via Chicagobudget.org
Wisconsin's new front door
Milwaukee unveiled a long range plan (pdf) to rebuild its downtown lakefront. Parks Director Sue Black captures the aspirational nature of the work:
In planning for the future of the lakefront we have a tremendous opportunity to do something spectacular for the State of Wisconsin, for Milwaukee County, and for the City of Milwaukee - but most importantly for our citizens and visitors to this fantastic resource. This area is considered to be the most heavily used recreational land in Wisconsin. Let's get this done right and with a sense of urgency and pride.
Michigan's refreshing Rick Snyder
Excerpts of the Governor's discussion with the Detroit Free Press about his budget proposal and philosophy.
13,000 angry union fans...
... piled into the Wisconsin Capitol building to holler about Gov. Scott Walker's proposed budget, which would reduce public worker pay and bargaining power. Wisconsin is some $3.6 billion in the hole for the 2011-13 budget.
With imagination we'll get there
Mike Madison pinpoints a Rust Belt reinvention challenge tougher to solve than the rust:
What holds the Rust Belt back, perhaps necessarily and inevitably, isn’t really the challenge of clearing brownfields and attracting new firms and residents. It is the challenge of history and culture that frames how one can imagine the future.
Rust Belt chic is hip, to be sure, but it’s also all we’ve got, for now. Can you imagine a broadcast of Monday Night Football in Pittsburgh that does not feature video of steelmaking? Yet no steel is made in the City of Pittsburgh today, and only a modest amount of steel comes out of the region as a whole — nearly all of it specialty steel, not the giant pieces that framed bridges and skyscrapers.
Who knows what Pittsburgh might become, even if it might become anything more than it is right now. But Pittsburgh has to find a way to put steel in its place, metaphorically speaking.
Tweet of the week
@MT There are not any plans to erect a statue to Robocop. Thank you for the suggestion.
Tough times Toronto
Ironically, Mio Pupazzo's rant against biking appears on Toronto's MetroActive network. It all reminds me of these hilariously ridiculous clips of the city's now Mayor Rob Ford.
City talk
David Brooks writes about the Splendor of Cities from Chicago's mayoral campaign trail:
Chicago has its problems: it suffers under one of the biggest debt loads in the country. But it has thrived because it has had good leadership, a constantly updated housing stock, a good business environment and an ethos that attracts talent and celebrates blunt conversation.
Hottest fires make the hardest steel
Plenty of good ads during the Rust Belt Bowl yesterday. If you're bullish about the rise of Michigan and the greater Great Lakes region, this was the best one...
Sherbourne Common opens the ice
Don't mean to crib content from Christopher Hume today. But this is an informative update from the Toronto waterfront.
Ridding Toronto of transit
The opening statement of Christopher Hume's latest column on the break down of Toronto's transit debate:
By now, Toronto’s transit failure is all but complete.
Read the Midwest
Anna Clark highlights 13 stand out books that capture "the sense of place in the mythic Midwest." Novelist Kurt Vonnegut, born and raised in Indy, helps explain the connection:
All my jokes are Indianapolis. All my attitudes are Indianapolis. My adenoids are Indianapolis. If I ever severed myself from Indianapolis, I would be out of business. What people like about me is Indianapolis.
Lansing don't want none of that regional tyranny
The city mayor called for a committee to study what that regionalism thing is all about. After reading that news the village idiot typed the comment below. Notice another 5 "recommend."
MikeSears wrote:
Rochester, MN frames the future for downtown
The City of Rochester recently adopted a new downtown master plan. The design principles, which are quickly becoming universal across forward-looking Great Lakes metros, express the city's aspiration:
- Create a vibrant, economically healthy downtown that is walkable, livable and promotes human interaction
- Create strong connections between major activity centers including the central business district, University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic
- Promote mobility options that reduce dependency on automobiles
- Create pedestrian friendly streets that balance use by people and automobiles
- Build upon historic buildings and landmarks that contribute to Rochester’s history and culture
- Establish a connected open space system including the river
- Create strong connections between indoor and outdoor spaces at street level, subway, and skyway
- Develop buildings that engage the street, shape the civic realm and minimize energy use
What's wrong with ruin rubbernecking
Noreen Malone makes The Case Against Ruin Porn.
By presenting Detroit, and other hurting cities like it, as places beyond repair, [ruin porn pics] in fact quash any such instinct. Looked at as a piece of art, they're arresting, compelling, haunting ... but not galvanizing. Our brains mentally file these scenes next to Pompeii rather than a thriving metropolis like Chicago, say, or even Columbus.
Measuring open-mindedness across the Great Lakes
Using an interesting methodology that assigns points to incidence of hate crimes, frequency of discrimination complaints, popular support for gay marriage and other relevant measures, The Daily Beast ranks each of the United States on the tolerance scale. Here's how the Great Lakes region scores:
1. Wisconsin
3. Illinois
4. Pennsylvania
7. Minnesota
17. New York
30. Michigan
33. Indiana
46. Ohio
1. Wisconsin
3. Illinois
4. Pennsylvania
7. Minnesota
17. New York
30. Michigan
33. Indiana
46. Ohio
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)