News
More Walls Talking – Vacant Storefronts
The current economic doldrums have brought out all sorts of vacant storefronts – not just a tell tale of the economy, but a fascinating take on urban anthropology. At first glance, they would indicate that the economy is down, that the activity that previously existed at that location fell victim to a recession. Any retail […]
US / Canada Rail Infrastructure Luncheon
Yesterday, I attended the US / Canada “Pay the Freight” Rail Infrastructure luncheon presentation, presented jointly by the Metropolitan Planning Council, the Consulate General of Canada and the Union League Club of Chicago, where the luncheon was held. The Union League is a tremendous venue for events like this – centrally located, spacious facilities and […]
If walls could talk…
In stripping wallpaper off of the walls in the study, what did we find but this inscription written on the plaster: “March 16, 1937 16% above zero” 1937 is when Albert Speh Jr. graduated by Fenwick High School. March 16 would be the day before St. Patrick’s Day – a very big deal in Chicago, […]
Navigating around a 1970 Buick LeSabre
At the gym today, the only parking spot available for my 1977 Mini Clubman Estate was next to a 1970 Buick LeSabre four door Sport Sedan. I was dwarfed! Still there as I was leaving, I couldn’t even see around it when pulling out. My thought was “…gee, am I glad that this isn’t a […]
The Idea That Came Around
A freshman design studio professor warned us many times that whatever in-depth design synthesis we went through to invent something original, that we could always find that someone had already come up with it before. Pullman, a neighbourhood on the far south side of Chicago is touted as one of the first ‘planned communities’. It was […]
Roadside Oddities in Central Illinois
There is a certain stretch of Interstate 55 leading out of Chicago that is simply a nasty stretch of road, everyone drives like madmen. Before the television show made the term famous. And there’s lots of them. A peaceful way to avoid this is to take Old Route 66, this stretch being identified as Illinois […]