Welcome to Two New Urban Indy Bloggers
Posted by Kevin Kastner in Neighborhoods on Dec 7th, 2010 | 1 comment
Running a collaborative blog has been rewarding. Â We have recently added 2 new bloggers, who I hope you will enjoy.
Jim Walker is the head of Big Car Gallery and Made for Each Other. Â Basically, if there’s something cool going on around town, there’s a good chance Jim has his hands in it.
Scott Russell is the blogger from Go Indy Go. Â He’s a passionate believer in the potential for Indianapolis, and has a background in data analysis.
Please join me in welcoming these two as our blog continues to...
Indianapolis + Columbus: Similar Surfaces, Opposite (Urban) Cores
Posted by Greg.Meckstroth in Neighborhoods, Pedestrian on Dec 6th, 2010 | 34 comments
This article originally appeared on urbanOut in May 2010 and gained  a lot of attention in the Columbus blogosphere so I figured it should be shared on Indy’s prominent urban blog as well.
People love to compare cities and pit them against each other in an attempt to understand strengths and weaknesses of places, analyze overall regional urban patterns, and try to learn from other place’s successes and failures. One comparison I always hear, see, and read is between Indianapolis and Columbus, two cities that often get a ‘twin cities of the eastern Midwest’ tag. I...
The importance of street presence
Posted by jason.larrison in Neighborhoods on Dec 3rd, 2010 | 7 comments
What does it mean to have a visual connection between inside and out? What is the impact of having street presence? In commerce, it could mean the difference between success and failure.
Take for example the former Taste of Tango restaurant. As far as know, it was a fine restaurant. But I never dined there. Why? I walked by the place several dozen times. But I could never see inside. I could never determine what kind of restaurant it was. You first eat with your eyes. And Taste of Tango looked bland. Hidden. Unappetizing.
Now look at Hue Dine. It isn’t open. Or even finished. But walking by,...
Indianapolis’ CSO project
Posted by Curt Ailes in Neighborhoods on Dec 2nd, 2010 | 3 comments
A little known or seen part of our every day built envrionment will be the focus of one of the city’s largest infrastructure projects ever in coming years. What is commonly called a “CSO” or “Combined Sewer Overflow” is a structure that was implimented in the late 19th and early 20th century. A single system of buried pipes were used to collect sewage and storm water runoff so that surface pollution was eliminated. At the time, this was thought to be a great improvement over the current systems. However, when the pipes were filled to capacity, there was nowhere...
Double 8 Foods
Posted by Kevin Kastner in Neighborhoods on Dec 1st, 2010 | 13 comments
Double 8 Foods provides a vital link to fresh foods for residents of the Near Northside of Indianapolis. Some might be surprised to find out that it is a locally owned family business, and is operated by the relatives of Zoltan Weisz, who was the first grocery store owner in the state to hire an African American store manager.
The store at 46th and College was recently renovated to display large picture windows at the entrance:
Last Wednesday, I sat down with the current President Isaiah Kuperstein, the great nephew of Mr. Weisz.
How long have you operated Double 8?
Mr. Kuperstein: A year after Mr...
