Map Boy

Hmmm...almost every city that I voted in had my "favorite landmark" in last place! It appears that it will be a new Monopoly board made up of baseball stadiums...

I agree...it wasn't that it was all glossy and positive...it just helps to put some important things into perspective. Ned Hill is one of my professors and he's one of those "tell it like it is" types. Very smart...not trying to make things sound better than they are, but also not mired in the negative numbers that so many "experts" and members of the press tend to dwell on.

From a recent Avenue District mailing: Interview with Jonathan Glance, Zaremba. Architect and Project Designer: 1. How would you describe the ‘style’ of the buildings in the Avenue District? It is an eclectic mix of contemporary and traditional design creating a vibrant and diverse neighborhood rather than a single building. 2. (follow up from 1) So why do the buildings change ‘styles’? They change so we can create a diversity of building types. This diversity is what creates and defines a neighborhood. Each building is built separately and discreetly as the project grows and evolves. The Avenue District will be exactly this, a neighborhood not just a building. 3. Are they actually different buildings, where each building has its own entrance or is there a common entrance? Each building will be defined by its own common entry, elevator, and stairs. Having separate entrances and common areas gives residents a more intimate sense of place. We eliminate impersonal, long hallways and create communities within communities; neighborhoods within neighborhoods. 4. You incorporate a lot of high quality materials in your façade, including brick, stone, glass, pre-cast concrete. Was that a challenge to incorporate such a diverse palette? It takes a skilled designer to incorporate all these diverse materials and City Architect has done an excellent job. We intend to create a harmony with the materials. We will bring together the varied palette through common scale and detailing. 5. The Elegant Loft buildings are built right up to the sidewalk edge. Why build so close? Don’t you want a buffer? No buffers! The Avenue District is at the core an urban, upscale community like the Upper East Side in New York or Lincoln Park in Chicago. These premiere urban neighborhoods are successful because of the density and the synergy that results from that density. A buffer isn’t needed for the residents to enjoy a high quality of life. We’ve provided a green oasis in the center of these buildings that is a private green roof terrace for our homeowners. Additionally, the proposed expansion of the sidewalks and tree lawns on East 12th Street will create the soft edges that all great urban neighborhoods have. 6. Lots of urban buildings have retail on the ground floor. Will the Avenue District have that? Yes. Absolutely! Just like the great residential neighborhoods in New York and Chicago, it will definitely have retail. We look to focus attracting high-quality tenants that will provide much-needed amenities for our homeowners. These amenity-type retailers are what animate city streetscapes. 7. What do you do at Zaremba? My job is two-fold. First, I review the aesthetic and functional components of the design that are put forth by our design consultants. I then coordinate the design vision with our cost estimators and marketing team to make sure the design will work for our homeowners and fit in their budgets. Secondly, I act as the coordinator between Zaremba and City Architecture. I am the point person for our design team and make sure that both offices are synchronized.

A USA Today article that runs counter to this negative perspective, featuring some focus on Cleveland: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-04-20-cities_x.htm

A USA Today article that runs counter to this negative perspective, featuring some focus on Cleveland: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-04-20-cities_x.htm

In response to Wimwar's post, they did broadcast the opening day game on both big screens with audio pumped through the speakers on the plaza. I don't know that they're big enough for a great viewing experience, but with a crowd there and a playoff vibe on the streets, I'm sure this would be fun!

who is this Carl Matzelle, an intern?

Excellent series KJP! That really gives us a good idea of the context along the route. Anything south of Old Brooklyn is unfamiliar to me. For those of you who are not familiar with the last picture, looking northeast towards the West 25th Street Station, the propsed Riverview Hope VI project features a midrise row of apartments along the right side of the photo, from where KJP is standing all the way to the station. I'd love to see this happen and perhaps for a transfer point to be built at the site of the photo, in conjunction with the transit route we're discussing. Also, in response to Noozers comment, I think a curbside alignment would be best along this route.

seriously? that's messed up!

It's all a mess...they actually used to have turnstiles at many stations on the Red Line, but have taken them out. For example, I went to get on at Univ. Circle last week and expected a turnstile once I got up to the platform. It wasn't there, so I just walked by the booth, where a woman was immersed in her reading. She started banging on the window for me to come back! Why they decided to make things more confusing over the past 10 years, I have no idea! It seems that there are so many little things that they could do relatively easily to make the system better, but they appear to be doing little things to make it worse!

The Portland Streetcar shares a right-of-way with private automobiles, but in this way, it's not much different from a bus. The MAX has its own ROW (the sections I'm familiar with, at least) and therefore moves a lot faster. I think it would be possible to do a mixture...where there is a shared ROW in less congested, outlying areas and a designated ROW in the more congested areas. And, of course, synchronized traffic signaling, less frequent stations, etc. etc...

proposed...fingers crossed!

I know...I was just venting about Graves. Westbrook will have his games like that. And when he does, he should get the hook right away.

not much more you can ask for!

I know we're talking hypotheticals here, but if they're doing a surface line, it wouldn't have to physically connect with the Red Line at all. If they're talking about something similar to the Portland Streetcar or MAX, they could have a clear transfer point at W.25th & Columbus (with an extended Red Line platform that could also serve the proposed new Columbus Rd. housing very well), but they could also run it up to Detroit and have a nice terminus with plazas on both sides (they're already there on the north side of Detroit @ W. 25th). Hell, W. 25th north of Jay was already designed for streetcars!

and do what, call in Graves? Remind me why we invited that guy to camp and how he made the team? Didn't he do Ohio baseball enough harm last year?

Continued great work KJP!

Great updates B12! I'm excited to see these moving along. It seems like they've been sitting for quite some time. From what I've seen, I think you're right that the smaller project is nearing completion and that the Frangos project will take a bit more time (it's a much more substantial building, after all). With the connection to Gateway, Playhouse Square, 9th & Euclid, the Osborn, Carter Manor and several other projects, this is becoming a nice little neighborhood!

Great work, Corner, KJP... The first question that comes to mind, though, is why they wouldn't run this all the way up 25th to Detroit? There are quite a few transit-dependent people living at the north end of the route and you'd also connect with the buses on Detroit and the growing Flats population.

^wow, funny story #1 is...well, really funny! To cap off yesterday's transit riding experience, I was riding the Red Line home from University Circle last night and a two-car train pulled up to me and a friend (the guv). The only other person on the platform was a blind man with a seeing eye dog. We didn't expect the rear car doors to open, but when they did, we gladly hopped on and sat down! After we start rolling, the conductor (if you can call them that) calls out "you gentlemen are going to have to come up front to pay your fare." Ok, so why did he let us on the back car in the first place? We figure that we'll wait 'til the next stop and hop out the front door, and jump in the rear of the front car. So, we (plus our new blind friend and his dog) wait at the front door, but when we get to E. 105, he doesn't open it! He's waiting for us to come through the doors between the cars...which to my understanding, are there for emergencies only. Guv opens the first door and the blind guy tries to get through. He's having trouble with his dog and the next door, though. He can't find the handle! And, mind you, there's a gap between the cars...sheesh! So, a passenger runs back and opens the second door for him. We all shuffle through and start walking up to the front as the driver takes off again. We get up there, show our passes (we had all paid in advance, after all that), and go back to find a seat. Now, considering that the driver/conductor has now certainly seen that there is a blind passenger on his train, you'd think that he'd announce a stop or two...nope! He just rolled along, doing the bare minimum, getting us to each stop without crashing. Boy, talk about a contrast...morning commute: A+...evening commute: D (I'd have flunked him, but at least he got us to our destination!)

Very nice B12! I, too, just took a nice stroll through the cemetery. It's a beauty! It'll be interesting to see if someday this is regarded as an asset for nearby residents. There are some great opportunities for coversions in nearby buildings and this would provide a little oasis of calm and green for people in surrounding blocks. By the way, I took a few shots from the Jake over the cemetery a couple weeks back. They're posted here: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=8406.0

awww hell no!

Interesting...I wasn't sure what was happening when I saw that the old jewelry store space was up for lease. Have they moved into the Colonial Arcade space yet? They really need to keep that place open on the weekends. I was down there a couple weeks ago after a Tribe game...it was around 7:30 and both arcades were locked up. Thankfully, the Old Arcade was still open!

maybe you should sent them a short note!

yes well, go ahead and get yourself a digital camera then! a little reciprocation wouldn't kill ya! :wink: