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Peoria Magazines
The New Industrial City
Replay: The New Industrial City
"The future vision underpinning this is a decidedly post-industrial one. This city of tomorrow is made up of people living upscale in town houses and condos, riding a light rail line to work at a smartly designed modern office, and spending enormous sums – with the requisite sales tax benefits – entertaining themselves in cafes, restaurants, swanky shops, or artistic events."
I"n contrast the factory has no place in this future city. Indeed industry is considered a blight that needs to be eliminated or repurposed. What were once working docks are to be converted to recreational waterfront parkland. Warehouses and small factories become the site for developing lofts, studios, or boutiques. This urban economy is based almost solely around intellectual work and services, not physical production."
"But there is a problem with this equation. In almost any city, the bulk of the people do not have college degrees."
"Beyond this, can we as a country prosper if we don’t actually make things anymore? Some of the fear of manufacturing decline is overblown. Despite large scale job losses in the manufacturing sector, the US has continued to set industrial production records outside of recessions. However, as the chart below from the Federal Reserve shows, industrial production growth flattened significantly in the late 1990s."
SynergiCity
With a particular emphasis on
the Rust Belt of the American Midwest, SynergiCity argues that cities
such as Detroit, St. Louis, and Peoria must redefine themselves to
be globally competitive. This revitalization is possible through environmentally
and economically sustainable restoration of industrial areas and warehouse
districts for commercial, research, light industrial, and residential uses. The
volume's expert researchers, urban planners, and architects draw on the
redevelopment successes of other major cities--such as the American Tobacco
District in Durham, North Carolina, and the Milwaukee River Greenway--to set
guidelines and goals for reinventing and revitalizing the postindustrial
landscape.
Contributors are Paul J.
Armstrong, Donald K. Carter, Lynne M. Dearborn, Norman W. Garrick, Mark L.
Gillem, Robert Greenstreet, Craig Harlan Hullinger, Paul Hardin Kapp, Ray Lees,
Emil Malizia, John O. Norquist, Christine Scott Thomson, and James H.
Wasley.
"Instead of handing over neighborhoods to city hall or private developers, this book shows that the solution to many cities' plights lies within them. Empowering residents to take control of and build on community assets, engaging them in community-based organizations that can spearhead revitalization and build real quality of place, yields real results. To the extent that they adopt a holistic approach to planning and build on a city's intrinsic strengths, they can accomplish miracles."--from the foreword by Richard Florida
Hardcover $60.00 Buy Now
* Full Disclosure - Ray Lees and I wrote a chapter.
Peoria Riverfront Museum, Cat Visitors Center grand opening October 20, 2013
Peoria Riverfront Museum, Cat Visitors Center grand openingSubmitted by Alex Rusciano on Sat, 10/20/2012 |
"Hundreds of people attended the grand opening of the Peoria Riverfront Museum and Caterpillar Visitors Center. Both projects total about $200 million, with the museum project first talked about more than 12 years ago. US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood praised the collaboration between the city, county, lawmakers and business investment that made the project a reality: "
“The people that are gathered here continued to work
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| The Plan |
"The Riverfront Museum includes a digital big screen theatre, planetarium and exhibits showcasing the history of Central Illinois. The Caterpillar Visitors Center includes a movie theatre inside a D-797 mining truck and exhibits detailing the company's outreach across the world."
Green Sculpture Park
“GREEN” SCULPTURE PARK - PEORIA, ILLINOIS
The City of Peoria has many quality sculptures. The City is also leading the expansion of “Green” Technology and Sustainability. A Green Sculpture Park could be developed that would be artistic and “green”, incorporating recycled materials, wind and solar energy, etc. into the design. 
A program modeled on the successful Sioux Falls, South Dakota program could be created.www.sculpturewalksiouxfalls.com . Each year new sculptures are displayed in downtown for one year, and become a tourist attraction. After one year the sculptures are replaced by new sculptures. The sculptures are for sale and people vote for their favorite.
The Civic Center could sponsor this event, with sculptures mounted in Civic Center green space. As the event grew it could cascade down Fulton and on to the Build the Block Campus.http://buildtheblock.com.
The sculptures would be a major tourist attraction.
Build the Block - Congratulations
Build the Block Looks Great.
Congratulations to everyone who
helped make it a reality
Peoria Riverfront Museum
www.peoriariverfrontmuseum.org/LIVE SHOTS FROM BUILD THE BLOCK CAM. Build The Block Camera.Build the Block Camera
www.buildtheblockcam.com/BuildTheBlockCam.com provides a near, real-time view into the transformation of seven acres on the Peoria, Illinois riverfront.
