Later this month the new 9.7 km North-South metro line in Amsterdam will start service. Like most large scale infrastructure projects, its opening has been delayed many times. 8 times according to this source. But this post is not about that. It’s about a byproduct of the line’s construction.
The excavations required for the line meant that two sections of the Amstel River – namely the Damrak and Rokin sites – had to be drained. This took place from 2003 to 2012 and gave archaeologists unprecedented access to the bottom of a river in the middle of a historic city center.
Amsterdam started as a small trading port along the banks of the Amstel River some 800 years ago. So not surprisingly, they found a few things. Over 17,000 objects were found and all of them have been catalogued online according to time period, use, material, and location found.
For the full catalogue of objects, click here. Screenshot of the catalogue shown above. And to learn more about the entire project, start here. There’s a lot of good stuff in there for city nerds.
I used to skateboard when I was growing up and so I have a lot of respect for the sport. This summer, from June 30 to August 12, The Bentway here in Toronto will be working with Build for Bokma and Vans to transform its outdoor (ice) skating trail into a summer-long celebration of skateboarding arts and culture. This is great.
I am sure you all know Vans. But you may not be aware of Build for Bokma. They are a non-profit whose mission is to create skateable public structures. And their long-term goal is to develop a permanent skatepark that commemorates the late Canadian pro skateboarder, Justin Bokma.
A big part of skateboarding culture is reimagining spaces and adapting to different urban environments. And if you think about it, that’s exactly what The Bentway is doing. They are reimagining a part of this city’s urban infrastructure. So I think this is a perfect fit and I am excited to see it come to life this summer.
Today I was at the Land & Development Conference here in Toronto. I started live tweeting during the breakfast, but my vintage iPhone 6 couldn’t keep up, so I had to stop. Some insights throughout the day. But a lot of what you would expect. I suppose it’s more about the networking.
I would, however, like to reiterate something that Ken Greenberg mentioned about Employment Areas/Lands in Toronto. For those of you who aren’t familiar, these lands are essentially intended to serve one, and only one, purpose: employment. And the process for introducing a mix of uses, including residential, is an onerous one to say the least.
I appreciate why this is the case. But I agree with Greenberg in that this kind of single use zoning is antiquated. It does not reflect the realities of the market today. There are other mechanisms we can use to maintain and provide for employment, and ensure that we don’t end up with a city of all residential.
Later this month the new 9.7 km North-South metro line in Amsterdam will start service. Like most large scale infrastructure projects, its opening has been delayed many times. 8 times according to this source. But this post is not about that. It’s about a byproduct of the line’s construction.
The excavations required for the line meant that two sections of the Amstel River – namely the Damrak and Rokin sites – had to be drained. This took place from 2003 to 2012 and gave archaeologists unprecedented access to the bottom of a river in the middle of a historic city center.
Amsterdam started as a small trading port along the banks of the Amstel River some 800 years ago. So not surprisingly, they found a few things. Over 17,000 objects were found and all of them have been catalogued online according to time period, use, material, and location found.
For the full catalogue of objects, click here. Screenshot of the catalogue shown above. And to learn more about the entire project, start here. There’s a lot of good stuff in there for city nerds.
I used to skateboard when I was growing up and so I have a lot of respect for the sport. This summer, from June 30 to August 12, The Bentway here in Toronto will be working with Build for Bokma and Vans to transform its outdoor (ice) skating trail into a summer-long celebration of skateboarding arts and culture. This is great.
I am sure you all know Vans. But you may not be aware of Build for Bokma. They are a non-profit whose mission is to create skateable public structures. And their long-term goal is to develop a permanent skatepark that commemorates the late Canadian pro skateboarder, Justin Bokma.
A big part of skateboarding culture is reimagining spaces and adapting to different urban environments. And if you think about it, that’s exactly what The Bentway is doing. They are reimagining a part of this city’s urban infrastructure. So I think this is a perfect fit and I am excited to see it come to life this summer.
Today I was at the Land & Development Conference here in Toronto. I started live tweeting during the breakfast, but my vintage iPhone 6 couldn’t keep up, so I had to stop. Some insights throughout the day. But a lot of what you would expect. I suppose it’s more about the networking.
I would, however, like to reiterate something that Ken Greenberg mentioned about Employment Areas/Lands in Toronto. For those of you who aren’t familiar, these lands are essentially intended to serve one, and only one, purpose: employment. And the process for introducing a mix of uses, including residential, is an onerous one to say the least.
I appreciate why this is the case. But I agree with Greenberg in that this kind of single use zoning is antiquated. It does not reflect the realities of the market today. There are other mechanisms we can use to maintain and provide for employment, and ensure that we don’t end up with a city of all residential.
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
