ARTICLES
The Original Articles archives of CharacterTowns.org presents papers that discuss practical and conceptual ideas for designing, building and managing character towns and small cities that are interesting, pleasant and prosperous places for residents, businesses and visitors.
Main Street’s Active Zones: “Not Too Tall, Not Too Long”
THE ORLANDO REGION’S CHARACTER MAIN STREETS. The five county Orlando Region is fortunate to have many small cities and towns with character downtowns; towns that are attractive with successful retail and civic “main streets”. A survey of nine towns reveals a commonality in the length of the main street active zones and the height of their […]
Main Street’s Active Zones: “Not Too Tall, Not Too Long”
THE ORLANDO REGION’S CHARACTER MAIN STREETS. The five county Orlando Region is fortunate to have many small cities and towns with character downtowns; towns that are attractive with successful retail and civic “main streets”. A survey of nine towns reveals a commonality in the length of the main street active zones and the height of their […]
Main Street’s Active Zones: Not Too Tall, Not Too Long.
THE ORLANDO REGION’S CHARACTER MAIN STREETS. The five county Orlando Region is fortunate to have many small cities and towns with character downtowns; towns that are attractive with successful retail and civic “main streets”. A survey of nine towns reveals a commonality in the length of the main street active zones and the height of their […]
Makerspace for Education
Despite the popularity and trend of the term “makerspace”, educators have to search hundreds of articles, websites and books to determine what this term is, how to begin, where to locate materials and determine the educational significance. Another complication is that the resurgence of this DIY movement found its grassroots in the public population and […]
MakerSpace NYC
MakerSpace NYC was founded in 2013 after the studio and metal shop once privately used by our founders, DB Lampman & Scott Van Campen was flooded by Hurricane Sandy. Sandy hit in October 2012 and over the next year, thanks to funding from the NYCEDC and the many volunteers who gave their time, advice, skills […]
Makerspaces…An Overview.
Makerspaces are ingenious places where children and adults can experiment with built products. Creativity is paramount. The availability of spaces, benches, tools and teachers is the point of a makerspace. Some are for-profit; many are not. In addition to providing learning, experimenting and production places for people of all ages, makerspaces are great companion uses […]
Makerspaces as Downtown Assets
Makerspaces have been employed around America as places where people can congregate to learn a trade, perfect a skill and socialize in a setting that is safe, convenient, well-served and productive. The videos and discussion below describe what Makerspaces are and how they are being deployed to use physical spaces and equipment to advance social […]
Makerspaces as Retail Tenants.
Makerspaces have been employed around America as places where people can congregate to learn a trade, perfect a skill and socialize in a setting that is safe, convenient, well-served and productive. The videos and discussion below describe what Makerspaces are and how they are being deployed to use physical spaces and equipment to advance social […]
Master Downtown Systems: Technology Enhanced
DOWNTOWN IS A SYSTEM OF SYSTEMS. The very nature of a main street in a downtown is that of a master system. Whether likened to a retail shopping mall, a downtown partnershipor a ”main street”, the fact that many stores,restaurants, public offices, professional businesses and public open spaces are co- located in a small zone […]
Meet Your New Security Guard: A 300-Pound Robot
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Miami’s Underline snags a $22M grant.
Now its new phase can be built in Coral Gables. What is the Underline park and what will it look like? Miami’s 10-mile Underline trail and park is starting construction. This is what the park, which will extend from downtown Miami to Dadeland under the Metrorail’s elevated tracks, will look like. Ambitious plans for construction […]
Micro Cottages
Micro Cottages are small single-family homes with living/dining areas, bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchens plus a large usable porch serving as outside living space. Micro Cottages and their residents do best when they constitute a village of six to twelve homes clustered around a community open space. Micro cottages are not “tiny houses”, mobile homes or […]
Microgrids and Power Resiliency for Data Centers: Myth Busting and Exploring New Solutions.
From CT.org…This notice is for a webcast that has passed. It sounds interesting. Theconference is not the reason for presenting this expired notice. The reason is to highlight theemergence of microgrids as a part of the urban environment. The day of the regionalsewerage treatment plant, the regional shopping mall and the humongous power plants,nuclear and […]
Microsoft Learns Money Alone Can’t Fix Seattle’s Housing Mess
The company has taken a lead among big tech companies in helping to keep Seattle residents in their homes, but the scale of the problem is much bigger than its commitments. EXCERPTS: “Microsoft Corp. unveiled a $500 million pledge last January to tackle the housing crisis in the Seattle area. “If Microsoft’s experience over the […]
Missing Middle Housing.
OPTICOS DESIGN FOUNDER DANIEL PAROLEK inspired a new movement for housing choice in 2010 when he coined the term “Missing Middle Housing,” a transformative concept that highlights a time- proven and beloved way to provide more housing and more housing choices in sustainable, walkable places. Missing Middle Housing: House-scale buildings with multiple units in walkable […]
Model Based Design, BIM as City Planning Technological Tools.
The March of Technology. Project designers have access to tools with capabilities that far exceed those available in the post-World War II heyday of city planning. In the first quintile of the 21st century, the capabilities of the methods and processes of an earlier age are dwarfed by the latest generation of digital tools. The […]
A Survey of Performance Management Systems
The model system for performance management draws on the experience of eleven well-known systems adaptable to the issues facing small cities and towns. [embeddoc url=”https://www.charactertowns.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/A-Survey-of-Performance-Management-Systems-1.27.16.pdf” download=”all” viewer=”google”] FacebookTweetLinkedInEmail
Monroe, NC anxious to open renovated downtown theater for live shows and movies
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More Employees; Fewer, More Flexible “Offices”
More Employees; Fewer, More Flexible “Offices” presents information about the current trend in office space utilization. Lisa Dilts, COMPSPRING, has contributed her thoughts on the changing workplace and its effect of the demand and design for office space. Small cities and towns can take advantage of this new model of work with their downtown supply […]
More Than Ever, We Need Frederick Law Olmsted! (a birthday note from Pete Sechler)
More Than Ever, We Need Frederick Law Olmsted! April is World Landscape Architecture Month—a month that perhaps not coincidentally includes the birthday of Frederick Law Olmsted. Born on April 26 in 1822, Olmsted is generally regarded as the founder of American Landscape Architecture. While not everyone outside the landscape architecture profession knows his name, most […]