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"Central plazas and squares play a crucial role in successful urban areas. When they're done right, these spaces act as a focal point for the civic and social life of a city, a place where impromptu gatherings, people watching and even, political discourse all naturally intersect. When designed poorly, though, they can act as a black hole, sucking the life out of a city center."
"Influenced by urban sociologist William Whyte, the Project For Public Spaces has focused on understanding what's necessary to maintain or improve on these spaces. In 2004, they released their rankings of the best and worst public squares in the world. Since then, PPS maintains an up-to-date data base of over 600 public spaces, outlining the pros and cons of each one. "
High density is what makes Grand Place works so well. There are various parks and green spaces close by, but Grand Place is surrounded by everything. There is nothing complex to its design; just a straightforward, strategically located gathering point that everyone loves.
The City of Peoria is looking for a few good developers to redevelop our historic core. We offer public private partnerships that provide Federal and State historic tax credits of up to 45% of investment, TIF reimbursements and infrastructure improvements that can approach 60% of new fair market value, and an enterprise zone with no sales tax on building material.
The $200 million dollar Build the Block project is now complete and the new CAT Visitor Center and Museum open. The $93 million dollar Pere
Marquette Hotel is just reopened and the adjacent Marriott Courtyard hotel under construction. We have begun a major program underway constructing attractive new urban streets. CAT is planning a major new Corporate Headquarters. More info on the links to the left.
Paul A. Dillon is president and CEO of Dillon Consulting Services LLC. He fought in Vietnam as a U.S. Army Reserve first lieutenant and was awarded two Bronze Star medals.
July 24, 2013
Chicago is rapidly becoming one of the principal destinations in the nation for entrepreneurs looking to start their own businesses. The “startup city by the lake” boasts a steady stream of shiny, new businesses that have been created here, most of which have been extremely successful. Daily press reports in Crain's and other media outlets point to an increasing flow of people, money and resources coming to our city to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams.
Bravo to all those who have made that happen! You have my sincere congratulations.
But there is one important segment of our population that Chicago has left far behind in its rush to foster new entrepreneurial enterprises: our veterans.
The veteran population that could benefit from Chicago's burgeoning startup scene is huge. Estimates place Illinois as the home of more than 764,000 veterans, including 53,100 post-9/11 veterans. More than 35,000 new veterans will be coming or returning to Illinois by 2016 — a large number of whom will live in or near Chicago.
Akhenaten of the Nineteenth Dynasty built Akhetaten as the new capital city of Egypt.For the location, he chose Amarna, a fresh site on the eastern bank of the Nile, about 275 kilometers northwest of the old capital city of Thebes. After his death, the city was virtually abandoned. The degree of planning involved in the construction of Amarna involved for the most part the administrative and religious buildings of the Central City.Even the planned part of the city was somewhat hastily designed and assembled.
Most of the city was built along an eight kilometer north-south main street, referred to today as the “Royal Road,” which connected the Central City with the North City, an outlying satellite and the probable residence of the king.The king probably lived in the North Riverside Palace in the North City, a large building on the east side of the Royal Road and separate from the rest of the city, protected by a fortified wall which enclosed a complex of royal service buildings.
On the opposite side of the road from the palace lay a group of some of the largest houses in the city, probably belonging to nobles who were very close to the king. An administrative building containing an enormous warehouse formed the northern limit of the North City. At the southern end of the Royal Road lay the Central City, a group of temples, palaces, and administrative buildings forming the executive hub of the city.
The planned buildings of the Central City can be found in an inscription on one of the Amarna Boundary Stelae which marked the boundaries of the city at its founding.In it, Akhenaten describes the main buildings he will construct in his new capital:
The use of urban planning in ancient Egypt is a matter of continuous debate. Because ancient sites usually survive only in fragments, and many ancient Egyptian...
Almost every aspect of the ancient Egyptians lifestyle was, in some way, affected by the River Nile. Even the planning of atown or city was done so, around the ...
Neighborhoods and districts of ancient villages, towns, andcities are somewhere between town planning and self-organization. As settlements grow, there is ...
Cities in ancient Egypt grew out of the development of agriculture and the .... made up on a grid plan and surrounded by a wall measuring some twenty feet thick.
Nevertheless there has been an interest in town planning from the early days of ... persistent view of Ancient Egypt as a 'civilization without cities' (Wilson 1958) ...
Apr 23, 2011 - A Historical Lie the Stone Age > Ancient Egyptian Urban Planning and Infrastructure. Egypt's arid climate has left behind many clues to their ...
Jul 7, 2008 - The civilization of Ancient Egypt, which registered such great successes in medicine, especially anatomy, urban planning, architecture, fine arts ...
Outline plans of Egyptian cities varied from rectangle to square (except El Amarna). Oldest settlements were oval or round: Dimensions of city plans were always ...
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