In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe explains how, as the Amazon (and other) “Great Returns” to the office unfold, it's essential to dig deeper.
Wolfe urges a deep dive beyond quick fixes to assure sustained urban vitality:
The trick will be to assess the ideals that the quick fixes are meant to guarantee and restore, which are, essentially, the first principles of cities. These principles include time-immemorial concepts: safety, the basic connectors between people and where they work, the importance of hubs of culture and human interaction, and the co-creation necessary to keep these Great Returns alive.
The article provides five ideas that focus on long-term regeneration, including safe places and spaces; contextually appropriate tools; looking beyond two dimensions; recognizing cities as evolving, interdisciplinary systems; and proceeding with “place healing” based on inclusionary principles.
FULL STORY: Analysis: Amazon’s ‘Great Return’ to the office is just one aspect of a downtown Seattle comeback
'Place-Healing': From Adaptation to Manifesto
Amid pandemic and protest, the need for urban mending has become abundantly clear, with responses that invoke the more ethereal elements of a physical place I like to call it "place-healing," a term that seems right for the times.
Prioritizing Open Air Spaces in Pandemic Recovery Efforts
Businesses and public health officials are working together to develop guidelines to provide goods and services to the public safely. They're visioning creative ways to bring businesses outdoors and promoting al fresco spaces.
Learning from Seattle
The original epicenter of coronavirus outbreak was also the first region in the nation to implement social distancing measures, serving as a national model of behaviors that lessen the spread of the deadly virus.
In Most U.S. Cities, Archaic Laws Limit Roommate Living
Critics argue laws preventing unrelated adults from living in the same home fail to understand the modern American household.
Ten Signs of a Resurgent Downtown
In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe continues his exploration of a holistic and practical approach to post-pandemic urban center recovery, anchored in local context and community-driven initiatives that promote livability, safety, and sustainability.
Off-Peak is the New On-Peak
Public transit systems in major U.S. cities are starting to focus on non-rush hour travelers as pre-pandemic commuting patterns shift and transportation needs change.
Congestion Pricing Could Be Coming to L.A.
The infamously car-centric city is weighing a proposed congestion pricing pilot program to reduce traffic and encourage public transit use.
Key Points From the Tesla Data Leak
Thousands of leaked safety complaints about the electric carmaker reveal a pervasive effort to hide problems from the public and prevent customers from filing lawsuits.
D.C. Residents Fight Light Pollution
New LED lighting has raised concerns about the health and environmental impacts of excessive or harsh lighting.
City of Bellevue
Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission
Code Studio
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Montrose County
Knox County
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
