Sunday Summary - January 21, 2018

Last January, we published the first of Max Hailperin’s alphabetical walks through Minneapolis neighborhoods with Armatage (take another walk with him below) as well as a couple of posts about winter sidewalks which are always relevant in the winter here (winter storm on the way as I write this). Also from the archives, you can read multiple posts about the Vikings Stadium in advance of the Super Bowl Experience (and the actual game, too). Or read the current news:

Longer reads

Parking Anxiety and Paranoia writes Al Davison, “has shaped how cities have been designed within the past few decades. This concern is tied to a very irrational mindset that leads to unnecessary anxiety and paranoia, which has damaged our cities.” The focus on providing convenient parking has rewarded poor driving skills (how many of us really like to parallel park?) and heightened concerns about being able to park. The post concludes: “If I continue to live in Saint Paul, I have to get rid of my irrational paranoia about parking, and to become a better driver. I want to support more housing and transit even if it makes driving or parking more difficult. I hope others do too so we can have better infrastructure for walking, biking, and transit.”

Still Lots to Learn from Minneapolis’ Great Gateway Mistake says Bill Lindeke. Responding to a Strib column by local historian Larry Millett which reviews the Gateway decision and advocates not looking back, this post takes the Gateway destruction as a still very relevant object lesson: “Minneapolis’ example was so extreme, however, that it stands out even in a world of anti-historical modernist revolutions. The Gateway project was not a surgery to heal the core of the old city, but an amputation. Bridge Square/Gateway Park was the historic center of the city. Along with the (similarly demolished) bottleneck, the intersection of Hennepin and Nicollet by the Hennepin Bridge and the train stations were synonymous with the birth of Minneapolis, the site of the first city hall, the first bridge, the first everything… It was completely erased.” Take a look at the many photos of what used to be there and consider how the center of Minneapolis was lost.

Gateway Park 1925 postcard

Long walks and quick looks

Walk: Downtown West, Day 2 continues the expedition started a year ago. Max Hailperin spends another day downtown and finds buildings, details, and stories only accessible at a walking pace.

Chart: Chart of the Day: US Vehicle Distance Travelled, October shows an upward trend in this chart from the City Observatory.

Links: More links from The Direct Transfer from around the country in National Links: Transit Starts and Public Banks.