Posts tagged Superblocks
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National links: Barcelona’s car-free “superblocks” boost health and well-being
Are superblocks the neighborhoods of the future? A Texas high-speed rail line project inches along. Ford’s new campus highlights walkability, and more in this week’s National Links. Keep reading…
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In Barcelona, “superblocks” are giving streets back to pedestrians
Modern cities across the world have struggled to move away from the 20th Century's car-centric model to a more walkable, livable one. Barcelona is trying to pull it off by creating giant spaces where streets are only for people and cars are limited. Meet the “superblock:” Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: Technology in your life
Uber drivers aren’t color blind?; This week in apps; Next stop, Smart City, VA?; Rosslyn superblock no more; Big little steps for Metro; Driver kills Bikeshare station; That local touch; And…. Keep reading…
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Breakfast links: What we learned about bicycling
Milloy rides; “We don’t ticket our own”; Transformation and affordability; Inner Harbor 3.0; One step closer to ridesharing; Designing for mental health; Vancouver’s baby boom; DIY toll road; And…. Keep reading…
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Video shows plans for Crystal City redevelopment
Arlington County produced a video to explore its plan to redevelop Crystal City over the next 40 years. Board chairman Zimmerman walks around Crystal City and discusses some of the county’s goals, which include encouraging higher density development, introducing streetcars, improving open space and protecting affordable housing. Keep reading…
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Crystal City plans to repair its superblocks
In the 1960s, Crystal City began to develop into a high-density, mixed-use neighborhood. One developer’s grand vision for this area included a collection of superblocks, east of Jefferson Davis Highway. As the name implies, a superblock is generally a type of city block that is much larger than a traditional city block. The area where Crystal City would continue to rise… Keep reading…
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Superblocks near Metro, Part 1: Prince George’s
Sprawl development comes with many impersonal, mobility-limiting, traffic inducing accouterments. Seven lane roads, grass berms, curb cuts, enormous setbacks, corporate drive-thru fast food restaurants, strip malls… the list is long and ugly. But perhaps the most basic symptom of poorly thought-out suburban planning is in the street grid: the superblock. Superblocks… Keep reading…
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Brunch links: Foolishness in Maryland
News flash: cheap parking encourages driving: Montgomery County’s Office of Legislative Oversight issued a report saying what we knew: the county’s practice of building lots of cheap or free parking undermines their attempts to encourage non-auto commuting. Councilmember Nancy Floreen wants to hear your thoughts. Keep reading…
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Save Our Superblock
One of the travesties of 1950s-era urban planning was the “superblock”, where cities disrupted the regular street grid to build large towers surrounded by windswept plazas. Most of these superblocks are now recognized as mistakes, such as Boston’s City Hall Plaza, a huge barren space nearly empty all year round, and the World Trade Center superblock,… Keep reading…
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Don’t play SimCity (Classic)
Like many people my age, I grew up playing SimCity, the 80s classic video game of city planning. The player lays out transportation infrastructure, parks, and residential, commercial, or industrial zones into which the Sims build their own buildings. All the zones are square and exactly the same size. (There have since been two sequels, SimCity 2000 and… Keep reading…