David Brooks had a column in the New York Times today entitled I Dream of Denver. I found it interesting because he was citing the results of a recent Pew Research Center survey that seems to reinforce our desire for suburban living, and that it is still a strong part of the American Dream. He also infers that all planners love Amsterdam and think American cities should become just like that. Let me just say this first. The center of Amsterdam (to which Mr. Brooks is really referring) is a unique place. And the definition of unique like no other.…

I read the news today oh boy…. Between the daily news and the real estate industry news, it is hard to avoid being “over-stimulused.” Will the stimulus be enough? It seems most agree it will not. But we can sure argue about it. My began on a flight home from riding the new light rail system in Phoenix, and continued on Minnesota Public Radio this very morning – the stilted argument over federal stimulus for transportation and whether roads and/or transit are “subsidized.” Where are our precious tax dollars best spent? Of course they are all subsidized. Rail, roads, transit,…

As part of an upcoming article, I ventured out to Phoenix/Tempe to see a demonstration of the Decision Theater at Arizona State University. The Decision Theater is a high-tech space where images can be projected on screens encompassing three of four walls in the room. It is a planner’s dream – being surrounded on three sides by plans projected on three full walls – mmmmm, plans. With technology like the Decision Theater, it is possible for a group of people to compare different development plans, see them from above, obliquely, or actually navigate down streets or sidewalks, in between buildings,…