• Transportation ‘innovation zone’ proposed for Buffalo

    The city is testing new mobility technologies to promote economic development and placemaking for the 21st Century.
    CNU and Stantec’s Urban Places are working with the City of Buffalo to leverage transportation technology to boost economic development in the lower Main Street district. A plan was outlined at a four-day design workshop called “The Future of Mobility: Remaking Buffalo for the 21st Century,” held...Read more

  • How a brutalist building is reviving a mid-sized city

    A massive skyscraper is being renovated as a mixed-use, walkable urban center in a city that was pronounced dead not too long ago.
    Note: CNU cosponsored a Public Design Charrette in the Seneca One tower, under renovation in Buffalo, in late February. In 2007, Harvard economist Edward Glaeser wrote an article with an blunt headline that answered its own question: “Can Buffalo Ever Come Back? Probably not—and government should...Read more

  • Creating civic space from the invisible

    Entire light rail corridors could be reimagined as much better civic space with green tracks rather than the current heavy-freight style engineered rip-rap rocks and fences. More cities should embrace this model. Here is a sketch of this design approach applied to Southend Charlotte, North Carolina...Read more

  • Aging population needs walkable, bikeable cities

    Seniors have the most to gain from pedestrian and cycling improvements—yet they often feel threatened by changes that provide alternatives to driving. Here are ways to include seniors in active transportation planning.
    The first time someone accused me of being “ableist” I was shocked. I was advocating ways to make downtown more walkable, including pedestrianizing some streets. I view walkability as a means to provide access for all abilities. Yet here someone was telling me, “not everyone can walk, you know.” I’...Read more