WIGGLE BLOG

New Cities

3speed — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:49:41 +0000

The exhibit 6 Under 60 looks at new cities on different countries. The graphics are clean describing different elements on each city. I wish there was more analysis of local, regional, and global influences. Why these six cities?

Sixteen Books by Ruscha

3speed — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 01:40:54 +0000

At UC Irvine Libraries a special exhibit on Ed Ruscha books such as Thirtyfour Parking Lots in Los Angeles. I wish I could go.

History of Parking

3speed — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:16:32 +0000

From the December Los Angeles magazine, an article with geek level of detail on the history of parking, “Between the Lines“ by Dave Gardetta. While partly a recap on Dr Shoup from UCLA, who made parking cool to study after years in the wilderness (though how many other academics are wandering in the wilderness with the potential to become popular) the article also provides an interesting history of downtown Los Angeles surface parking that would be interesting to compare to other employment centers in southern California or other centers developed elsewhere in the U.S. around the same time.

This reminds me of a trip to downtown Los Angeles years ago before mobile phones were common. I was searching the streets wondering why I could find no pay phones or post boxes. It turns out that both are commonly located at the parking entrance to downtown office buildings, which makes sense since most people visit the buildings by car.

Also of note is the steep topography of downtown Los Angeles that can lead to building entrances on two, three, or four different floors from the street. Even San Francisco known for being hilly built downtown on relatively flat land. This too adds to the emphasis on approaching tall buildings from the underground garage.

Dangerous streets

3speed — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 14:55:46 +0000

Many people forget how dangerous and polluted urban streets were before motor vehicles became common. From the New York Times on december 25, 2011, and from The Atlantic on December 16, 2011. Trains, streetcars and horse drawn carraiges killed a lot of people. Cars could reach higher speeds in urban areas and perhaps were operated by less experienced drivers. What really changed the dynamic was the sheer number of private automobiles operating in traffic only a few decades after they became available.

Turning down federal transportation funds

3speed — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 02:06:49 +0000

Ignorance is amazing. The federal funds came from the fuel tax trust fund, designed as a user fee. See http://nyti.ms/uIg2Bx. The mayor turned them down not wanting to increase deficit spending.

Reconsidering Jane Jacobs: The Death and Life of American Planning: Places: Design Observer Mobile

3speed — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 01:30:41 +0000

In response to http://m.designobserver.com/places/feature/0/25188/, being comprehensive and forward looking does not require a returned focus on the physical over the social. It does require today unlike a half century ago to consider what happens without growth, e.g. an equilibrium or decline. This is a state the planning profession had not faced traditionally.

Infrastructure Funding: International Comparisons

3speed — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 22:55:27 +0000

Gregory Ingram, President of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, noted in the October Land Lines that as per capita income rises, roads are surplanted by power systems as the largest proportion of infrastructure investment and both grow faster than water, wastewater, or communications systems.

What drives decisions

3speed — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 15:03:22 +0000

From NPR.org » A Big Bridge In The Wrong Place on Governor Dewy’s decision to place the Tappan Zee bridge outside the sphere on the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, a place less than ideal based on engineering and cost.

At Vacant Homes, Foraging for Fruit – NYTimes.com

3speed — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 18:07:02 +0000

More urban farming. Not the same as gleaning but in the same spirit. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/15/us/15forage.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=vacant%20homes&st=cse

Longer-term role of infrastructure investment

3speed — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 11:39:56 +0000

The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy held a forum that asked about the near term and longer-term impact of infrastructure on economies and competitiveness. Over the last few years there has been an emphasis on the job creation (or preservation) from continued investment in infrastructure, but less on the longer-term impact. For example, how much of the current wealth of New York City results from the construction of the Erie Canal? Or how much of the development in Southern California is related to the Panama Canal, Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors, and projects bringing water from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Colorado River? And how could someone create a meaningful test? Using natural experiments such as matched cities. Using computer models of virtual worlds where time can be accelerated and variations tried again and again?