Category: everyday urbanism

“Urbanism Without Effort” at Town Hall: June 19th

On By Chuck WolfeIn compact development, everyday urbanism, infill development, pedestrianism, placemaking, sustainability, urbanism without effortLeave a comment

Here are the details.  On June 19th, 6-7:30pm,  Urbanism Without Effort will see further light of day, Downstairs at Town Hall-Seattle (more info about the event here).

From the Town Hall description:

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To create vibrant, sustainable cities, says Seattle attorney Charles Wolfe, we must first understand what happens naturally when people congregate in cities—the innate, unprompted interactions of urban dwellers with each other and their surrounding environment. Wolfe, author of the illustrated e-book Urbanism Without Effort, argues that city dwellers invariably celebrate environments where they can coexist safely, in a mutually supportive way, and finds such celebration most interesting when it occurs spontaneously—seemingly without effort. Through illustrations and examples of real life—both historic and current—he contends it is critical to first isolate these spontaneous examples of successful urban land use before applying government policies or initiatives.

Presented as part of the Town Hall Civic series, supported by The Boeing Company, the RealNetworks Foundation, and the True/Brown Foundation. Media support provided by Crosscut.com.

Tickets are $5 at www.townhallseattle.org or 888/377-4510 and at the door beginning at 5:30 pm. Town Hall members receive priority seating. Downstairs at Town Hall; enter on Seneca Street.

LEARN MORE:
About Wolfe
Read a Daily Journal of Commerce article about Wolfe and his e-book.  

Stay on at Town Hall at 7:30 in the Great Hall, and see part of the Sightline@20 Series: Journey to Midway Atoll with Chris Jordan, details here.

The  Urbanism Without Effort website tracks other news about the book on a regular basis, here.

Urbanism Without Effort, one month in

On By Chuck WolfeIn compact development, everyday urbanism, infill development, infrastructure, placemaking, sustainability, top posts, urbanism without effortLeave a comment

CoverThank you all so much for your support during the first month of putting my new book, Urbanism Without Effort (9781610914420/$3.99), in the public eye.

Whether you’ve read the book yourself, shared it with others, come heard me speak, or simply sent me your thoughts, it means a lot to me to have your company on this adventure.

We’ve had a wonderful release so far. I’ve been thrilled to see the book regularly excerpted in places like Atlantic Cities and Crosscut, and profiled in interviews such as last week’s feature in the Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, with more to follow soon.I have also been honored to speak at events sponsored by ULI-Northwest, Futurewise and Great City, and to see the book rank as an Amazon top-ten best seller for urban planning (frequently listed as number one in the Kindle Store for urban planning e-books).

 I’m looking forward to sharing more updates with you in the months to come.  In the meantime, Seattle friends, please consider coming to hear me talk at Town Hall-Seattle on Wednesday, June 19 at 6:00 p.m., where I will share many visuals from the book and highlight key elements of interest.

 As a reminder, you, your friends, and your colleagues can download the book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble,  iTunes, Kobo and other electronic vendors. If you’d like to review the book for a publication or website, you can request a review copy at press@islandpress.org.

 If you have any questions or ideas for how to use Urbanism Without Effort in your own work, please get in touch. You can always find the latest information regarding appearances, media and other updates at the book’s website, http://urbanismwithouteffort.com.

urban ruins and the High Line next door

On By Chuck WolfeIn everyday urbanism, infill development, infrastructure, pedestrianism, placemaking, sustainability, urbanism without effortLeave a comment

highlinenextdr_ChuckWolfe

At a luncheon this week for the Urban Land Institute’s local sponsors, guest speaker — and Seattle restaurateur — Tom Douglas toyed with the idea of abandoning the Seattle monorail. The move, he explained, would save the cost of future maintenance and repair, and (even better) the monorail track could be replaced with a walkable, elevated green space in the spirit of the High Line, New York City’s much-touted elevated railway-turned-park. In the Tom Douglas version restaurants would, of course, line the old tracks — perhaps, even in the abandoned monorail cars themselves.

It was great to see such a vaunted entrepreneur join the ranks of urbanophiles out to remake ruins — in this case, a ruin that does not yet exist, and on such a grand and provocative scale. But our interest in this subject does not need celebrity validation, and the vision need not be as grand as Douglas’s.

…….

Today’s post continues as an exclusive entry at Crosscut. For the remainder, click here .  Parts of this post are adapted from Urbanism Without Effort, an e-book from Island Press, and based on ideas first presented in The Atlantic Cities.

Image composed by the author.

understanding cities through urban diaries

On By Chuck WolfeIn everyday urbanism, placemaking, sustainability, urban views, urbanism without effortLeave a comment

LisbonDiary_chuckwolfe

“Reading the City,” the late 2012 column from urbanist Allison Arieff, is stuck in my head.

Arieff’s year-end piece for The New York Times described with style and subtle irony how she escaped a “smart city” conference in Barcelona, and explored the urban spaces around her, armed with only a conventional map. She ended her column with a recommended reading list of books that tell stories about cities. The kind of stories that happen outside of conference halls — experiential, first-hand stories.

…….

Today’s post continues as an exclusive entry at Crosscut. For the remainder, click here.

Image composed by the author.

 

Urbanism Without Effort, the first week

On By Chuck WolfeIn compact development, everyday urbanism, infill development, pedestrianism, placemaking, sustainability, urban views, urbanism without effort, vignettesLeave a comment

Thanks to Island Press, readers, colleagues and friends for the support during the first week of the Urbanism Without Effort launch.

The response through online vendors–especially Amazon rankings–suggests that a long-form version of the myurbanist approach has merit, and was, perhaps, long overdue.  And for those who have already downloaded, enhancements are coming, free of charge!

The Urbanism Without Effort web page is a one-stop venue about the book, related media and appearances. The summary below appears on the site’s Media page, and is current as of today.

The following 2013 articles and reviews reference Urbanism Without Effort:

Ronald Holden, “Chuck Wolfe’s urban manifesto“, Cornichon

ULI-Northwest Blog Entry on Book Launch Event (with downloadable Powerpoint presentation)

Roger Valdez. “Urbanism Without Effort? Let It Be!“, Seattle’s Land Use Code

Planetizen, “The Dynamic Potential of Urbanism Without Effort“, Planetizen

Miriam Axel-Lute. “Where Community is at Work Making Itself“, Shelterforce

Juan Carlos Garcia de los Reyes, “Urbanismo Sin Efuerzo“, La Cuidad Comprometida, Granada, Spain

Kaid Benfield, “How City Lights Change the Way We Experience Places“, NRDC Switchboard

 

The following representative 2013 articles by the Author reference Urbanism Without Effort:

“Alley Movie Nights: Can you say urbanism without effort?“, Crosscut

“The Dynamic Potential of Urbanism Without Effort“, The Atlantic Cities

“Picturing 10 Qualities Every City Should Have“, The Atlantic Cities

“Picturing 10 Urban Qualities Central to Every City“, Crosscut

“Reclaiming the Urban Memory“, Sustainable Cities Collective

“Movement and Settlement, Upside Down“, The Huffington Post