It should go without saying that a clear indicator of an effective sign is its ability to communicate its intended message. Whether the sign’s intent is to advertise, to inform, or to admonish, it loses most of its power if its capacity to denote doesn’t come easily or quickly (and quickly nearly always translates to
While it’s easy to derisively brand American suburbia as homogenous and essentially unchanging since it emerged as the preferred settlement pattern for the majority of Americans fifty years ago, we hardly need an intense study to see how much they’ve evolved since the postwar housing boom that began in the late 1940s. In fact, this
One of the biggest yet quietest challenges in managing capital improvement projects is maintaining a basic level of functionality during major upgrades. My suspicion is that the implementation of major capital improvements is usually quiet because—more often than not—these upgrades take place with few disruptions. Think about it: the basic etymology of “infrastructure” reveals how
My latest post is at Urban Indy. Though the focus is on case studies regarding road spurs in Indianapolis, the situation exists in cities across the country. This seemingly unremarkable photo of traffic in downtown Indy shows the easternmost “spur” of Maryland Street, a primary downtown road that was converted to one-way eastbound in the
Long perceived as one of the most automobile-dependent major cities in the country, Houston has made considerable strides in recent years toward diversifying its transportation options. The METRORail line, first proposed (and rejected) in 1983, took decades to develop, largely due to persistent political opposition. However, with a 2001 groundbreaking, the 7.5-mile line, spanning from
Over the past century, the word “blight” has undergone a curious expansion in its denotations. It was originally a botanical term referring to a disease characterized by discoloration, wilting, and eventual death of plant tissues. In contemporary parlance, however, I suspect a far greater number of people use the term in combination with “urban”—a metaphoric
My latest post went up last night on UrbanIndy.com. The issue it features is fairly parochial: a minor collector street on the east side of Indianapolis is far wider than it needs to be. Ritter Avenue, barely four miles long in its entirety, offers a reasonable accommodation for a segment south of East 10th Street,
Inevitably, communities evolve to reflect the personalities of their inhabitants. Such an assertion may come across as glib, and it probably is, but it’s far better than the opposite—when a character of its community seems at odds with its constituents’ goals. A fundamental goal of an effective representative democracy is that local governments allow people
About 36 hours ago I added a new blog post on Urban Indy, which is accessible through this link. It focuses on some putative improvements to Emerson Avenue on the southeast side of Indianapolis. For many in metro Indy, the south side has a reputation that ranges from neutral to negative. By some psychological assessments,
In recent years, the various public and private agencies in Indianapolis have collaborated on the commissioning of public art projects in what would appear to many to be unlikely places: off the side of some the region’s busiest interstate highways. The most prominent location for these installations is along the I-70 corridor connecting the Indianapolis
It should go without saying that a clear indicator of an effective sign is its ability to communicate its intended message. Whether the sign’s intent is to advertise, to inform, or to admonish,
While it’s easy to derisively brand American suburbia as homogenous and essentially unchanging since it emerged as the preferred settlement pattern for the majority of Americans fifty years ago, we hardly need an
One of the biggest yet quietest challenges in managing capital improvement projects is maintaining a basic level of functionality during major upgrades. My suspicion is that the implementation of major capital improvements is
My latest post is at Urban Indy. Though the focus is on case studies regarding road spurs in Indianapolis, the situation exists in cities across the country. This seemingly unremarkable photo of traffic
Long perceived as one of the most automobile-dependent major cities in the country, Houston has made considerable strides in recent years toward diversifying its transportation options. The METRORail line, first proposed (and rejected)
Over the past century, the word “blight” has undergone a curious expansion in its denotations. It was originally a botanical term referring to a disease characterized by discoloration, wilting, and eventual death of
My latest post went up last night on UrbanIndy.com. The issue it features is fairly parochial: a minor collector street on the east side of Indianapolis is far wider than it needs to
Inevitably, communities evolve to reflect the personalities of their inhabitants. Such an assertion may come across as glib, and it probably is, but it’s far better than the opposite—when a character of its
About 36 hours ago I added a new blog post on Urban Indy, which is accessible through this link. It focuses on some putative improvements to Emerson Avenue on the southeast side of
In recent years, the various public and private agencies in Indianapolis have collaborated on the commissioning of public art projects in what would appear to many to be unlikely places: off the side