THINK.urban
Public Space
Carless Urban Design
Along with the recent discussions on developments without parking spaces, it was news this week that Los Angeles has approved a plan for a district without any mandatory parking requirements (you can read the full Streetsblog.org report here). Other auto-related news has surfaced recently regarding the heart of the matter – not only the space … Continue reading
New Project: PDX Street Art Advocacy
We’ve started up a new project here at THINK.urban we’re calling PDX Street Art Advocacy. Spurred on by Tiffany Conklin, a recent Portland State University graduate in Urban Studies, and her master’s thesis on street art in Portland neighborhoods, we’re hoping to help people with the process of murals, conduct more research on street art … Continue reading
Post-disaster Transportation
Imagine your city in crisis. For some of us, that might not be far removed from a recent painful natural or man made disaster. For others, like us here in Portland, it could be the near future when, not if, the overdue earthquake hits. In New York City, millions of people are still without power … Continue reading
An Occupied Anniversary: Public Space One Year Later
September 20th recently brought the first year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street protests in Zucotti Park, New York City. This time last year brought the Occupy movement to Portland’s doorstep in the form of a massive march through downtown, numbering over 10,000 strong, and filling Pioneer Courthouse Square before ending at Chapman and Lownsdale … Continue reading
A Hybrid Solution to Unpaved Streets?
Those whom get alerts from Portland’s Mayor Sam Adams received a strange email last week, with the following text: “Live on a gravel or dirt street? Portland’s new Out of the Mud (and Dust) initiative aims to help. Your feedback is wanted.” There are over 65 miles of gravel or unimproved roads in Portland, and … Continue reading
GOOD Ideas for Portland: Cycling Infrastructure
THINK.urban, recently completed the presentation of our various concepts for GOOD Ideas for Cities Portland. The team was one of six, which included Wieden+Kennedy, Ziba, Sincerely Interested, OMFGco, and ADXPortland, all tackling tough ideas. The THINK.urban concepts were developed alongside working alongside our urban leader, BikePortland.org founder Jonathan Maus, who presented the challenge: “Now it’s … Continue reading
GOOD Ideas for Cities event a blast!
We’ve been busy at work on the submittal for the GOOD Ideas for cities proposal for bike infrastructure. The event was a great success – and the conversation for new bike concepts in Portland and beyond, mixed with some luck and political will, has the potential to elevate the conversation and adopt some new infrastructure … Continue reading
Research and the Researcher
A strange thing happened to me, and indeed the world, only a few short months ago when a group of people decided to set up camp and literally occupy Wall Street to protest economic inequality the United States. Never before an activist by nature, I found myself becoming more educated in the statistics and issues … Continue reading
Science of Pedestrian Movements
An interesting article from the Economist on ‘The Wisdom of Crowds‘ echoes much of the seminal research of William Whyte (City), Edward T. Hall (The Hidden Dimension), and others that have closely studied the behavior of pedestrians and other users of public spaces. The interplay of cultural habits that tells us to step right or … Continue reading
Ricardo Legorreta 1931-2011
Legorreta + Legorreta: It is with great sadness that we learn that Ricardo Legorreta died on the 30th of December 2011. “La vida es como las olas, hay que respetarlas y amarlas, estudiarlas y no combatirlas. Hay que sacar provecho de ellas para llegar a nuestro objetivo” –Ricardo Legorreta He will be sorely missed. … Continue reading
