A Placemaking Journal

When my wife and I headed to Europe for our first two-week vacation in 15 years, I don’t think I realized how grouchy I was getting about change adaptation in the US. So much political paralysis. So little leadership. No sense of urgency on issues of huge importance. It was way past time for a getaway to be among grown-ups. ... Continue Reading

Spending time in Victoria Beach, I'm again enjoying one of Manitoba's best examples of Lean Urbanism, experienced with family and friends. Many of you heard me talk of the history and practice of this place last year. This 100-year old cottage community, accessible to most ages on foot and bike, has much to share with... Continue Reading

Not so long ago, in a conversation about technology and green building, there was mention of some high-tech green building models coming out of Europe. Models that, according to reports, perform so well that even if you factor the embedded energy of a previous structure torn down to accommodate them, they still come out... Continue Reading

Pretty soon we’ll have something like a decade of experience in losing our innocence about housing affordability. Isn’t it about time we got over it? For a good part of the last century, we trained generations of housing consumers and housing enablers to buy and sell into what Chuck Marohn calls a “growth Ponzi... Continue Reading

In his July 10 New York Times column, David Brooks noodled about in a Brooksian sort of way with the notion of what is and what is not within the realm of predictability. Using Brazil’s loss in the World Cup as a hook, he argues that soccer -- unlike baseball, which has been reimagined by math nerds -- turns out to be... Continue Reading

Enjoying the multiple conversations that Monday's piece started about Little Free Libraries, I can't help but share the two that our family has been enjoying this summer. In doing so, there's a striking difference between the development pattern of Monday's neighbourhood in Kansas versus this 100-year-old Winnipeg... Continue Reading

Spoiler alert: This is not breaking news. The story's actually been at least temporarily resolved. Think of it more as a post-game analysis. Little Free Libraries -- resident-initiated community bookshelves -- are an increasingly popular tactic for bringing neighbors together through their shared love of browsing and... Continue Reading

A recent trip to Chicago on the first weekend of summer reinforced the importance of great public art. After a particularly harsh winter, the welcoming parks, squares, and plazas of the city were burgeoning with people soaking in the sunshine. Coming home to talk with my husband, who happens to be an art museum director,... Continue Reading

In the last month, the busy folks at the Pew Research Center have released two hefty analyses of political polarization in America, pretty much confirming what we’ve come to suspect as the cause of semi-permanent dysfunction in D.C., in state capitals and, increasingly, in local government. If you’re looking for... Continue Reading

The 22nd annual gathering of the CNU wrapped up Saturday night, June 7, in Buffalo. We’re looking forward to the recordings at cnu.org over the next few weeks to fill the inevitable gaps, since the competing sessions and hallway conversations presented the usual embarrassment of riches. Rather than go for a tidy... Continue Reading