Tag Archives: Urbanism

For one- or two-way streets?

Posted on July 22, 2019 by

On a recent sojourn in (and above) Manhattan, Steve Mouzon sparked a Facebook conversation about the merits and demerits of one- and two-way streets. It unfolded at such a high level of thoughtfulness about streets (of either ilk) from so … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Halloween in Providence

Posted on November 1, 2018 by

Last night’s Halloween trick-or-treat scene near our little house on Providence’s East Side showcased the charms of our more modest nook of the Blackstone neighborhood. On account of its evident friendliness, our district is usually mobbed by families from other … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Europe as museum for rich?

Posted on October 7, 2018 by

The late Walter Laqueur, who died last week after a long career cataloguing the sins of communism, terrorism and the Holocaust, was quoted in his New York Times obituary asserting that the “possibility that Europe will become a museum or … Continue reading →

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L’Apogée, here we come!

Posted on April 9, 2018 by

This afternoon’s meeting of the Downtown Design Review Committee was cut short when one applicant, the developer of a second ugly building on Canal Street next to the first one now under construction, begged off till next time. In its … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Providence | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

We dodged the HQ2 bullet

Posted on April 6, 2018 by

Providence would have been slaughtered if Amazon had decided to build its second headquarters – HQ2 – in Rhode Island and its capital city. So for the loss of 50,000 well-paid jobs and sundry other benefits, we should not blame … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Jan Gehl’s misplacemaking

Posted on November 7, 2017 by

ArchDaily has interviewed Jan Gehl, the noted Danish designer and theorist of placemaking. The article, “In the last 50 years, architects have forgotten what a good human scale is,” suggests that Gehl’s thinking, for all its merit, has not truly … Continue reading →

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D’town PVDfest vids galore

Posted on June 3, 2017 by

We – not the editorial we but the family we, as in me, Victoria and Billy – visited PVDfest in downtown Providence this afternoon – whoa, Nellie! a lot going on! Downtown was jamming. More different types of people than … Continue reading →

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PawSox sock the Bucket

Posted on May 17, 2017 by

GoLocalProv.com came out today with an editorial, “Pawsox Owners’ Ask Is Failed Community Leadership and Ultimate Greed.” It says: “Terry Murray and Tom Ryan asking Pawtucket to float a bond is like Daddy Warbucks shaking down Annie and Sandy for … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

S.J. Perelman in Wash. Sq.

Posted on March 23, 2017 by

Who hasn’t seen a musical that makes you want, in the spirit of the moment, to leap up and dance down that stone balustrade past the water fountain and into the dappled park, singing a Broadway tune to beat the … Continue reading →

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Pictures of Rio de Janeiro

Posted on August 16, 2016 by

There is very little to complain of in the category of Olympic stadiums at Rio this year. The structures all appear to have mastered the urge to look like something other than arenas for sport. No bird cages, no bubble … Continue reading →

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