Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Nob Hill Summerfest

Nob Hill Summerfest by ABQturkey
Nob Hill Summerfest, a photo by ABQturkey on Flickr.
What a feast for the senses. The people, the weather, the food, the music, and the happy mood surrounding one of this city's largest annual gatherings. Hopefully its success will result in additional street closures around the city for similar events, showcasing the various communities that our amazing city has to offer. Downtown and Old Town come to mind as obvious choices.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Convention Center Remodel Renderings


Ask and you shall receive. I was terribly afraid that this would turn into some cheesy Santa Fe-style knock off. Instead, I have to give props to those in charge of this as the territorial style works in this scenario. Removing the loading bay from the south end of the facade was a great move as was providing more transparency into and out of the building. 

Now if they could only squeeze in some streetscape work around the perimeter. On a limited budget, though, and for an old building, I'd say they've chosen wisely. 


Monday, July 09, 2012

UrbanABQ 2012



While things certainly slowed down over the last few years, there has been a small boom in downtown investments either under way or in the planning phases. I created this little map, which shows where these developments are occurring. The addition of a thousand new students on campus will add to the vibrancy of the University area. Development across from Presbyterian will begin to mend the urban fabric that connects Edo with UNM. Downtown will similarly see the strengthening of its fabric as well as the vibrancy that comes with a couple hundred new residents. The momentum is building once again.

In other news, the Downtown Action Team is about to see a true urban planner take the reins. This bodes well for the entity given its often listless direction over the years. Perhaps (hopefully) this may result in an update to the Downtown 2010 plan, which lacks much in the way of direction aside from form based codes and a project wish list. 

Meanwhile, convention center renovation plans should be unveiled any day.