Will parking be allowed on the Cultural Trail in front of the Conrad?
Posted by Curt Ailes in Bicycling, Pedestrian on Aug 8th, 2011 | 21 comments
An interesting debate has been raging over on the Skyscraper City Indianapolis Development forum for about 4 weeks now. The debate has centered upon the design of the Cultural Trail’s Central Corridor as it passes in front of the Conrad hotel. For the uninformed, the Conrad has been using the sidewalk along Washington Street and in front of it’s hotel for years now as a staging spot for valet parking. It’s common to see a high end automobile sitting on the sidewalk at any point in time.
With the arrival of the Cultural Trail came the notion that perhaps the Conrad would be moving...
Goodbye Indianapolis – I’ll Miss You / Don’t Call Me, I’ll Call You
Posted by Greg.Meckstroth in Neighborhoods on Jul 11th, 2011 | 9 comments
If you have ever read my blog urbanOut and followed the ‘Walking the Walk’ series about being car-free in Indy, you know that my walking habits rarely veered away from a few key streets in Downtown. For two years this was the life I lived, with no real desire to wander off course. But since June of this year, all that changed when my life took a significant detour off my normal walking routes and landed me in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where I now live. Earlier this year, I pursued a career opportunity that I couldn’t pass up. After a long interview...
Tackling the 16 Tech Plan
Posted by Curt Ailes in Neighborhoods, New Development on Jul 7th, 2011 | 8 comments
The week of June 13th was an exciting one in Indianapolis. The Broad Ripple Parking Garage was announced. CIRTA launched a campaign to build a transit coalition to present to state lawmakers. And the City announced the 16 Tech Technology district that would be anchored by a redeveloped Bush Stadium. On the surface, the 16 Tech proposal looks like a positive one. An underdeveloped neighborhood with a culturally rich past gets a boost from the city while urban thinking residents are appeased by the presence of pedestrian and bike friendly infrastructure.
Indeed, The Technology Trail should be a...
Shelby Street Bike Track under construction
Posted by Curt Ailes in Bicycling on Jul 5th, 2011 | 15 comments
Earlier this year, Chicago elected a new mayor; Rahm Emanuel. Upon entering office, he wasted no time going to work on his campaign promises of improving mobility for citizens. Among his first visual changes, were the introduction of a new cycle track along a half mile stretch of downtown street; Kinzie Ave from Milwaukee Avenue to Wells Street.
Upon being in office for only a few short weeks, Emanuel has demonstrated his firm commitment to transportation alternatives.
When you look at what “IT” actually was, bike lanes were striped to create a reasonable barrier between...
Myrtle Beach & its focus on Walkability
Posted by Curt Ailes in Pedestrian on Jun 23rd, 2011 | 6 comments
When one mentions that they went on vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC, visions of complete streets and urban design do not spring to mind. For years, I remember friends who’s parents took them to Myrtle Beach on summer vacation. I had never attended until recently, when my wife proposed that we take a summer trip there. I am a major lover of the beach, and sunburns, so it did not take any amount of arm twisting.
We spent 5 nights just south of the major N/S split along Ocean Blvd, so we were front and center for what I observed to be the changing of a familiar built form; that being one that gives...
