How important are urban restaurants? This recent article by Eduardo Porter makes the argument that they are a "central pillar of superstar cities." They are the social spaces that draw young and smart people to cities (see above) and that fuel our creative economy.

According to Eduardo, in the 1970s, urban consumers in US cities typically devoted about 28% of their overall food budget to dining out. As of 2019, restaurants, bars, food trucks, and other dining establishments consumed about 47% of this budget for people living in cities with a population greater than 2.5 million.

By comparison, people who resided outside of an urban area in 2019, spent only about 38% of their food budget on eating out. Still, these are substantial numbers. A big part of the food and drink that we consume is, at least during normal times, happening outside of where we live.

Right now is certainly not the finest hour for cities. Urban amenities (like restaurants) and social networks are part of what make living in a city so enjoyable. And these two things have been greatly (and rightly) reduced. But I don't for a second doubt the overall resiliency of our cities.

This isn't their first crisis and, unfortunately, it won't be their last.

Image: New York Times

So I just learned that architects Bjarke Ingels and Rut Otero live in a converted Norwegian houseboat in Copenhagen's harbor. A friend of mine sent me the Architectural Digest article this morning with the caption, "now I want one." The space is exceedingly cool and interesting, but supposedly the heat and water stop working on occasion. Minor annoyance, I suppose. But in addition to being cool and interesting, there's also a resiliency argument. Houseboats don't have to worry about sea level rise, because they just float. (Could this type of floating housing be deployed at scale? Ingels thinks so.) In this case, they also repurposed an existing structure, which is generally more sustainable than building something new. I guess I'll take one as well.

For the full houseboat tour, head over here.

What’s happening in Houston right now is devastating. Ian Bogost of The Atlantic is calling the flood a “disaster of biblical proportions.” Harvey has unloaded 9 trillion gallons of water.

It is once again reminding us of the importance of resiliency when it comes to our cities.

One emerging argument is that this is an almost inevitable outcome for Houston, brought on by the multiplicative effects of climate change, unfettered urban sprawl, and poor design decisions.

The barriers to development are famously low in Houston, which allows the city to quickly add housing and people. There are many benefits to this. 

But it also means that there has been, among other things, a dramatic increase in the amount of impervious surface.

This matters because impervious surface creates runoff.

According to The Texas Tribune, impervious surface in Harris County (third most populous county in the U.S.) increased by 25% between 1996 and 2011. 

And it replaced things like the below prairie grass (switchgrass), which are highly absorbent as a result of their deep root system. 

But much like climate change, not everyone believes this is to be blamed. 

For more on this, check out The Texas Tribune’s full interactive piece. It’s called “Boomtown, Flood Town” and it’s worth a read.

Image from The Texas Tribune

How important are urban restaurants? This recent article by Eduardo Porter makes the argument that they are a "central pillar of superstar cities." They are the social spaces that draw young and smart people to cities (see above) and that fuel our creative economy.

According to Eduardo, in the 1970s, urban consumers in US cities typically devoted about 28% of their overall food budget to dining out. As of 2019, restaurants, bars, food trucks, and other dining establishments consumed about 47% of this budget for people living in cities with a population greater than 2.5 million.

By comparison, people who resided outside of an urban area in 2019, spent only about 38% of their food budget on eating out. Still, these are substantial numbers. A big part of the food and drink that we consume is, at least during normal times, happening outside of where we live.

Right now is certainly not the finest hour for cities. Urban amenities (like restaurants) and social networks are part of what make living in a city so enjoyable. And these two things have been greatly (and rightly) reduced. But I don't for a second doubt the overall resiliency of our cities.

This isn't their first crisis and, unfortunately, it won't be their last.

Image: New York Times

So I just learned that architects Bjarke Ingels and Rut Otero live in a converted Norwegian houseboat in Copenhagen's harbor. A friend of mine sent me the Architectural Digest article this morning with the caption, "now I want one." The space is exceedingly cool and interesting, but supposedly the heat and water stop working on occasion. Minor annoyance, I suppose. But in addition to being cool and interesting, there's also a resiliency argument. Houseboats don't have to worry about sea level rise, because they just float. (Could this type of floating housing be deployed at scale? Ingels thinks so.) In this case, they also repurposed an existing structure, which is generally more sustainable than building something new. I guess I'll take one as well.

For the full houseboat tour, head over here.

What’s happening in Houston right now is devastating. Ian Bogost of The Atlantic is calling the flood a “disaster of biblical proportions.” Harvey has unloaded 9 trillion gallons of water.

It is once again reminding us of the importance of resiliency when it comes to our cities.

One emerging argument is that this is an almost inevitable outcome for Houston, brought on by the multiplicative effects of climate change, unfettered urban sprawl, and poor design decisions.

The barriers to development are famously low in Houston, which allows the city to quickly add housing and people. There are many benefits to this. 

But it also means that there has been, among other things, a dramatic increase in the amount of impervious surface.

This matters because impervious surface creates runoff.

According to The Texas Tribune, impervious surface in Harris County (third most populous county in the U.S.) increased by 25% between 1996 and 2011. 

And it replaced things like the below prairie grass (switchgrass), which are highly absorbent as a result of their deep root system. 

But much like climate change, not everyone believes this is to be blamed. 

For more on this, check out The Texas Tribune’s full interactive piece. It’s called “Boomtown, Flood Town” and it’s worth a read.

Image from The Texas Tribune