Tag Archives: Planning

“Why is Boston so ugly?”

Posted on May 15, 2015 by David Brussat

That’s the question asked by Rachel Slade in Boston magazine. Her answer is that developers don’t hire enough Thom Maynes or Renzo Pianos. The real answer is that developers hire too many Thom Mayne and Renzo Piano wannabes, and that … Continue reading →

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The granularity of cities

Posted on January 2, 2015 by David Brussat

The University of Oklahoma’s Institute for Quality Communities has developed a website that offers superimposed maps of major American cities. The maps cover identical territory in each city, and you can slide a line in the middle to reveal the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Landscape Architecture, Preservation, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Column: Kennedy Plaza’s future spins its wheels

Posted on October 16, 2014 by David Brussat

Standing on the steps in front of City Hall, several people waited for a tour of Kennedy Plaza to begin, followed by a public discussion of its future. We wondered why the front doors of so many important Providence public … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Knockdown knockabout

Posted on August 14, 2014 by David Brussat

Many years ago, no later than the mid-90s, I was invited by Providence Preservation Society director Arnold Robinson to sit in on a meeting of the facilities planning staffs of Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design. By … Continue reading →

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Column: Bill Warner, due diligence and history

Posted on June 19, 2014 by David Brussat

The Rhode Island Senate has passed legislation, Senate Bill No. 2255, to rename State Bridge No. 1181 — known as the Providence River Bridge — as the William D. Warner Memorial Bridge. Perhaps, in the waning days of this session … Continue reading →

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Blast: CNU in Providence (2)

Posted on June 9, 2014 by David Brussat

Here is the second of those two columns: The New Urbanists in Providence II June 8, 2006  THE QUESTION most asked at last week’s 14th Congress for the New Urbanism was: If style doesn’t matter, why are we always discussing … Continue reading →

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“America’s Urban Future”

Posted on April 21, 2014 by David Brussat

Vishaan Chakrabarti, a partner in the New York starchitect-wannabe firm SHoP (yes, the now almost mandatory ridiculous name), has nevertheless written an excellent piece about urban/suburban trends for the New York Times. It suggests that the feds should shift away … Continue reading →

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Column: Dr. Downtown’s stroll with Dr. Street

Posted on April 17, 2014 by David Brussat

Dear Dr. Downtown: Please tell us about your “walkabout” last weekend with the author of Street Design: The Secret to Great Cities and Towns — Strolling in Stratford. Well, the doctor thought that Dr. Street (aka John Massengale, New York … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Humor, Preservation, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Past blast: Confusion of the design reviewers

Posted on April 8, 2014 by David Brussat

As an enticement to read Thursday’s column about the new Dean Hotel, on Fountain Street in downtown Providence, I offer a blast from the past. In 2006 the city permitted a developer to pull down the building on Fountain next … Continue reading →

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(Repost) Waterplace wig-out

Posted on March 28, 2014 by David Brussat

A couple more examples of initial design proposals for buildings in Waterplace Park should suffice to nail down the veracity of the idea that a perverse hand was directing the Capital Center Commission and its design review panel in the … Continue reading →

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