tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.comments2023-09-02T06:07:12.525-04:00Restoring the Urban FabricUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-62991738348617488642014-08-03T09:11:19.158-04:002014-08-03T09:11:19.158-04:00This is cool post and i enjoy to read this post. y...This is cool post and i enjoy to read this post. your blog is fantastic and you have good staff in your blog. nice sharing keep it up.<br /><a href="http://rejblog.com/tag/milan-rubenstein/" rel="nofollow">Milan Rubenstein</a><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00992818395899311028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-4413836367303181112014-05-20T08:16:30.843-04:002014-05-20T08:16:30.843-04:00The first several months of my site there were no ...The first several months of my site there were no comments; just give it time; now they come in like crazy every day! Thanks.<a href="http://www.vrsrealestateagents.com/web/AR475111/ListingSearch/load_saved_search/?ss_id=5275252&nav_page_id=6598440" rel="nofollow">Tinley Park real estate agents</a><br /><br />Ned Polianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01187285965170666055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-67763997247417299112014-01-27T06:57:10.445-05:002014-01-27T06:57:10.445-05:00This blog is very informative and I would like to ...This blog is very informative and I would like to see some more blogs on this topic.<br /><a href="http://www.flaglerdev.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8&Itemid=2" rel="nofollow">Flagler:The Leading Commercial Real Estate Firm in Florida</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-82085351930273741832012-11-07T17:25:40.889-05:002012-11-07T17:25:40.889-05:00Just to bring this full circle, Mike Feloney and I...Just to bring this full circle, Mike Feloney and I went to grade school together and had some mean floor hockey battles in gym class. Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595102686172994190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-76141083249894566962012-11-01T21:42:54.683-04:002012-11-01T21:42:54.683-04:00Good friend Mike Feloney made the point to me toda...Good friend Mike Feloney made the point to me today that Dale Hunter scored more than a couple of goals over his career (323 regular season goals in the NHl to be precise), and so doesn't deserve the "talent-less" tag I placed on him. It's a point well-taken, and I freely admit that I have never played a nanosecond of competitive ice hockey and so my view is suspect from the start. That said, the hit on Turgeon remains one of the worst cheap shots in the history of a league that has unfortunately seen more than its share.Matthew Lawlorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925606126247326449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-75881239627961768832012-10-31T21:23:15.698-04:002012-10-31T21:23:15.698-04:00Will makes an excellent point. I believe the inten...Will makes an excellent point. I believe the intent is to keep the team name as the "New York Islanders." The current Long Island logo does only include Nassau and Suffolk counties. I think you either add in Brooklyn and Queens, or you go with the Gorton's Fisherman guy. Other thoughts?Matthew Lawlorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925606126247326449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-92055617593160981732012-10-30T10:44:32.620-04:002012-10-30T10:44:32.620-04:00The real question is what is going to happen to th...The real question is what is going to happen to the Islanders' logo? The old one doesn't go west of Nassau County. Will they incorporate Brooklyn into it? Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595102686172994190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-70201774941677725832012-07-21T06:13:02.258-04:002012-07-21T06:13:02.258-04:00You are given the best information by this blog.I&...You are given the best information by this blog.I'm always find this type of informative blog.<br /><br /><a href="http://remodeltree.com/" rel="nofollow">Home Builders Boston MA</a>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17530237470333540606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-4930678356498742362012-04-29T20:47:04.198-04:002012-04-29T20:47:04.198-04:00The neighborhood looks lovely. I wouldn't be s...The neighborhood looks lovely. I wouldn't be surprised if it's got no spaces for new tenants anymore. <a href="http://www.litchurchplaza.co.uk/" rel="nofollow">Commercial Property for Rent</a>Steve Knowleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04917433860591532571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-6140820954953733982012-02-13T22:55:00.061-05:002012-02-13T22:55:00.061-05:00Matt,
Interesting post. Having worked in City Ha...Matt,<br /><br />Interesting post. Having worked in City Hall though it is a horrible place to work :) Heating and air conditioning is abysmal, it is extremely dirty and the pigeons wreak havoc on it. <br /><br />Hopefully some day it will find the wreaking ball!<br /><br />All the best, <br /><br />DaveDave Sterretthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08263489297826129978noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-81158737248924619412012-01-24T09:13:26.444-05:002012-01-24T09:13:26.444-05:00Whatever the reason, it's been a long road bac...Whatever the reason, it's been a long road back to reconnecting the urban fabric up to and across the corridor.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.midwestscrapbook.com/" rel="nofollow">scrapbook album</a>markkfinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02191418146694661409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-81875688329296216022012-01-13T13:56:32.869-05:002012-01-13T13:56:32.869-05:00Glad to see the mention of Gristedes, Matt. They ...Glad to see the mention of Gristedes, Matt. They seemed to be ubiquitous in Manhattan. In Astoria, where I grew up, we had a little A&P on the corner that was tiny as hell, was always packed, and had everything one could want. Best wishes for the New Year.Mike Militohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13446173744265682024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-13277011068768244282011-03-06T00:00:36.582-05:002011-03-06T00:00:36.582-05:00Matt-
I agree with your comment that "it sent...Matt-<br />I agree with your comment that "it sent out the message that no one need come near it who didn't have some serious business to transact inside." A friend of mine once saw the building and asked why I had to work in the most "evil" looking building. Not ugly, he reassured, just "evil" looking. I do wonder whether that was intentional.<br /><br />- Karl BakerKarlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16179016879640748094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-48544921054788867272011-02-13T07:12:30.394-05:002011-02-13T07:12:30.394-05:00RTUF Person here: Will raises a good point, and I ...RTUF Person here: Will raises a good point, and I can say from personal experience that the plaza that pulls the Holyoke Center back from Massachusetts Avenue is well-used and the corridor he describes has been the scene of more than one recent, enjoyable lunchtime pizza-fest. I will accordingly withdraw the "really, really bad" comment about that particular building.Matthew Lawlorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925606126247326449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-48596483981346263692011-02-11T15:46:16.296-05:002011-02-11T15:46:16.296-05:00In defense of Holyoke Center
I am a little shocked...In defense of Holyoke Center<br />I am a little shocked to hear myself thinking this, but I would argue that Holyoke Center is actually fairly successful. (Or maybe I really just think that, while not perfect, it is not “really, really bad.”) By going up rather than filling the entire site footprint Sert pulled the building back from the street and created a forecourt of activity (Forces Plaza) that can’t be found anywhere else on Mass. Ave. If you think of busy nodes of activity on a warm summer night, that area is certainly one of them. <br />The spine of retail inside the building also creates a well-used mid-block passage between Harvard Yard and Mt. Auburn Street. Granted, it took quite a while, decades really, for that spine to be a success. (You may not have been around before they put doors on either end.) <br />Even the I-shape of the upper stories successfully keeps the street wall at a reasonable height. <br />The HVAC system, on the other hand, is really really bad …Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595102686172994190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-17190270926521833002010-07-05T10:57:53.081-04:002010-07-05T10:57:53.081-04:00Understanding Andrew's intent a bit better, I ...Understanding Andrew's intent a bit better, I agree with him that the biggest downside to Jacobs' legacy is the current public approval process and the virtually unlimited ability of NIMBYs and BANANAs to wreak havoc on even the most thoughtful proposal. The details may change from place to place and state to state. But the essential nature of the approval process does not. Over the winter, I put the question to Anthony Flint, who recently wrote "Wrestling with Moses" about the decade-long series of battles between Moses and Jacobs over Washington Square Park, urban renewal in the West Village, and the LOMEX, something like this: How do you think Jacobs would view the NIMBYs and BANANAs that an overreliance on public involvement, appeals through the courts, and distrust of government have engendered? My recollection is that he said Jacobs would probably view it with mixed emotions. That sounds about right to me: the process today very often kills or significantly delays the good projects along with the bad.<br /><br />Of course, how to change the process to maintain validity while increasing predictability and efficiency is the difficult task. One path to a better balance seems to be reinvigorating master planning at all scales (small area, neighobrhood, municipality, region) so that major decisions about growth and community goals and vision are made up front. Those plans can then be used as the basis to create new land use regulations (hopefully form-based) that have as much discretion removed from them as possible. The idea is to avoid constantly revisiting the issues that bother a community every time a development proposal comes through the process.Matthew Lawlorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925606126247326449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-13446239720082052312010-07-01T23:20:21.006-04:002010-07-01T23:20:21.006-04:00Well, your comments were quite thoughtful and Andr...Well, your comments were quite thoughtful and Andrew's (I, too, am on the board of PPS and a fan of Whyte's) are riddled with factual errors. <br />Jacobs did not predict Lincoln Center would fail. She criticized the mallification of culture replacing wide swaths of city fabric instead of individual theaters anchoring neighborhoods separately (Carnegie Hall, Joyce Theater, The Public, etc). She said culture malling was anti-city development. <br />Jane did not cite the Village as "the ideal of city living" and she did not "prescribe" all neighborhoods to be Greenwich Village clones. The Village was her laboratory for observing and understanding city life, just like Seagram's Plaza and Bryant Park were observation posts for Holly.<br />The ULURP process today is a joke, not a result of too much Jacobs. All big, Moses-like developments sidestep the whole process altogether by going through the Empire State Development Zone, i.e. Atlantic Yards, Columbia.<br />Jacobs and Whyte are totally in sync when it comes to fine-grained thinking and they are brilliant at what they do BECAUSE they are not trained planners (nor is Fred Kent) but keen observers of what makes cities work and don't work.<br />True, developer, architects, planners all cite Jacobs' work but then they do exactly the opposite of what she observed to be organic.<br />Jacobs did not object to "large-scale planning" when it came to transit , park systems, water systems and quality of life infrastructure that reinforced city frabric but didn't replace it.<br />But the worst error is that "the cutting-edge wisdom of the time was to increase urban density by building taller and creating more open space--clearing slums and speeding transportation..." Towers in the parks for low or middle income decreased density everywhere. Moses was for less density, she was for more. He thought bulldozing would eliminate problems, built towers surrounded by grass with less density than the mixed scale blocks they replaced. He tore down more units than he built. Taller does not mean denser.<br />For another view of what REALLY reignited the upper west side (not Lincoln Center), read my book.<br />Ironic that no one seemed to get too much of the 3 huge exhibits and endless press coverage rehabilitating Robert Moses 3 years ago, but there is sure plenty of "we've had enough of Jacobs" attitude to go around.<br />For a clearer understanding of how the clashing vision of Moses and Jacobs shaped NYC, read my new book THE BATTLE FOR GOTHAM: NEW YORK IN THE SHADOW OF ROBERT MOSES AND JANE JACOBS.RobertaGratzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00476613324029760866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-76147497199851724022010-07-01T12:05:59.739-04:002010-07-01T12:05:59.739-04:00Thanks for your thoughtful comments.
I wasn't...Thanks for your thoughtful comments.<br /><br />I wasn't attempting to set up Jacobs and Whyte as adversaries. Holly was Jacob's editor at Fortune and encouraged and supported her work. I also don't mean to say that Jacob's work is without value -- of course it is essential. But I do think we've lost sight of some of the limitations of her analysis and have overlooked the care and thoughtfulness of Holly's work. What I admire about Whyte, and about PPS (of which I am an officer and board member) is that they are about improving public spaces through community engagement, leadership, close observation and knowledge about what works.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-32473372242010702372010-05-24T15:31:33.564-04:002010-05-24T15:31:33.564-04:00For being your first (but not only anymore), I hav...For being your first (but not only anymore), I haven't been a good follower; I just found this post. Thanks for the kind words! Now, to catch up on your posts.Darlenehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00206999136464135721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-54606782015266215222010-05-18T05:47:18.789-04:002010-05-18T05:47:18.789-04:00Pattern vs. plane, it's but one example of the...Pattern vs. plane, it's but one example of the Growth Machine. I do try to read the Boston Globe in hard copy (it's one of the only regional newspapers that still makes it to DC periodical stores any more) and I happened to catch that run of articles, and had similar thoughts about the paper and the community leadership lining up in favor of a building project.<br /><br />This blog entry discusses "Growth Machine" and "Urban Regime" theory: http://urbanplacesandspaces.blogspot.com/2010/03/first-order-change-vs-second-order.htmlRichard Laymanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02765521217875752850noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-70012358628411323632010-05-10T22:39:50.178-04:002010-05-10T22:39:50.178-04:00roslindale clean and green would know - they'r...roslindale clean and green would know - they're involved with the alexander the great park and I believe are working with the city to install a sculpture piece at that (or another?) intersection.<br /><br />they are a very active group with a few members who have been around since the founding of rozzie main streets in the 80s.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-6294265084503964412010-04-19T08:18:54.777-04:002010-04-19T08:18:54.777-04:00A similar but slightly different and perhaps large...A similar but slightly different and perhaps larger intervention has taken place in Cambridge at the intersection of Main Street, Mass. Ave. and Columbia Street. I think it has been quite successful as the reclaimed space is adjacent to some restaurants and people seem to use the new space quite heavily. Check it out if you haven't already. The plans for Union Square in Somerville also look like that they have some real potential to improve that public space...Karlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16179016879640748094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-12883914632875511132009-12-23T17:33:32.744-05:002009-12-23T17:33:32.744-05:00Reading your post I was struck by the passage abou...Reading your post I was struck by the passage about , "...Boston's 'High Spine.' As with so many things having to do with architecture, urban design, and planning in Boston, Robert Campbell recently (in 2006) covered this topic in the Boston Globe (link here) elegantly and with an eye toward what is truly important about it, especially its accordance with Boston's "basic DNA" as a craggy peninsula connected to the mainland by a narrow neck, even if the original Boston Neck was a bit more to the south and east." The metaphor of the spine and the extension into the body with the language DNA lingered in my mind. Recently, reading Seabrook's profile of Zaha Hadid, entitled "The Abstractionist" (New Yorker, Dec. 21&28, 2009), I stumble across another metaphor I think I like better. "New York, for Rem Koohlaas, was a mutant, uncontrollable city that grew like bacteria" (p.88). While "the spine" works well for Boston, and speaks to the larger vision of the agents of change, "bacteria" carries that lovely lack of control that seems to characterize much of growth (urban or otherwise).Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01520644257342350333noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-37379926812830923182009-10-25T06:29:45.294-04:002009-10-25T06:29:45.294-04:00Thanks, Kaid. Much appreciated.
In response to yo...Thanks, Kaid. Much appreciated.<br /><br />In response to your query, I think I've now added RSS feed functionality at the top right. Let me know if it doesn't work. Thanks again.Matthew Lawlorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10925606126247326449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3165685960408738683.post-15746263699156746072009-10-24T09:29:14.975-04:002009-10-24T09:29:14.975-04:00If you can establish an RSS feed, I'll subscri...If you can establish an RSS feed, I'll subscribe and link to you occasionally. I like your concept.Kaid@NRDChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15652124326379585800noreply@blogger.com