Happy Halloween! I made this map using a different kind of parcel data from the City of Asheville Open Data Portal. Instead of the taxable parcels we’re used to mapping these are the plots for Riverside Cemetery in Asheville, resting place of Thomas Wolfe. The space and use needs of a cemetery lend their layout some similarities to… Continue Reading »
Last week we shared our Story Map of Greater Des Moines with all of its maps, graphics, explanations, bells, and whistles. It turns out our friends at the Iowa Economic Development Authority have put some additional exciting resources. Along with an executive summary explaining the importance of this kind analysis to local governments they put together some instructions… Continue Reading »
We are happy to announce our Story Map report on the Greater Des Moines region is now live and open. In addition to the results of our analysis, here are some of the exciting things you’ll find inside: Interactive 2D MapsAn Interactive 3D ModelAnimated 3D Development Over TimeThe Value of Historic PreservationTax Increment Finance ComparedAnd… Continue Reading »
ot long ago Planetizen released their picks for the top ten websites of the year. I’ll overlook being overlooked since I am humble and because of all the great new resources they introduced me to. I want to give a shout out to three of the websites they highlighted were among my favorites last year too…. Continue Reading »
A small town in NC has gained international attention over the past week for its steadfast resistance to a new solar farm. Plenty has been written already about what this story reveals about renewable energy, technophobia, fear of corporations, and even general science education in America. It also tells us something about the power we give NIMBY’s in the development… Continue Reading »
For this past Thanksgiving I wrote a post for Strong Towns about how pavement dilutes tax production. I decided to do the math and look at exactly how much parking we really have. What I find shocking is the extent to which our cities are built for our cars. Douglas Adams comments on this reality in his fantastic story The Hitchhiker’s… Continue Reading »
I’ve been experimenting with animated mapping. Here’s a little sample of some work we did in Des Moines. Hopefully within the next week or so we’ll be able to share a more comprehensive take on this information in a new format we’re working on. The map at the top shows development as it comes online… Continue Reading »
How many different ways can a million people look? What am I looking at? This gallery is designed to compare the footprints of different American cities. Slide through the thumbnails at the bottom of each image to choose up to four to compare. Each image is projected at the same scale (1:250k) and depicts simplified land… Continue Reading »
Impressions from Dallas Hotel Windows I suppose in keeping with tradition I will begin my reflections on Dallas from the experience of my hotel window. As an added bonus Dallas provided me with three separate hotel rooms from which to gaze. The Magnolia is the heart of historic Dallas. It literally wears as a crown what became the… Continue Reading »
White Cat, Black Cat, Whatever Catches Mice. Since this is a discussion of politics I thought it might be helpful, if not fair, to provide a little insight as to where I’m coming from. I shy away from public political declarations in part because I don’t want the content of my work to be clouded… Continue Reading »