RACE: Midtown commercial nodes require vision, compromise
Transit-oriented developments in older neighborhoods must include density and good design.
Urban Design column
Articles
RACE: Make it Mallory: East Washington as creative corridor
Old factory is one of many existing assets that can reverse fortunes of a struggling neighborhood.
RACE: Updating Indianapolis’ plan: vision, reality and the future
The city has an opportunity to replace its weak comprehensive plan with a robust strategy.
RACE: Region should plan for 500,000 new neighbors
Expected population growth will work for us if we prepare and against us if we don’t.
RACE: Historic Maple Road has power to transform city
Bus Rapid Transit could revive 38th Street and the neighborhoods that surround it.
RACE: We have great streets, but we need more of them
Successful streets balance environmental, economic, community and transportation objectives.
RACE: City, state planning must account for climate change
There’s a heavy cost associated with ignoring the environment as we envision our future.
RACE: The public house and our changing cities
The long-standing tradition for pubs and inns dates back to the Romans. Wales, England and Ireland have been perfecting the pub for centuries.
RACE: It’s our turn to build an industrial legacy neighborhood
As the GM plant site is redeveloped, Indianapolis should learn from Cardiff’s mistakes.
RACE: From Cardiff to Indianapolis, livable cities are universal
The capital cities of Wales and Indiana have much in common and are designing for the future.
RACE: Indianapolis needs standards for its Capitol District
Our state capitol building is surrounded by utilitarian streets and inappropriate development.
RACE: Zoning overhaul might not go far enough
Indy Rezone won’t change the city’s timid approach to planning.
RACE: It’s time to rediscover Kessler’s park and boulevard system
George Kessler’s 1908 vision was the foundation for Indianapolis’ neighborhood building and metropolitan-park planning. The nearly 3,500-acre Kessler legacy is on the National Register of Historic Places.
RACE: Our streetcar legacy is high-value neighborhoods
As late as 1950, Indianapolis’ city limits were served by a system of streetcars and buses that resulted in compact and socially active neighborhoods.
RACE: Here’s how we can design our way to prosperity by 2040
If we do not think about whom we are designing the Indianapolis region for, we will, by default, turn design decisions over to speculators and partisans.
RACE: We’re turning our back on the city’s design DNA
Some large projects are in the works for Massachusetts and Indiana avenues. These projects are important. They can reconnect the fabric of downtown neighborhoods and commercial areas while adding economic and cultural vitality.
RACE: Making downtown walkable shouldn’t be afterthought
For me, the coolest cities have downtown streets that are economically vibrant, social, safe and comfortable. By any measure, we fall short.
RACE: Is CityWay a mixed-use project or urban neighborhood?
CityWay’s design does a lot of things well. Its site plan is woven into the Indy grid, providing active street edges.
RACE: Professional project review is an investment in quality
If you want to make the private sector leery of developing in your community, take the certainty out of the process by making it political.
RACE: Washington Street rife with missed opportunities
Some of Washington Street's vitality can be recovered. An urban design plan for the street would identify a framework of existing and future landmarks, edges, open spaces and gateways.