Amid a national tidying trend, new interest in micro apartments
It’s not just stuff. For some people, homes themselves are becoming simpler and smaller.
Bill Lindeke is a lecturer in Urban Studies at the University of Minnesota’s Department of Geography, Environment and Society. He is the author of multiple books on Twin Cities culture and history, most recently St. Paul: an Urban Biography. Follow Bill on Twitter: @BillLindeke.
It’s not just stuff. For some people, homes themselves are becoming simpler and smaller.
Can MayDay and Grand Old Day find a way to march toward a sustainable future?
The No. 21’s Selby-Lake-Marshall-University Avenue route wasn’t always so complicated. During the dawn of the streetcar era, the straight-shot Selby-Lake streetcar was one of the key east-west connections linking the Twin Cities.
St. Paul’s Municipal Asphalt Plant is a 55-year-old structure that towers impressively over the ball fields and skate park on Front Avenue.
In a corner of the Nathan Hale Park, a problem popped up this year when a neighboring fence mistakenly truncated a slim margin of land.
The hope is that, with the scorecard, both developers and residents can better understand at a glance what people community members want.
The jury is still out on whether Frogtown’s innovative gamble will work out. But at the very least, the new format has already increased engagement and access to knowledge.
The majority of St. Paul’s historical ice palaces were not actual physical buildings, but more like icy structures best viewed from a relative distance.
To my eyes, the document marked a watershed moment when Minneapolis leaders began to think publicly and holistically for the first time. The problem is that almost none of its recommendations ever got adopted.
The history of urban street lighting is secretly fascinating, and once you open up Pandora’s light bulb, the resulting complexity is staggering.
The modern internet era, combined with the proliferation of cable, has made the brick-and-mortar video store as obsolete as an elevator operator.
Debates in the Minnesota Legislature have reached full swing, and so far the early results suggest there could be a lot of activity around state transportation policy.
The issues? “Security, safety, litter, comments about things like employees having to walk through the skyway when there are people sleeping in there,” said Jon Fure.
Something as seemingly simple as dislodging a redundant grocery store has proven to be a real challenge.
“On days like today, where it’s 30 degrees or sloppy, it’s my favorite,” said Micah Taylor. “… for me personally, biking in the winter just feels good.”
Throughout 2017, the Light Hotel — created from a salvaged shipping container — will plant itself all around St. Paul and Minneapolis in the hopes of creating a conversation about housing and design.
Parking lots form half of the state government’s land-use footprint in St. Paul.
With the thousands of entry-level jobs that are migrating to the exurbs, something must be done. Starting this month, a new pair of suburban buses will be trying their best to serve Shakopee’s workers.
Called “Small Kindnesses, Weather Permitting,” the short recordings are a 2004 light-rail-station project by Janet Zweig.
It turns out that the downtown retail scene isn’t all bad news. It is beginning to focus on a local, small-scale, and walkable future.
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By Bill Lindeke | Columnist
May 15, 2019