Civics and Culture

A redlining map of Seattle shows the Central District and Delridge indicated in red.

Sunday Video: The History of Redlining in Seattle

https://youtu.be/mBQE5rrWDfA KCTS9 has a very short video on the history of redlining in Seattle and the long-lasting impacts of the practise.

Gangsta Phone Etiquette, Deep Breaths & Kindness Rising

It's the urban fashion du jour for how to hold a phone, and it confounds me. You hold your phone, which is not on speakerphone,...

Seattle Magazine / Third & Cherry

If you’ve read this, you won’t be surprised at my reaction to Seattle Magazine choosing me as one of their 35 Most Influential People...

Who’s Afraid of “Trunk-or-Treat”?

As American families abandon traditional trick-or-treating for "safer" alternatives like Trunk-or-Treat, a rare opportunity for neighborhood community engagement is lost. Halloween collects its more than its...

Sunday Video: Why Fixing Slums Is Key to the Future of Cities

https://youtu.be/BoRx_zIwiXM In this video, RetroReport looks at slums and why fixing them is the key to cities in the future. To illustrate their point, they...

Pretty Sure I Don’t Deserve This

"Congratulations," a friend once told me, after I'd finally gotten a New York literary agent. "Let yourself feel it today, and breathe. You deserve this." The thing...

Of Libraries, Parks, Book Stores, and Cinemas: Tacoma’s Social Infrastructre

In a previous installment, I wrote about the strain put on sidewalks when cities privatize, sell off, fail to maintain, or don’t care to...

New Hugo House Strives for Community and Memory

But can the soul of the old Victorian house live on in a new mixed-used building? According to modernist architect and urban planner Le Corbusier, “A...