Category Archives: Traveling as An Urbanist

Urbanism in my own (black) eyes

airports, Cities, Kansas City, Mobility, transit, Traveling as An Urbanist

On Mobility and American Expats in America

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On Mobility and American Expats in America

I believe that a city lives or dies by how much people can move in and out. About four years ago, I reflected on the idea of being an American Expat in America. That idea is that despite the fact I was no longer an active member of my hometown or any town, I could still move somewhere else, become just as active, make a difference with my diversity of opinion and actions and promote my hometown and the awesome things it has and of course, do this in another one of the 49 states of America or a different city or even just down the street. Aaron Renn of the Urbanophile inspired this idea and I think it’s still very valid today. I even wrote home about it, for the Triad City Beat a couple of months back.

And as I sit back and reflect on five years of being an urban planning and development blogger, I want to talk about the keys to being a great American Expat. Then, at the end of this post, a moment on what it feels like to finally be a true American Expat, much like I predicted I could be back in 2011.

So what does it take to be a good American Expat in America?

Openness

Your new home, even if it’s right down the street, is going to be different from your old home. As you change even more of your surroundings, that fact will become boldfaced, underlined and even be struck through because something you thought would work for you, may not work for you after all. But that’s ok. I’m learning that it’s key to keep going to different meetings, gatherings, restaurants, grocery stores, libraries, Targets and such until you find the ones that allow you to create a routine. You also need to be ok with not going to certain things if they no longer work.

Another key adjustment is that the food and climate and even the time zone may be entirely different. You have an accent (or not). Your car may need a front plate and a back plate. You may find yourself walking more or less, driving more or less, riding transit more or less. You may have the company of people, lots of new vibrant people. You might be at home with a library book from your very robust new public library.

Either way, you need to be open to different experiences and also have a coping mechanism for when things get weird, hurtful, sad or some other form of negative. And then gratitude, but we’ll get to that later.

Finding Local Things You Can Support

 

Yes, I’m a Royals fan now. Who doesn’t like a winner? Ok, at the time of this writing they aren’t, but they have been and could still be! I think burnt ends from Joe’s Kansas City, along with their regular ribs are delectable. Yet, according to my mom, the line procedure there is not that much different from the NC State Fair’s lines for places to sit and consume fair food, next to the actual vendors.

You see what I did there, I managed to find something local I could pull behind, but I was able to tie it into something from back home. Then, I can go back to whining about the lack of Calabash seafood, namely Calabash seafood fried in House-Autry seafood breader. Or Biscuitville. Or I could drive 30 minutes to the Krispy Kreme on Shawnee Mission Parkway, and instead of eating the half-baked original glazed that’s apparently the modus operandi of the non-North Carolinian KK’s and eat that new seasonal salted caramel doughnut instead.

Seriously, folks need to go crazy over salted caramel and not pumpkin spice. And that sentence alone reminds us that while we are different, there are things that are the same and new things we can eat, see, root for and enjoy.

Savings and Travel Hack Savvy

You need to be a member of every travel club possible. You need to be a member of every shopping coupon site possible. You need to meal plan for the nights you don’t go out to eat. Mend your clothes. Do something on the side. Unless you are already one of those people who has a second full residence in your new town of origin or a division of your company in more than one place or you are location-independent, then all these things are vital.

Actually, they are always vital, in that’s how many people become successful expats and travelers and business people. I read somewhere that millionaires have an average of seven pockets of income.

Sometimes one of those pockets is penny-saving stuff like couponing apps and travel rewards. Seriously, the Marriott Rewards is how many a family vacation happened in my youth and also what helped me stay connected via wi-fi during my recent move. I’m racking up Southwest points and I’m using my knowledge of their routes and how trains work (and my friends and boyfriend who are geniuses at this), to learn how, when and where to travel to save the most money.

Also, not just how I travel, but also being at peace with what’s in your suitcase and what makes it to the moving truck. You cannot bring everything with you. You should not bring everything with you. You’ll bring things back, get new things, better things.

Gratitude

And finally, for the tips section, I say be thankful. There are so many research studies that state the benefits of having the ability to move wherever you need to for economic, health, spiritual and educational reasons. But if you’ve ever done it, you know that now your brain and mind is stretched because you’ve experienced life in another metro. So many people want to be you, but never get the chance. Some folks don’t even get vacations.

Historically, the Great Migration of African-Americans, along with the migrations of many other ethnic and cultural groups to and from this country, has created freedom, enhanced creativity, cultivated wealth and strengthened our ability to be diverse. No, the process isn’t perfect. But I do find that people who are thankful for the opportunity to move around, for new kinds of neighbors, for new experiences, make this country stronger and wiser.

And now, a more personal reflection.

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So that moment happened. When I, who’d been in bed alone, but with my new stuffed toy Southwest Airlines plane beside me for the third night in a row, had that nightmare. The nightmare where you wake up and you miss your flight, even though you’d made sure you Passbooked (or I guess it’s just simply Wallet now on the iPhone) your boarding pass and you went to bed early and all your stuff was packed the night before.

You get to the airport and you find that it’s an incomprehensible maze, made even worse by the fact that you are not carrying your nice purple carry-on, rolling suitcase, but a black purse you picked up because you forgot your tiny black backpack, and your real backpack and they are all heavy. And of course, since this is a dream, you try to move forward and you end up partially waking yourself up, especially when you realize that you’re really floating through your dream and not actually walking. But then you feel weighted down.

You wake up after this dream and you’re really sad. Your fridge is still making that noise that sounds like a jack hammer that you told maintenance to fix and they even showed up to fix, but isn’t really fixed.

You get on Zillow, just like you were the night before, scouting out houses in all different metros, including the one to which you just moved. You remember that conversation with that colleague where you were both reminiscing about various things you did when you lived in or visited that other city and how your current city just doesn’t fit the bill today.

But then it’s later that Sunday afternoon and you are sitting in a branch library, against a wall of windows, over a part of town that mimics parts of California or Florida (take your pick of inspired Spanish mission architecture, mixed up with buildings of all kinds of modern vintage and even a canal with a Venice-style boat cruise that passes through at least a couple of times).

You realize that in that spot, you’re honestly ten minutes from everything you have come to do in your new town, in all directions. You’re walkable to things to which are actually fun to walk. You can hop on the bus and be up the hill with your bike, which will pedal you to your workplace in no time. Or, if it’s a day you don’t really need to come into the office, you can just fire up your laptop and knock out your InDesign flyers and social media postings there, at a home not too far from that wall of windows and that branch library.

You realize that even though it’s not the city you dreamed you’d be living in for the past ten-twelve years, it’s still a different place, with different lessons and a different perspective. It helps you to see even more of the world than what you saw before. And who knows, you might be in another city, maybe that dream city, in a few more years. But for now, you are happy here. You are an American Expat in America and you are ok.

Join me at my Facebook page, on Twitter, on Instagram and on Periscope Wednesday, October 21 at 7 p.m. Central Time (That’s 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific) for a live conversation around mobility and being an American Expat in America.

airports, Kansas City, Transportation, Traveling as An Urbanist

You Need a New Airport Kansas City, Get Over It.

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You Need A New Airport Kansas City. Get Over It.

I’ve been in Kansas City for just over a month. While I didn’t arrive by plane this time, all the other times I’ve come and gone from KC, have been through the Kansas City International Airport.

Only once have I driven myself to said airport. I’ve parked at the B-11 post, the one that gives props to the Jazz Museum, in the economy lot. I’ve looked out at the airport on I-29 a mile before I could reach it and wondered why I couldn’t just drive up from that first vantage point. I’ve told myself that I’d rather pay $27 for four days of travel instead of just one.

I like to get to the airport early. I tend to carry a lot of things, but I’ve reduced them down. Even with the reduction, I sometimes forget to charge my phone or I don’t have time to eat or I have something that just doesn’t fit well into my purse.

Or, maybe I did everything right and I got to the airport on time. Because I spent 45 minutes getting there from Midtown, by car, I didn’t have time to check and see that my plane was delayed by an hour. Thankfully, I checked the screen before I hit security, but how would I know that the Pig and Pickle would have fed me ok? And that’s only for that one gate in Terminal B going to DC. The gate I use to fly to Charlotte is even less inviting and just as restricting.

Oh the horror if I’d ridden the bus out and learned I’d still have to find a way to pass two more hours of time.

You may think this is whiny. That I don’t get it. After all, I’m new. I shouldn’t expect shiny newfangled things in Kansas City. That’s what other cities do, even though we want to be other cities sometimes.

People. The Piedmont Triad International Airport, my home airport in Greensboro, is small. It doesn’t have a lot past security. But we have managed to lower the lights, put in at least a reasonably priced bar, newsstand and clean, normal sized bathroom past our security gate. And before security, a nice small mall of sorts, representing our proud North Carolinianess, our Natty Greens beer (They’re our Boulevard) and some nice rocking chairs. You know I love my airport rocking chairs.

When I go to Charlotte and Raleigh, I appreciate their toys. But 9 times out of 10 I’m going out of the same gate and that gate only has limited things. But I only hang out at the gate if I think my flight is coming soon. Except at MCI. There, I’d rather have the security chore done.

However, to avoid being one of those people, who complain without actions, this is what I think a new MCI should do:

— Be a masterpiece of what this city is. Make it look like the Plaza or Union Station on the outside. If we are going to spend the money, create a modern/classic airport blend that will get people and the airlines to want to be based here.  (and their favorite airline will want to come here)

— One security line. Or maybe four like Charlotte, but easy access to all gates no matter what line.

— Clean, spacious restrooms. Remember, it’s me and my carry-on and we need room. I’d also like to only have to deal with my own human waste, thank you very much.

— A food option, a shopping option and maybe even a spa option with easy access to each gate. If you travel often, you know the spa option’s not so luxurious. Get on a plane after you’ve been massaged and imbibed and you don’t hate air travel as much.

— A plane train. Ok, maybe not so much, but ATL is not half the crazy airport it could be thanks to its train and good wayfinding signs.

So that’s it KC. We need a new airport. I hope the city doesn’t mess it up too, but let’s just pray hard that they don’t and we can all be both proud of our airport and know that we won’t lose money in the process.

And remember, people like me, the transplants and frequent travelers, will pay it off by using it over time.

Family and Place, Food, Greensboro, Rural, Traveling as An Urbanist

Gratitude for a Country Road (And All of You!)

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Today is Thanksgiving Day in the United States and this afternoon I will I embark on my annual journey to see both sides of my family within a span of 5 hours. While many folks have the tradition of watching the Macy’s parade, watching football and eating copious amounts of food, my most unique Thanksgiving tradition involves one long country road.

On a regular basis, the concept of one road=one family rules my life. Within ten minutes I can be at my mom’s house. Five for my dad’s. Of course you’ve picked up on the houses being separate, but it’s been so long, I’ve worked at making sure it doesn’t feel like there was separation.

Meanwhile, on Thanksgiving, it’s worked out on many years that both family celebrations are within 30 minutes of each other, connected by one (technically four, but it’s close enough) country road.

I’m very thankful for that country road. It’s the same road I learned to drive on and it’s taught me the value of the rural environment. As I drive over the rolling hills of the North Carolina Piedmont, I see small farms. I see all types of home architecture, including one house that keeps adding turrets, stained glass windows and doors. My mom and I have bets on it being a bed-and-breakfast, but who knows? There’s even a small waterfall cresting from a dam at another point of the journey.

This road and the country surrounding it is why I love the urban transect so much. For those of you who aren’t urban planners, the urban transect is a system developed in the 1990’s to portray the optimal progression of land use. It goes from New York level urban density, to un-claimed natural land. In between there are levels for used farmland, small town main-streets and even lesser dense suburbs. It accounts for all the desired land uses in a way that honors compact living, efficient development and the need for some communities to have space from their neighbors. It allows for the rural areas much like the ones I’m visiting today to exist in a modern, urban-centric, placemaking scheme.

We talk about density and connectivity and the ability to bring communities together in the placemaking blogosphere on a regular basis. Thanks to this road, and the years both families gather on this road, I get to feel what it’s like to be a part of my first community, my own family.

And on that note, let me take the time to express my thanks and gratitude to everyone who has followed me on Twitter and Facebook, given me a byline in another publication, read and shared this blog, heard me speak , invited me to speak and all of the above and more. Let us all be grateful for the great places in our lives and work hard to preserve them all.

Chicago, Cities, Food, Transportation, Traveling as An Urbanist, What is urban planning?

Traveling as an Urbanist: Chicago

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Chicago,is the home of the Burnham Plan (one of the first urban plans in the country) and the 1893 World’s Fair. Chicago also invented the skyscraper. Chicago is an example of what you should and shouldn’t do in city government. There are suburban parking lots incorporated into an urban street grid. Yes, that means that in some parts of the city, you can walk to Super Target.

I saw this first hand this past week as I took to the streets of Chicago (well, really just Michigan Avenue) as I attended the big annual conference we do at work for all of our sister humanities councils.I think this post would best be illustrated in photos, as there was so much visual stimulation, from start to finish.

What you have here is what you will see if you fly out of Raleigh-Durham International Airport. I like flying out of Piedmont Triad International for the convenience (and there was a direct flight), but the price was too good to beat. Plus, the new Terminal 2 does a great job of integrating North Carolina culture into the seemingly standard construction of the airport. There is local art like that in front of the elevator, murals and even the wood beams themselves are of a tree that is native to our state.

So I get on the ground and I am met by a PVC pipe masking itself as an airport terminal.
It did get festive. But the dark baggage claim floor reminded me of being at PTI at night. We arrived at 12:30 PM local time.

We stayed and had our conference at the Intercontinental Hotel. It was right on the Magnificent Mile, just a half block north of the river. The room had a wonderful design and a very nice view on both sides. We had a first row seat to the Christmas parade as well.

When I wasn’t in a session, I could find my way around easily. I got down to the Chicago Cultural Center(for our opening reception), The Chicago History Museum (to see the wonderful Isabelle Wilkerson again).

The Navy Pier on Sunday morning

And most of all, the Contemporary Art Museum. I really enjoyed seeing how people work in multiple mediums, in abstract art forms and in the case of the Mothers sign, on the street level.

The hotel itself had some wonderful architectural elements and has a great history behind it, especially it’s pool.

I was not able to utilize the L train, nor the bus system, but I liked these two elements of this bus stop.

Lastly, I feel like, outside of issues with the schools, and some of the neighborhood segregation, Chicago has a lot of to offer to the world. Other issues, such as the private parking meter deal, not reading contracts of all types and the cold(it was unseasonably warm this week) can be overcome as well.

I hate that there were folks I wanted to meet up with and couldn’t. I will make sure that next time, I host a meetup, so I can hear directly from you locals.

apartment living, Arts Districts, Food, Issues and Ideas, Sylva, Transportation, Traveling as An Urbanist, What is urban planning?

Becoming A Placeist-The Black Urbanist on its Second Anniversary

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After two years of writing this blog, it has come to my attention that I am simply a placeist. Not in the Urban Dictionary manner that sort of has undertones of being a racist or any other -ist that is negative. It’s in the sense that I see benefits in all types of land use (as well as drawbacks). I love buildings. I love people. I love cars, trains, planes and buses. All in equal measure. It’s hard for me to continue to keep just being an urbanist. I will keep the name of the blog as is, because there’s still cognitive dissonance with it and the word Black when it refers to my ethnic background. They are separate and I will advocate continually for their separation. The largest forum I have is my blog and Twitter handle.

However, in practice, I’ve seen that we do better when we recognize there are benefits to all land use, in moderation and in reason. So what exactly makes me a placeist? Here are a few things:

–Some days I just need my car. I have a bad back and lifting groceries is hurtful and becomes expensive due to chiropractic adjustments. Also, my job is a statewide job. I need to be able to get to city to city in a timely manner. Now if we had a full blown, New Jersey Transit-esque train system in North Carolina, I could think about selling my car. That and full grocery delivery.

–Some people with yards actually use them. They plant food and sell it to folks. They hold block parties. They build accessory dwellings when they are legal. They have backyard concerts. They use it to enjoy a piece of nature and then get back to solving problems of the world. However, the problem comes when those yards don’t have sidewalks or even roads that make it easy to get all over the city on foot or even just down to the corner drug store.

–Some cities and their dwellers are too expensive, too status quo and too conservative– Although I love the newer hipster businesses, I love the old greasy fish, burger and pizza joints too. My purse does too and since I’m walking home daily, I need all the protein I can get. Also, good design, good working appliances and fixtures and good location should be just guaranteed, not an “urban amenity”. And what of people who stay in their own neighborhoods and never branch out? Who want to do something new, but never stop talking about it. Creativity is not all due to osmosis; you have to be doing something on your computer at the Starbucks, not just reading someone else’s punditry.

–Some suburbs are dead– I’m watching the one I grew up in, which in reality was the annexed outskirts of a city, die. The businesses are vacant, dirty or predatory. People do harm there because they can. I hate going out there because it feels dead. It’s one thing to have vibrant businesses that aren’t as shiny and slick. It’s another thing to have businesses that are beat-down looking and beat down their people through predatory lending, high prices or rotten food. On top of that, the good stuff is going even further out or coming back into the core of the city. The bus can take folks into the core, but that’s given the bus even comes close by at all. Suburbia was not made for the poor, yet it’s gradually becoming the domain of the poor in many areas.

–We need our farms– How else will we eat? Corporate farming has been good and bad for feeding America. Yes, less of America goes hungry, but they also have diseases and conditions that were not evident before corporate farming. Also, there’s the whole food market that’s been turned upside down by Walmart, the government and other major food companies. Yet, at the end of the day, the ability to be partially or fully self-sufficient through your farm is noble and should continue to be honored by society and the market.

There are more bold points and I’ll be writing about those in the coming weeks online and offline. Yet, what really made me change my mind about this whole urbanist-suburbanist-ruralist dichotomy is that thing we call the mountain town. It and its cousins the beach town, and the college town throw everything we know about placemaking out the door. It’s equal parts resort for the rich and occupation for the working poor. There is unmatched beauty and intense knowledge exchange. There are quirky haunts like the soul teahouse and the gourmet Mexican restaurant.

Big cities used to hold a monopoly on these types of things. However, with the internet and other technology, once remote places aren’t so remote anymore. What I love especially about the towns defined by the geography, is that the restriction of either beach or mountain peak force towns to be built compactly. Especially in the mountains. Eventually, Walmart runs out of room because it’s competing with a mound of granite that is way too expensive and impractical to blow up.

Nowadays, I’m about good places, period. Therefore I go forth as the Black Urbanist, Placeist at Large.

apartment living, Greensboro, tips for urbanist living, Traveling as An Urbanist

Please Excuse My Absence…I’ve Been On a Journey

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I had no intention of leaving the blog idle for this long. Yet, occasionally, living the actual life of an urbanist gets in the way of being able to write about it.

Yet while away from my urbanist pen, I was able to experience two key events that I think have major significance in the creation of community on a micro and a macro level.

The first is that I finalized my move into Downtown Greensboro. The picture above is from my balcony window. Every day I witness all manner of trains and buses ferry people and things across the state and potentially across the country. Just beyond the train depot (which has been beautifully restored in the last few years), the skyline buildings of Greensboro and our main street slant out and appear to dance before my eyes.

Ok, this is where I stop and admit I have an unnatural love for good urban architecture. But so do a lot of you reading this page, so I’ll carry on.

On the other hand, there’s the instance of travel, the journeys we all undertake in life. At work it is a focus of a traveling Smithsonian exhibit we are sponsoring. I went down to rural eastern North Carolina to help promote the new exhibit last month. I had a great time getting to know my still new colleagues and seeing how it’s really going down in what we call “Down East”. I found a charming main street in one town and the appearance of suburban sprawl like development in the other. There was also a healthy dose of jingoism. The hotel where we stayed was built by the Murphy Family, a pork dynasty that wanted to have a hotel and state-of-the-art Irish bar to entertain people. There was also a master planned upscale retirement community nearby.

Now that I’m finally back home, settled and almost unpacked, I can really soak in what’s going to come next in my chapter as a black urbanist. I see five new elements of my urban experience.

  • Gentrification– I am a professional black person, living in an area that was targeted and won slum clearance just a few short years ago. Now although the neighborhood resembles the French Quarter and also appears to have similar dynamics of race (who lives there, what people do, etc.)
  • Gated communities– When I signed the lease, I forgot that our buildings have controlled access hallways. I appreciate the layer of safety, but I am still not in favor of gating communities down in lieu of dealing with why people feel the need to steal. Are we providing a good economy so that people can have their own stuff and let people have their own stuff?
  • Walking as a primary mode of transportation– I’ve looked forward to this the most. However, in reality, there are many days where I regret having elected to make the 15 minute walk in the 90 and sometimes 100+ degree heat. Yet, I know that once the weather gets cooler, walking is going to help me arrive at the office settled and help me shake off the office when I get home. Plus, my gas hand has sat at a half tank for over a week now. Walking will become less and less of an issue as time goes on. I’ve also noticed how little people actually walk around here too. I’ll be addressing that in a future post.
  • Biking– My dad worked some magic and my old bike is now fully functional. Looking forward to riding it to work and to going out on trails with family and friends. I’ll also be able to advocate even better for bike and pedestrian safety and I’m fully engaged in these modes of transportation.
  • Trains– At least 10 trains come right in front of my house daily. Some I love to see, such as the Amtrak trains. Others are just noisy and I’m thankful that they don’t wake me up. I often sit on my balcony and watch them go by, as well as the city buses coming into what is our multi-modal depot. They also serve as the foreground for the background of our city skyline you see above. I hope to take the train again one day soon to points north, south and east, since it’s now right in my front yard and will add to my urban experience.

Now, that’s settled. Let me get back to living and I look forward to a greater richness in my writings now that I’m finally in the environment I’ve written on and loved on so much.

#CNU20, Traveling as An Urbanist

Updates and Annoucements from #CNU20-Open Source, Panels, Articles, Etc.

Hey everyone. Hope you are having a great time at #CNU20

First of all, check out my travel story at Next American City.

Then, be sure to follow me @blackurbanist on Twitter and Instagram for live tweets and shots.

Tomorrow (Saturday), I’m presenting twice on the Civic Inferiority Complex. First at approximately 11:44 AM on Saturday morning and second during the Saturday afternoon Open Source time at 3:45. We will meet down where the breakfast table is in the convention center and move if need be. Be sure to bring a pen and paper as we are going to work through your own Civic Inferiority Complex.

Third, I am so happy to see all of you in the flesh again. I know there are folks who are here in spirit and I feel that too. Also, if we have just met this week, it’s very nice to meet you. If we haven’t met yet and you see me in the convention hall or at one of the bars, please say hello.

*Folks who are paid members of CNU-PLEASE VOTE FOR BOARD MEMBERS BY NOON TODAY*

And for those folks who are at home or elsewhere. My UNC Global American South panel is here. Take a couple of hours and listen to powerful conversation on the migration of African-Americans and what everyone in the south needs to do to create community.

Greensboro, Traveling as An Urbanist

CNU, Seeing the Future

Three major things are going on with me right now. The first is that I completed my masters of public affairs! For the last two years, I’ve been studying urban policy from the inside out with a wonderful group of classmates and challenging teachers. It was in an urban policy class that I decided that it wasn’t enough to wax philosophical about placemaking, I needed to tell the world that I was a proud black urbanist.

That declaration led to an article in Grist, which led to a week of sharing ideas last year in Madison, Wisconsin that changed my life. This year, I’m about to get on a plane to West Palm Beach, FL to do it all again.

That gathering, the Congress of New Urbanism, is celebrating its 20th gathering this year. Anyone who has been knows that this is not your average trade show. From bringing back the traditional small town to putting a tent over a bus stop to make it a more humane place to wait, to people who recognize the public health benefits of a more vibrant, dense lifestyle, this thing we call urbanism or placemaking extends past the bricks and the sidewalks and into the hearts of many attendees.

That’s what I will be talking about on Saturday morning in a session on Tactical Urbanism, Economics and Community. My presentation, Killing the Civic Inferiority Complex, will offer steps to help communities of any size and stature take the resources they do have and put their minds together to make them awesome. I’m presenting with a number of place-making rockstars. I’m not sure about video for this session, but if you are in West Palm Beach, you should come to our session after the Saturday plenary at 10:45.

I’ll also be keeping a journal of my experiences at CNU 20 for Next American City. Be sure to bookmark the site for my twice-daily dispatches from West Palm Beach(and the various destinations in-between). I’ll also post teasers here so you won’t miss a thing. And check out this CNU 19 recap while you are at it.

After I get home from WPB, I’ll start my tenure with the NC Humanities Council on the 15th. Looking forward to helping communities find the funding to bring museum exhibits, neighborhood histories and neighborhood book talks alive, among other things. This job will also allow me to live, work and play in Downtown Greensboro.

So here it is, three weeks, three life changing events. Thanks again for reading folks and I look forward to seeing many of you later this week!

Traveling as An Urbanist

Live from CityWorks(X)po

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Well, I’ve been home in Greensboro for a few hours now and really, just marinating on what I learned. From the power of seeing Nikki Giovanni in the flesh and feeling a kindred spirit. Also, getting the question answered on how she drives inspiration from being in a place like the Roanoke Valley. From watching Theaster Gates keep it real and make a few folks squirm, yet remembering having a chance to have drinks and pick his brain a little the night before. And of course, scaring Jim Kuntsler a bit by snapping a now missing photo and really praying that we find something to at least keep the Internet going, when the other non-renewable resources die.

I am thankful for Ed Walker and Co. for allowing me to see the value of the small city. My mind begins to forget some of the afternoon speakers, because I was too busy cooking up my own big idea. Plus, some of the best presentations will be on YouTube and I was ready to go out and create. I also want to give a shout out to all the folks I had intimate conversations with, who were not officially on the conference program. I wish I could have had a few more dinners, another sleepover party and another concert to hang out with you at. Good thing is, most of you are local to Roanoke and the rest of you give me an excuse to visit other areas of the county.

I’ve written down my big ideas in my most private journal, because I’m not ready to launch them quite yet. I’m not sure I’m in the right phase of my life, or have enough local support. I’m also creating some of the plotlines in my head as I speak.

Nevertheless, every city should do this, take time and convene all it’s change agents, historians, placemakers and the like and talk about how we can make a difference. I may submit my ideas here, but in the meantime, I’ll be coming back here more often to keep these conversations of diversity in placemaking going.

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Welcome again from Roanoke this Saturday morning. 24 hours from now, I expect to be somewhat sad because I will no longer be in the company of such wonderful people and ideas. Then I remember that for many of you, this blog and the press coverage and the Facebook and the various other media outlets are your only door into the action in the convention hall. Well in light of that, here are some of yesterday’s highlights

  • Toni Blackmon opened us up with thoughts, dance and a wonderful video of her Sisters of the Circle art collective for young girls. Another program housed under the umbrella of the Jefferson Center, this program helps refugee and immigrant girls, as well as a few local girls, become more confident. Also, Toni spit out some freestyle and got the crowd going with a few fun volunteers
  • Kennedy Smith! Amazing how a cute idea to start a downtown soap opera has turned into a career of presenting great ideas for downtowns, many of which she showcased for over an hour yesterday afternoon, keeping us riveted and inspired to do more.
  • Then after Kennedy’s morning presentation, we had the queen of biking in America, Mia Birk. She’s a great example of how someone who did not have the benefit of growing up in a big city, took something a simple as biking(which she began as a gift from her brother) and turned it into a national model, beginning in Portland and now in DC, Boston and other areas considering bikeshare systems. I was especially moved when she talked about her stepfather coming over to the bike crowd.
  • Katherine Walker’s account of “civil disobedience” or “performance art” made me think of the recent articles on criminalizing the homeless and how the bad economy and the Occupy movement are helping folks see how dumb it is to limit the impact of public space.
  • Ben Hewitt has become the darling of agriculture. He may not know much about urban ag, but he knows a thing or two about making the land pay like it used to and it’s reaching all of the foodies and new ag acolytes through his books. According to him, local food shall:
    • Feed the locals
    • Be circular
    • Be based on sunshine
    • And offer viability to producers

The rest of the afternoon ran long, but was full of great ideas, from Ken Farmer’s dispatch from the Project for Public Spaces on the power of 10, Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper and the notion that no movement can do it alone and Danielle Morrison with the play deficit and Stewart Mease with his unserviced workforce(that would be me square in that demographic), we had a boatload of inspiration.

The party then moved out and across the streets. I took in a great exhibit at the Taubmann Center, of Nick Cave’s work. this man creates these amazing neo-tribal costumes in Chicago, then has people dance in them and be photographed in them. You can take pics in the exhibit, but just Google him and see what I’m talking about.

We then all ended up at the Walker’s beautiful apartment, after a few stops at Freeze, a cool vintage clothing store/coffee shop and Lucky, a swanky soul food joint that lights up and extracts the citrus oil in its cocktails. Apparently, Ed thought up the conference sitting right there at that bar, so it was cool that we went to the nucleus of the party.

I’ve also gotten network with great leaders, past, present and future and look forward to another day of fun. I’m going to include the pictures tomorrow in one big swoop. Also, if you are concerned about me in the snow, there is none here, just a nice cold rain :(. I’m still tweeting here and there @blackurbanist. Check that out for my in the room thoughts. Also, Roanoke Valley locals, check out http://envisionroanoke.com/

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Good morning from Roanoke. Internet was spotty in places, so I’m just now getting back to recaping the first day. We heard a lot of great inspiring ideas, some of which I’m including below (in paraphrase)

Ed Walker- People are doing sophisticated things in big cities, but no more sophisticated than what’s going on in Roanoke

Bob Lambert- Some of this information may change the course of your career. Less and less the size of the city makes a difference. If you can’t be a leader, make sure you are the first follower and one of the best supporters

Nicco Mele- I think we are near the end of big. I herald the return of craft in America.

Also, we heard from Ruth Milligan, who showed a great video of how TEDx is creating ideashare around the world and opening up communities. I hope to bring either at TEDx or PechaKucha to Greensboro soon and this inspired me. We also heard music from 13-year old guitar prodigy Gabe Moralis, were treated to a private show by blues/jazz/justdarngoodmusic singer Megan McCormick, and great local gormet barbeque from a local vendor who’s name escapes me right now. I’m about to rush off to breakfast, but stay tuned to pictures from yesterday shortly.

 

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Got to Roanoke safely and found a nice place I’ll term “mountain urbanism”. With all these peaks, even the box stores have to behave better. Hotels a bit too far of a walk to the exhibit hall, and there are no sidewalks, but looking forward to parking downtown and exploring. Pictures to come…
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I’m honored to dust off the pixels of this site to file some live blog and coverage of the inaugural CityWorks(X)po, beginning today and running through Saturday in Roanoke, VA.

I’m looking forward to a weekend of collaboration, good food and good ideas on cities. Come here to this post over the weekend as I update it with notes, pictures, and maybe interviews of conference participants.

Issues and Ideas, Traveling as An Urbanist

Are We Missing Major Place-Making Opportunities With Our Airports?

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Terminal 2, RDU

Yes, this looks cool, but I think I’ve seen this airport before…(Image Credit Flickr user: Evil Jess

Floating through airports over the summer, I have noticed how remarkably similar they are. I would think  an international building with the ability to showcase the local culture would in fact be that showcase. Instead, I’m seeing  the same generic architecture. I feel that the airport, as the million (and lately billion) dollar showpiece of your town , should be unique in not only architecture, but in the content that it sells and displays.

When I arrived at Raleigh-Durham International Airport on the way to the CNU 19 in Madison, WI,  my first response was a series of oohs and ahhs. The arches, the glass elevators, the pre-security Starbucks and sandwich shop, the big windows, I was amazed. Then I started thinking, somehow this all looks very familiar. The baggage claim with the ticketing floor terrace was Baltimore. Same with the security tables between the restaurants. The arches I’ve seen in Detroit, Indianapolis, Charlotte. Everybody has windows.  Even in Madison, without the arches, there were windows, beige and the feel of the constricted and shed-like RDU Terminal 1. Great, I’m thinking now, we have always had an airport plan that’s bland and adds nothing to the character. Yes, the art is different and cool, but when did big arches come to symbolize air travel?

At this point you can go ahead and ask why I should care? It’s just the airport. You come in and you go out and you are only there as long as it takes to get on a plane. However, we all know you can spend a minimum of two hours preparing to get on a plane, 30 minutes getting into flight, the time of the flight, then about 30-45 minutes to exit. This of course assumes that there is no layover. If that’s the case, you are stuck in a building with processed food, stale air, overpriced wi-fi and horribly uncomfortable chairs. You might be able to pay to access an airline lounge, but it’s not worth the expense.

So what do I think airport authorities should encourage out of their architects? What kind of experience do I want in the airport?

First of all, I like the Tampa model for architecture. Tampa’s main building has a nice mid-century modern, golden age of passenger air travel feel in their main terminal. Once you go upstairs, you are then invited into the 21st century, through people movers that take you to one of five spoked terminals, each of which reflects a different tone and character. There are still windows so you can see the planes, but it doesn’t all look the same. Also we could add chairs at the gate that don’t have the bars, in case people do in fact need to sleep at the airport.

For what’s sold in the airport, the airport needs to reflect Austin’s model, with a ban on chain restaurants. RDU is about half and half. Still, my true home airport of Greensboro only has one restaurant and I assume it’s locally owned, but even it may be controlled by that airport franchising company . Same with the stores. Outside of a few duty-free and magazine shops, having a store like the Motown store in Detroit is excellent for establishing the meaning of a place.

One last amenity that should be offered is a family wing. Similar to the USO lounge for soldiers and families, maybe around Christmas and other major holidays, one of the airline lounges can become a family area, so that families can calm their children down and keep them from being loud  on planes or tired young professionals can catch a few hours of sleep on the way home from visiting parents.

But I digress, what do you think your home airport should have or look like? How can we make our airports better places?