Tagged: cities

Monopoly Houses with Teardown 4

The Ups and Downs of Teardown Houses

Real estate is expensive in Dallas, so the trend is to replace small old houses with bigger, newer ones. These teardown houses are a controversial subject in the Metroplex. From a preservationist standpoint, they...

Blueprints at Addison Circle 1 4

The New Urbanism in Addison, Texas

Addison, Texas is an affluent suburb just north of Dallas. The city is known for two things: the corporate headquarter buildings all along the Dallas North Tollway, and the plethora of restaurants along Belt...

Barcelona Logo in Eixample Blocks 2

The Beauty of Barcelona’s Eixample

Barcelona is a beautiful city at any scale. Take a walk down La Rambla or visit the Sagrada Familia and you’ll see some of the greatest urban spaces in the world. Then take a...

Rowlett Water Tower 2

Downtown Rowlett, Texas

Rowlett, Texas is a suburb of Dallas on the far eastern edge of the DFW Metroplex. It’s about as far out as you can go and still be in the surburbs. Once you travel...

Coat of Arms of Spain 5

Smacked in Madrid

It was my first day in Spain. After an unexpected date, I met up with my friends and we checked into our hostel. After dropping off our luggage, we took a walk around the...

Snowy Fountain in Dallas 2 2

Apartment Amenities

Have you ever noticed how shallow ads for apartment complexes are? They always promote things like swimming pools, gyms, crown moulding and chair rails. These are all nice things, don’t get me wrong, but...

Mass Transit Roundel 5

No Downside to Mass Transit

There’s no downside to more mass transit. Yeah, it costs money to build in the short term, but it’s an investment worth making. Despite the sluggish economy, America would benefit from more trains and...

Dallas Logo with Question Mark 15

Dallas: An Improbable City

Dallas is an improbable city. In many ways it seems to have sprung up by accident. No Navigable River Unlike most major cities, Dallas does not have a navigable river. The Trinity River is...

Disney World in a Currier & Ives Print 1

A Charming Little Shithole

It was a charming little shithole: a small town whose rustic beauty belied its backwardness. Anywhere else in the country, it would be full of mobile homes and mini malls. But in the verdant...

Cool old stone house 1

Fredericksburg, Texas: Oktober 2009

In the mid-1800s, a large number of Germans settled the Hill Country around Austin and San Antonio. Since then, they’ve assimilated with Texan/American culture, but they still celebrate their German heritage. No where is...