Urbanist Theory
Urbanism 101: Tactical Urbanism
Street improvements are often long and drawn-out affairs. Pop-up projects can show otherwise.
Urban projects can take a significant amount of time and financing to...
In Defense of Little or No Plans
American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham’s famous "make no small plans" imperative is destroying your city and your life.
You should get a bingo...
Let the Robots Write the Ordinance
Planners have a lot to wrestle with as ChatGPT comes to code drafting.
“In the era of rapid urbanization and evolving urban landscapes, the development...
Ray’s Exit Interview: Don’t Let the Bastards Grind You Down
This is a quote from a book and a song, so I can use it as a title. Even with a questionable intensifier.
Today is...
Terra Nil Shows How To Unbuild a City
In time for Earth Day, a beautiful new game that lets players unwind while unwinding civilization.
Terra Nil shows up on the App Store as...
How a Forgotten Plaza Can Become Tacoma’s Connected Heart
Tollefson Plaza in downtown Tacoma confounds me. It’s an attractive space next to a bustling university campus and an art museum. It is adjacent...
The Urbanist Podcast: Wet Architecture with Weston Wright
In the song "Five Feet High and Rising," Johnny Cash sings "Well, the rails are washed out north of town/ We got to head...
Planes, Trains, and the Only True Thanksgiving Movie
The holiday is a Chicago kind of event
It is Black Friday in America. For those of us avoiding the mall like it’s our racist...