The Messy City Podcast

For those of us who are a certain age, we remember Paul Harvey’s unique voice entertaining and enlightening us on the radio. His regular shows told us “The Rest of the Story.” For me, that was usually in the car, on long family road trips, trips to school, or trips across southern Minnesota to go to Rochester for the SE Minnesota Youth Orchestra every week (SEMYO, for those in the know). I cherish those moments now. It’s too long ago to remember exactly how I felt at the time - maybe I even made fun of it all. But now, it speaks to really great family time together, and the wonderful things my parents did for us as kids.This is an episode of stories in three acts.Act 1 - HumilityAct 2 - TraditionAct 3 - TragedyAnd, here is some additional information:Fiddler on the roof - “Tradition!”Video of Ed Bacon - “Form, Design and The City.”99% PI on “The City of the Future” - a 2 part seriesAnn Sussman - “Cognitive Architecture”Below is the intersection I reference in Vail, Colorado:A story from 1996 on the initial Vail roundabout.And, the intersection I reference in Savannah, GA: Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe

New Town St. Charles is one of the most ambitious developments in the history of not only St. Louis, but also the New Urbanism movement. New Town was conceived, planned and built by Whitaker Builders. Tim Busse is the long-time Town Architect for Whitaker Builders and the town.In this episode we explore lessons learned from trying to create a walkable place from scratch, and doing so within the world of a large production home builder. We talk about challenges the project had to navigate with the Great Recession, and also the differences between this effort and other efforts the company undertook in conventional suburban development, as well as TNDs in other markets.Tim’s firm, Studio Archaeos on FacebookTim’s LinkedIn profileDean Klinkenberg, the Mississippi Valley Traveler, for travel books, non-fiction and fictional stories of the Mississippi.Find more content on The Messy City on Kevin’s Substack page.Music notes: all songs by low standards, ca. 2010. Videos here. If you’d like a CD for low standards, message me and you can have one for only $5. Intro: “Why Be Friends”Outro: “Fairweather Friend” Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe

Are you a pessimist or an optimist in regards to America’s built landscape, and its future? How can we all find a way to navigate changes that are coming?Johnny Sanphillippo writes the Granola Shotgun blog, where he frequently challenges narratives about cities, suburbs, and what individuals can do. If you’re a lover of walkable places, is it possible to turn the battleship of the last 70+ years and get more of them built? Or, will circumstances change of their own accord, whether we like it or not? What can an individual do in the late years of The Suburban Experiment, in order to still live a good life?We also discuss Peak Silicon Valley and Peak Bay Area, and some possible futures for that region, California, and other parts of America. Johnny joins us from Mexico City, where he is scouting out a Plan B for his life and pseudo-retirement.Granola Shotgun blog here. Find more content on The Messy City on Kevin’s Substack page.Music notes: all songs by low standards, ca. 2010. Videos here.Intro: “Why Be Friends”Outro: “Fairweather Friend” Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe

Incremental change in cities, the kind that used to be by-right, has become progressively more difficult since the creation of zoning and the reforms of the 20th century. How do people who value messy cities and incremental change begin to make change in this environment? How is the context for cities in the middle of the country unique?Dennis Strait and Abby Kinney join the podcast to discuss their work with incremental change, small-scale development and facilitating civic conversations in Kansas City and elsewhere.Dennis an Abby work in the Planning Studio for multistudio. He has presented extensively in KC on “We’ve Built a City We can’t Afford.” That recording is available on the KC Library website here.Abby hosts the Upzoned podcast on the Strong Towns network. Sign up and listen!Find more content on The Messy City on Kevin’s Substack page.Music notes: all songs by low standards, ca. 2010. Videos here.Intro: “Why Be Friends”Outro: “Fairweather Friend” Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe

Steve Mouzon, www.mouzon.com, is one of the long-time architects and designers from the New Urbanism movement. Steve has written multiple books, including the series of “A Living Tradition” books, and “The Original Green.”We cover what Steve is currently working on in terms of his writing and publication ventures.We also take a dive into The Original Green - what is it, what led Steve to it, and the implications for architecture and cities and towns.Finally, we spend some time talking about our shared interest in New Media, and how (and why) designers can better utilize it in the age of social media. Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe

What is a Messy City? Who is Kevin Klinkenberg?In this episode, I’ll introduce myself to those of you who don’t know me, and set the table for what this podcast will cover. I’ll also review and read through a blog post from 2018 called, “What is a Messy City.” Feedback is always appreciated.If you have a moment, please subscribe to the podcast, share it with a friend, and leave a review. Get full access to The Messy City at kevinklinkenberg.substack.com/subscribe