Local officials in Overland Park, Kansas, a suburb of Kansas City, are pursuing a plan to build America's National Museum of Suburbia. Displays may include artifacts such as school lunchboxes, electric toasters and camping gear.
With America's downtowns thriving and younger generations increasingly interested in urban living, might there be a day when curious city-dwellers will be drawn to a former bowling alley and skating rink in suburban Kansas to view the treasured relics of suburbia?
That's what museum officials in Johnson County, Kansas are banking on, as they propose to spend $34 million to create "a faux suburb
where visitors could wander through a model ranch-style home, wonder at
an exhibit of lawn furniture and topple pins on a re-created bowling
lane," reports Jim Carlton.
"'There's a museum for barbed wire and a museum of light bulbs,' says
Larry Meeker, president of the Johnson County Museum Foundation Board,
which is pushing the suburb museum, so why not a national museum for
suburbia?"
"We thought, 'Why hasn't someone else thought of that?' " he says.
"Some locals think they know why not. 'I just don't think it's a big
turn-on to see something you can see every day,' says Steve Rose, a
Johnson County publisher of community newspapers and magazines who
opposes the museum. 'It's not like you're visiting ancient Rome.'"
FULL STORY: Suburban Kansas Dream: Museum of Suburbia
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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.