Reconsidering the Urban Alley

Alyse Nelson takes a look at a handful of alleys that were transformed from crusty dumping grounds into beautiful urban spaces.

1 minute read

August 27, 2011, 7:00 AM PDT

By Tim Halbur


Nord Alley in Seattle is one of the success stories highlighted by Nelson in this picture-rich article. She emphasizes that transforming an alley doesn't take a lot of physical changes, just collaborative effort.

And the opportunity is significant, as report from a couple of University of Washington students shows:

"They studied downtown Seattle's alleys and determined that laneways cover almost half as much space as all of the zone's parks, squares, and existing pedestrian-oriented streets. In other words, reclaiming alleys could increase by almost half the pedestrian area of downtown Seattle."

Nelson also looks at alleys in Vancouver, San Francisco and Melbourne.

Friday, August 26, 2011 in SightlineDaily

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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