Earlier this year I recorded two podcasts for the community radio program Design Minded in Indianapolis with Lee Alig and Steve Mannheimer, former architecture critic of the Indianapolis Star. We talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly of architecture and design in the city. Here's the first episode. If the player doesn't display for you, click over to listen on Mixcloud. Here's the second episode. If the player doesn't display for you, click over to listen on Mixcloud. Cover image credit: Miyin2 CC BY-SA 4.0 … [Read more...]
The Story of Cities
My latest piece is a long essay in the current edition of Comment magazine. It's called "Storied Cities" and is about the myths, histories, cultures, and rituals that make cities unique. Here is an excerpt: How is this history, and thus so much of the identity, culture, and economy of a place, understood and communicated? Despite the importance of understanding local history and culture, especially that of the founding generations of cities, it is often little studied and little known. Thus so many cities struggle to even understand who they … [Read more...]
Pete Buttigieg and the Importance of Being in the Game
Pete Buttigieg will not be the next President of the United States. That's not surprising. But what may be more surprising to you is how well he did in his campaign. He raised a ton of money, at points ran high in the polls, and essentially tied for first place in the Iowa caucuses. Question: If I'd told you when Buttigieg announced he was running that he would win the Iowa caucuses, would you have believed me? I've said multiple times over the years that one of the things that hurts the Midwest is its lack of ambition. Unlike people … [Read more...]
Cities, Culture and Dynamism
If you haven't done so, please sign up for Heartland Intelligence, my monthly research briefing on this critical region of the country heading into the 2020 election. My latest report is now available from the American Enterprise Institute. It's a look at the role of the culture of cities in economic dynamism and resiliency. I examine a few case studies, and from these try to draw out some cultural traits that seem to be relevant to success, notably an open social structure, invested leadership and institution building by civic elites, and a … [Read more...]
The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago’s South Side
Sign up for Heartland Intelligence, my monthly research briefing on the greater American Midwest. Chicago is known as one of America's great cities for architecture. But other than the Illinois Institute of Technology campus, designed by Mies van der Rohe, very little of the architecture of the South Side is included in the public's mind when thinking about it. Lee Bey, former architecture critic of the Chicago Sun-Times and a South Side residents, aims to change this with his book Southern Exposure: The Overlooked Architecture of Chicago's … [Read more...]
“Is It Too Late for a Man of Honesty, High Purpose, and Intelligence to Be Elected President of the US in 1968?”
After putting up my post linking to my Atlantic piece on J. Irwin Miller and Columbus, Indiana, I discovered that the Esquire cover story I mentioned is actually online. It's great reading, and I highly recommend it. Keep in mind, Esquire was an important magazine back then. Here are some excerpts: "Wouldn't Irwin Miller be great?" exclaimed the Mayor [John Lindsay], a smile breaking across his face like a wave. "He's one of the great people of this world. He's got insight, humor, wisdom, saltiness. How could we get him to run?" Up to that … [Read more...]
The Rust Belt Didn’t Have to Happen
I knew a number of things about J. Irwin Miller, the former Cummins Engine CEO who financed Columbus, Indiana's world-renowned collection of modernist architectural masterpieces. But when I read Nancy's Kriplen's recent short biography of him, I learned a lot I'd never suspected. Clearly one of the most distinguished Hoosiers of all time, among other things, Esquire magazine put him on its cover in 1967 saying that he should be the next President of the United States. That was a pipe dream, of course. Even had Nixon not been the Republican … [Read more...]
A Blast from the Past in Charlotte and Columbus
I saw a couple of recent reposts containing very interesting material from several decades ago in Charlotte and Columbus. The first is a 25 minute TV special from the 1960s looking at a proposal to issue bonds to fund urban renewal in downtown Charlotte. A few things struck me about this. The first is that despite the video being labeled "Uptown Do or Die" by the local organization that posted it, Charlotte's central business district is consistently referred to in the video as "downtown" not "uptown" as people do today. It's interesting to … [Read more...]
Indianapolis Bus Rapid Transit
I was on vacation back in Indiana last week, so what else would I do but arrange to take a ride on Indy's under construction BRT system? I had a positive impression of it and am planning to write up a longer piece about the system and the role of BRT in low-density cities generally. In the meantime, here's a podcast I recorded about the project with Jerome Horne from the city's transit agency. If the audio player doesn't display for you, click over to listen on … [Read more...]
Chicago: Past, Present, Future
I gave a talk recently at the Chicago Booth School of Business about Chicago and while I was not able to record it, I decided to reprise my talk as a podcast. I give a very brief narrative overview of the city's history, it's present day strengths, the challenges it faces, and ideas for the future. If the podcast doesn't display for you, click over to listen on Soundcloud. https://soundcloud.com/aaronrenn/chicago-past-present-future Subscribe to podcast via iTunes | Soundcloud. Featured image credit: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0 … [Read more...]
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