Good Monday Morning to you. Just thought I would share some interesting thoughts I found on the web this weekend.


Competitiveness and the Creative Class

While reading an article this morning on global competitiveness, Michael Bloomberg, New York City Mayor and founder of Bloomberg L.P., a financial news organization stated:

“For cities to have sustained success, they must compete for the grand prize: intellectual capital and talent,” Bloomberg wrote. “Talent attracts capital far more effectively and consistently than capital attracts talent.”

 As I read this I couldn't help but remember San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed's State of the City address earlier this year when he gave a completely opposite take on things in saying that if you bring the Ciscos and the eBays here the talent will follow. What do you think?

"New York Tops London as City With Most Global Clout, Index Shows"

Designing our streets for obesity.

For a moment forget Climate change. Scientists are focusing more these days on studying the link between physical inactivity, obesity, and other chronic health problems such as diabetes. In a post on The Atlantic Cities website, Kaid Benfield talks about this alarming health trend in a country where now over 60% of the population is either overweight or obese. As Dr. Howard Frumkin states in the article, ""we have engineered walking and bicycling out of our communities" with community design oriented almost exclusively to driving."

"The True Costs of Unwalkable Streets"

Stepping up to save our streets.

Many of you who read this blog are aware of the dire straits that our Bay Area roads are in. Well it's not just a Bay Area phenomenon, it's nationwide. With the inability of federal gas taxes to pull the highway trust fund from chronic deficits, and voters vociferously against gas tax hikes (let's at least call them inflation adjustments) cities and states are looking for creative ways to keep our transportation system going.

"Georgia's transportation system running out of gas"

Stepping up to save Bay Area transit

While attending a SPUR event in downtown San Jose the other evening I had the chance to meet Egon Terplan, the Regional Planning Director for the organization. Egon wrote a very insightful piece in Spur's publication, "The Urbanist".

"Six Ideas for Saving Bay Area Transit"


And lastly,

The Better Block

For the last week I have posted a great video featuring Jason Roberts on "Building Better Blocks". The talk was given at a TED conference near his home city of Dallas, Texas. In this video he describes all of the great and interesting wasy he was able to get things done on the quick and on the cheap. 

Its definately worth a look.