GM Plant: A Bit of History
Posted by Kevin Kastner in Neighborhoods on Mar 31st, 2011 | 4 comments
Last week, I met with Eric Fulford of NINebark to discuss his research regarding the General Motors plant near downtown. He was gracious enough to share with me some current and historic photos of the facility. I was not aware that the factory was not just another metal-sided affair, but instead was originally intended to be a light-filled space by Albert Kahn. A detailed history can be found in the sixth picture of the gallery below. This plaque is intended to be installed on an extension of the White River Greenway.
Many thanks to Eric for his sharing of this intriguing information. We both agreed...
Georgia Street Update 1
Posted by Curt Ailes in Pedestrian on Mar 31st, 2011 | 1 comment
The Georgia Street project in downtown Indianapolis is pushing full steam ahead right now! I figured that since we cover the mundane and complain about the smallest of things that we should also be celebrating projects that stand on their own as great projects. To that end, I intend to try and keep pace with the Georgia Street project as it unfolds over the next several months. With a timeline that slates its completion before the Super Bowl, progress will be swift. With that, here is the first update to the project!
On February 15th, I was able to take some night shots. Above, you will see the...
Pre-Conflict: An American in Libya
Posted by Greg.Meckstroth in Neighborhoods on Mar 30th, 2011 | 3 comments
Considering the current events surrounding the political instability in Libya, I thought I would repost my piece on Tripoli, Libya, a place I had the opportunity to travel to for business in 2010.
I recently had the opportunity to travel to Tripoli, Libya for a business trip. I went because I am working on a project to build an entirely new city of 120,000 people on the Mediterranean Sea just outside Tripoli. I went into the experience with certain expectations and understandings of urban life in this part of the world but had to see it firsthand if I am going to be designing a new city here. So I...
52nd Street Rebuild Indy Critique
Posted by Curt Ailes in Bicycling, Neighborhoods, Pedestrian on Mar 29th, 2011 | 24 comments
In the summer of 2010, the Indianapolis DPW began a project on 52nd street in Midtown Indianapolis. This project’s goal was to resurface the roadway, repair broken sidewalks and add bike lanes. This project was bounded by the Monon Trail on the east and by College Ave on the west. Last summer and fall, I brought you two stories here and here about this project. Previous projects east of the Monon on 52nd street had already added bike lanes and a smooth roadway. This project apparently falls under the Rebuild Indy banner although I am not positive as it seems like ALL DPW projects have the...
Tracking Transit Investment in Indy’s Peer Cities
Posted by Curt Ailes in Transit on Mar 24th, 2011 | 2 comments
Recently, the Center for Transit Oriented Development released a report about 3 relatively new light rail lines. The Blue Line in Charlotte, the Hiawatha in Minneapolis and the SE Corridor in Denver. The timing of this report is perfectly aligned with the release of 2010 census results. According to the summary of the TOD report, all the routes attracted high levels of private investment; most notably closer to their downtown areas where the built environment is already dense and block size is smaller. The report concludes that while transit was likely not the key element of the gains seen, they helped...
