall in Annandale, Virginia (part of the affluent Fairfax County suburbs of Washington DC) generated a fair amount of buzz—at least by my blog’s modest standards. At that time I pointed out that The Block had bucked the trends
It’s hard to find an old single-screen move theater that’s thriving, even in affluent urban areas. When it comes to those walkable, revitalizing main street districts—where people collectively demonstrate their affection for old architecture by refurbishing and repurposing old buildings for niche businesses—the vintage movie theaters from the Golden Age of Cinema should ride the
Tucked away in Fairfax County, Virginia’s extensive park network is one by the name of Brookfield. Fairfax Park Authority maintains an abundance of green space that shields this urbanized county from a state
Whether it offers breathtaking natural features, a historic landmark, or simply a place for viewing other phenomena, a park can serve as an amazing magnet and catalyst for economic development. A destination park—usually
A strip mall is usually the most predictable and omnipresent of low-density suburban commercial land uses. Every American over the age of ten knows what one looks like: a row of shops, usually
Potomac Mills, in the heart of the vast Washington DC suburbia that is Northern Virginia, continues to show remarkable resiliency amidst the widespread decline of many—perhaps even most—conventional enclosed shopping malls. Dead and
December 2025 has proven to be the most challenging and taxing month for meeting my blogging objectives in at least six years; I rarely struggle to get my five obligatory articles completed like
The last ten days have involved a hiatus from this blog that’s lasted longer than just about any lapse since my Afghanistan days. I have been overseas—and still am—with even more limited Wi-Fi
All the contextual evidence suggests that Hagerman, Idaho is a minor city of at least a few thousand people. Viewing a map or aerial, the street grid shows at least forty blocks. People
Many, many moons ago, during the breezy period right out of schooling when I lived in Southern Louisiana, I had to evacuate from a hurricane or two. (“Breezy” takes on a new meaning.)
It’s been less than a year since my article on the The Block, a small food hall in Annandale, Virginia (part of the affluent Fairfax County suburbs of Washington DC) generated a fair
It’s hard to find an old single-screen move theater that’s thriving, even in affluent urban areas. When it comes to those walkable, revitalizing main street districts—where people collectively demonstrate their affection for old