It’s said that when your only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. Who said it first is up for debate, but it is said. And it is sad, because the aphorism rings true. The designer’s dilemma is finding new solutions for old problems. The good folks at Placemakers recently considered this […]
Diverging Diamond Dropping In On Cheyenne
The Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) seems to be the “next big thing” coming in traffic engineering, and it’s coming to Wyoming. I’m a confirmed skeptic. The idea of the DDI is to reduce left-turn conflicts and increase traffic through-put by crossing traffic lanes (diverging) across an interchange. If you’re traveling east-bound, for example, you “diverge” […]
Accessible, High-Amenity Rural Areas Attracting New Population
Reblogged from USDA ERS: Population trends in U.S. nonmetro counties vary by age group and natural amenity/accessibility levels For many decades, most U.S. nonmetro counties experienced significant population loss among young adults, especially in the years immediately following high school graduation. Some of that population loss was offset by net gains among individuals in their […]
2012 Census of Agriculture in Spotlight this Thanksgiving
Minnesota is the top turkey producer in the United States, counting over 18 million birds in 2007’s Census of Agriculture. Will the gopher state hold the title in the next go ’round? Here’s some PR from USDA on the topic: WASHINGTON, Nov. 14, 2012 – Nearly four centuries after the very first Thanksgiving feast, Americans […]
GIS Day at Laramie County Community College
November 14th, 2012, is GIS Day all across the globe, celebrating the wonders of maps and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as part of Geography Awareness Week. Locally, Laramie County Community College (LCCC), the State of Wyoming and the Cheyenne/Laramie County Cooperative GIS Program are hosting a day-long program at the LCCC Community Center. Laramie County […]
“Hey, Why Can’t We Do This Better?” —Minnesota Manufacturing Week
I have always been impressed by the extent of manufacturing back in Southwest Minnesota. It seems like every small town has some fabrication or repair shop or farm shop with a guy (or gal) asking, “Hey, why can’t we do this better?” Well, why can’t we? Here’s a PR flashback to Minnesota, from the Department […]
Broadband is not a luxury, but “something like plumbing” necessary for normal life
“The new railroad, the new interstate, the new road system in this country and in this state is (Internet) connectivity.” (WTE) Governor Matt Mead opened the inaugural Wyoming Broadband Summit with keynote remarks before over 200 policy wonks, technology geeks and interested bystanders gathered in Cheyenne Tuesday morning. Wyoming Enterprise Technology Services and the Wyoming […]
New Beginnings
October finds me in Wyoming, starting on a new job as a Senior Planner with Laramie County Planning and Development, in Cheyenne. Laramie County, Wyoming, has about 92,000 residents, of whom about 60,000 live in the City of Cheyenne. Cheyenne is the state capital and hosts Warren Air Force Base at the junction of I80 […]
Downtown the Metro Place To Be
US Census Bureau reports: Populations Increasing in Many Downtowns A U.S. Census Bureau report released today shows that in many of the largest cities of the most-populous metro areas, downtown is becoming a place not only to work but also to live. Between the 2000 and 2010 censuses, metro areas with 5 million or more […]
An Honest Discussion About Agenda 21
Agenda 21 is a bureaucratic report initially adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) “Earth Summit” held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil, in June 1992. Periodic assemblies have reviewed the status of the report, most recently at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20) held in June 2012. The […]