"It's too cold to walk here" is often the response to the subject of livability in northern climes. Hazel Borys hails from the third coldest city of its size on earth and talks walkable winter cities.
"Walkability mitigates the most extreme climates by providing interesting places to warm up, linger, and connect. And plenty of options about how and where to turn around and circle back."
Northern cities tend to go after big silver bullets for making their cities appealing in the winter, to compete with the Sun Belt. These bullets are generally set in the city center, and are regional draws to get people to drive somewhere and then spend time outside. However, the greatest parts of walkable winter cities aren’t about the headliners, but rather the openers. And those openers tend to be enabled in policy but not in legality.
"Legalizing the useful walk, outdoor rooms, short blocks, and play sheds are the first steps toward a walkable winter city, as well as allowing us to live in season year round. These urban forms are available only by negotiation and not by right for most of North America."
"While Canadian cities offer up so many great ideas about embracing winter, last week’s Maclean’s headlined, 'We’ve become a nation of winter wusses.' This extensive piece has many inescapable points about how Canadians avoid the outdoors in winter, where in the past we used to pride ourselves on being the land of ice and snow. I think this shift is due mainly to recent suburban growth patterns."
Carnival de Québec, Québec City, Québec. CreativeCommons ShareAlike License with Attribution: flickr user Jamie McCaffrey.
Read the full story: Walkable Winter Cities
Goodbye, Winter: Until Next Time, a Few Reminders on Lovable Winter Cities
While winter cities may spend most of their brand management on showcasing regional winter amenities, the greatest winter cities provide delight on the neighborhood scale.
3 Good Reasons SimCity Should Adopt a Form-Based Code
And an update from Codes Study about the 600 places that really are upping their game with form-based codes.
Connections, Community, and the Science of Loneliness
Can urban form help address the loneliness that so often accompanies aging? In a new blog post, Hazel Borys examines some remedies for severed connections.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet
Get ready for that new train smell and more seats. But they won’t go faster or run more frequently on the Cascades route in Washington and Oregon.
LAX SkyLink opening delayed again, contractor won’t commit to new deadline
The project was supposed to open its doors to the public in 2023.
Caltrain may slash over one-third of its stations
If Bay Area voters reject two transit tax measures, Caltrain, BART and AC Transit will see steep service cuts.
A 'dangerous' precedent: North Carolina successfully pressures communities into voting for toll roads
Two mayors resigned from the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization after it voted in favor of the toll roads.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello