Houston’s Road to Becoming More Bike-Friendly; Painting Bayou City Landmarks

mosaic-condos

Photo of the Mosaic Condos: elnina via Swamplot Flickr Pool

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  • Interesting article on malls. Gruen also planned outdoor pedestrian malls like the first one built in Kalamazoo, MI.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalamazoo_Mall

    The downtown mall in Kalamazoo worked for a while, but ultimately didn’t stop suburban competition and indoor malls. One could argue however, that it did prevent the ultimate death of the downtown area in Kalamazoo since it is still relatively healthy compared to many other downtown’s in the Midwest. Had it been implemented as he had originally envisioned however, it would have devastated the city, clearing massive portions of the existing downtown and replacing with parking lots, and building a ring road completely around it. An incredible amount of history and livability would have been lost. A great planner….no. An urban renewalist at heart….yes. Any care or concern for a less auto-oriented city….no. Disavowal or not, doesn’t change the ultimate outcome. Regardless of mixed use, we are still left with acres and acres of unused parking lots and cut off communities.

  • Was the Stowers building vacant previously? I’d just assumed that it had already been renovated as part of the BG Place project, but now that I think of it I never did see any storefronts or comings-and-goings on that corner of the block. Nice building, good to see it going to use.

    Also, no. Houston cannot become bike-friendly. I say this as someone who has not owned a car in 5 years and bikes as my primary mode of transport. I see more and more people cycling in Houston every year, but aside from a select few parts of the inner-loop region, cycling in Houston is not a pleasant experience. The way the city is laid out can never be conducive to safe and convenient cycling and a significant portion of the population (especially those who live outside the loop) harbor a deep seething hatred for cyclists the likes of which I’ve never seen elsewhere. Not gonna happen.