An important experiment is going on in my neighborhood. The city of Minneapolis is performing a 30-day trial to test the intersection of 42nd Street and 28th Avenue. They have shut off the traffic signal, put hoods over the lights and installed a temporary four-way stop. The reaction has been mixed, with most criticism from people who observe traffic congestion at rush hour. There has been spirited discussion online at the Standish-Ericsson Facebook page and E-Democracy site. As for changing from a stop light to four-way stop sign scenario, let’s look at the pros and cons (observed, overheard and perceived): PRO – traffic…

Last summer I filled my gas tank on June 30th and didn’t have to fill it again until September. I’ll let that sink in a little. This is the only way I have to explain to my relatives about how my “alternate lifestyle” pays off. By alternate lifestyle, of course, I mean “urbanist.” I figure that in conversations with my extended family, they imagine me aspiring to a crunchy, car-less urban hell, going for joyrides on light rail, owning a bike – it’s all very abstract until I toss in the anecdote about filling my tank so infrequently, and they suddenly snap to attention. And…

Well, here we are. Another contentious City Council vote on a development. Tomorrow the Minneapolis City Council will vote on whether or not to authorize the demolition of a building located at 2320 Colfax Avenue South. Rather, they will be voting to uphold a decision by the Zoning & Planning Committee. Much has been written about this, at streets.mn, the Star Tribune and the Twitter-verse (it has its own hashtag – #2320colfax), even extensive fodder for a Facebook parody site. Kare 11 and Fox Twin Cities also provided TV coverage. There have been candlelight vigils led by Nicole Curtis, the Rehab Addict. One piece of coverage has escaped…

Yesterday I presented at Cuningham Group’s “Urban Currents” series. The theme was “What if I Were Mayor?” Keep in mind the following ideas don’t represent a platform for getting elected, but rather to try and implement once in office (there’s a big difference). So here goes…. If I were mayor, I would: 1. Create a more beautiful, equitable city. As part of that, I’d push the idea that zoning is part of creating beauty, and advocate for both a Form-Based Code and Design Review Commission (to be chosen by developers as parallel alternatives to the existing zoning and the Planning…

Where’s Wonder Woman, and what will she do about urbanism in Minneapolis? Several recent reviews have appeared in the press regarding Mayor Betsy Hodges’ first 100 days in office. She has been deliberative in hiring key staff positions, preferring instead to build relationships and simply listen. In the Star Tribune’s coverage, it was noted that she has not yet engaged on density and development issues. I look forward to her doing so. Hodges also likes Wonder Woman. I don’t know a lot about Wonder Woman, except that like most superheroes she fights for peace, love and equality. When it comes to density and development issues, I hope Hodges thinks…

Can Minneapolis finally pull off a high-quality transit-oriented development (TOD) project? Yes, with a little luck, a lot of disparate interests coming to a common agreement, and likely some creative financing. Development plans at the Midtown Farmers Market site in Minneapolis appear to be revived. Included in the multi-phase plan are housing, offices, retail, and perhaps most importantly, a public square that will serve as home for the Midtown Farmers Market. However, the plan is more complicated than ever, so getting this built won’t be easy. This Thursday, April 3 at 6PM the Corcoran Neighborhood Organization will host a meeting so the public can…

In a recent streets.mn post, one commenter was accused by another of being paid by Michael Lander and loving Michael Lander. Allow me to show you why I believe we need more projects by developers like Michael Lander. Like it or not, Minneapolis, development is happening, and we need to encourage more talented developers who have an eye for creating or renovating a building with sensitivity to its surroundings, who place value on a building’s relationship to the street. We need more developers like Michael Lander and we need to make their job easier. So let’s take a look at a project that, quite deservedly, is…

Last year a family on our street outgrew their home. They liked our street, and our kids were friends, but there were no homes for sale nearby at the time. Faced with choosing between a very disruptive remodel/addition or simply moving, they chose the latter. Their current home is a couple miles away. Luckily for Minneapolis, they found another home in the city, but sadly for us, they no longer live on our street. It crossed my mind that a third option for them was to tear down their home and start over. Is their house a teardown? I guess a…

Act now to support: transit-oriented development and good urbanism in Minneapolis more affordable new construction in Uptown Tomorrow, March 18, at 4:30PM the Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC) is voting on a request to demolish a property at 2320 Colfax Avenue South. There are three things you can do to support Minneapolis accommodating more residents. Attend the HPC meeting AND testify in support of the demolition permit – March 18, 2014, City Hall Room 317 Send an e-mail to the HPC and/or the relevant Ward 10 City Council member, Lisa Bender and staff (see below) Ask your friends to comment, by sharing this on Facebook, through Twitter, and by e-mail…

Today’s Star Tribune commentary by Mayor Hodges and Steve Cramer is misguided at best, and at worst terribly delusional. Don’t believe them when they say $50 million spent on rebuilding Nicollet Mall will provide “downtown that final flourish.” First of all, saying that anything will provide a “final flourish” implies that a city can be somehow complete. That’s impossible. A city cannot be final unless it disappears entirely. Second, as I’ve stated before, great cities have three things: streets that are attractive to walk on, buildings that are nice to walk past and/or in, and people walking on those streets and using those doors. That’s…