In the landscape of the American roadway, four colors seem to reign supreme for background signage: green, yellow, orange, and blue. Green (with white lettering) is the status quo across freeways and most municipal markers for value-neutral guidance and wayfinding. Yellow (with black lettering) is most pervasive in signaling a permanent aberration: e.g., a change
I normally offer a disclaimer whenever I write an article about a timely or currently relevant subject. Essentially, these disclaimers all offer the same warning: don’t expect this to become a routine. And, even though my last hot-off-the-press article wasn’t that long ago and generated considerable response, I still won’t get into the habit because,
Cleveland Park in Washington DC is, by almost all metrics, a superlatively walkable neighborhood. Just 2.5 miles northwest of the National Mall and DC’s vast downtown, the neighborhood features finely wrought detached, semi-detached, and multifamily housing, all surrounding a commercial node at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue NW and Ordway Avenue NW. It is one
It’s not my custom to feature two articles in a row with a short video, but what can I say? With these two, I can think of no better way to capture a scenario defined by motion. And, far removed from the desert metropolis of my previous animated article, this one teleports the reader to
Whether by foot or by wheel, the average American encounters a certain red octagon frequently enough that 99% of adults will know what I’m talking about with no additional context. It’s not just that only one commonly occurring icon comes to mind that fits this “red octagon” description—though that’s certainly the case—it the fact
Suburbia of 2026 might feel as middlebrow and car-dominated as it probably did in 1966, even if “suburbanization” was a novel phenomenon back then—a condition just emerging, of which social theorists were not yet fully aware. But the design of residential communities from sixty years ago reveals subtle if powerful differences, judging from the equivalents
I usually visit the south-side suburb of Greenwood annually, upon returning to my hometown of Indianapolis over the holidays. It’s the next town over. Unsurprisingly, I cover it every year or two through an article, devoting considerable attention to the small but mostly intact Old Town neighborhood, where West Main Street intersects Madison Avenue. I’ve
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
Vienna, an incorporated town in northern Virginia, doesn’t have much in the way of a conspicuous downtown—or at least it didn’t until recently. Little by little, it’s getting one, through higher-density infill development. Until recently, the main drag, Maple Avenue (State Route 123), consisted of a mix of small strip malls, repurposed auto-oriented outparcel buildings,
In a move that was probably a huge shock to about four dozen people, World of Beer (WoB), the craft beer aficionado’s dream chain, closed its Indianapolis location shortly after New Year’s Day 2024. Due in no small part to the devastating effect of COVID-19 lockdowns on the restaurant industry, World of Beer is one
In the landscape of the American roadway, four colors seem to reign supreme for background signage: green, yellow, orange, and blue. Green (with white lettering) is the status quo across freeways and most
I normally offer a disclaimer whenever I write an article about a timely or currently relevant subject. Essentially, these disclaimers all offer the same warning: don’t expect this to become a routine. And,
Cleveland Park in Washington DC is, by almost all metrics, a superlatively walkable neighborhood. Just 2.5 miles northwest of the National Mall and DC’s vast downtown, the neighborhood features finely wrought detached, semi-detached,
It’s not my custom to feature two articles in a row with a short video, but what can I say? With these two, I can think of no better way to capture a
Whether by foot or by wheel, the average American encounters a certain red octagon frequently enough that 99% of adults will know what I’m talking about with no additional context. It’s not
Suburbia of 2026 might feel as middlebrow and car-dominated as it probably did in 1966, even if “suburbanization” was a novel phenomenon back then—a condition just emerging, of which social theorists were not
I usually visit the south-side suburb of Greenwood annually, upon returning to my hometown of Indianapolis over the holidays. It’s the next town over. Unsurprisingly, I cover it every year or two through
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.)
Vienna, an incorporated town in northern Virginia, doesn’t have much in the way of a conspicuous downtown—or at least it didn’t until recently. Little by little, it’s getting one, through higher-density infill development.
In a move that was probably a huge shock to about four dozen people, World of Beer (WoB), the craft beer aficionado’s dream chain, closed its Indianapolis location shortly after New Year’s Day