James Kunstler gives a virtual tour of Detroit

[DetroitDad]

You probably shouldn't trust his facts without independently verifying them, but I don't think that necessarily reflects on his ideas about urban design, which are largely subjective and have very little to do with facts one way or the other. You don't have to know which sports team plays at the Joe to be able to look at it and observe that its design completely cuts it off from the rest of downtown, for example. I agree that a little preparation wouldn't have killed him, though.

Agreed. I think that some are giving him to much credit, and expecting to much out of his podcasts. He's a journalist? Maybe, but not here. Generally, he has a knack for getting people's attention. That gentlemen referred to him as "a generalist" to congress, "that shows us where we went wrong". I refer to him as a sort of a doorway into which you can find good sources of information.

I think my favorite show was Episode number 64, which is mostly Jamie Correa giving a speech at a university. Kunstler is not a source, but quotes a lot of good sources which are very knowledgeable on their individual subjects. After all, he DID refer his listeners to Lowell and DetroitYES for the tours, and as a result, all of us here.

It does seem that Kunstler might be a casual lurker here, along with many other big name new urbanists who get curious about the going ons in Detroit.

[jeduncan]

While I agree that Kunstler knows little about the city of Detroit, I will give him that his writing style itself is humorous [[at least) in Geography of Nowhere. It's quite clear that he's a huge DPZ and NU fan in general, and that nothing short of Seaside will satisfy the guy. But as a writer, he cracks me up.

[Joseph C. Krause]

I use The Boll every week and find it to be a good facility, but the design is really silly.

Outside, it presents blank walls or fences on all sides except at the corner of John R and Broadway. It treats the street behind it as an alley, it has tropical wood on the facade that can't withstand a Michigan Winter and is deteriorating rapidly. A water spout drains directly onto Broadway, causing a permanent ice sheet all Winter. Though the entrance is near the corner, one must walk around a long fence, then backtrack, to enter from Broadway.

Inside, it is apparent that measures were made to make this a "green" building -- low-impact or recycled materials etc. Why then build cavernous spaces that must be heated? This seems to defeat the spirit of the other "green" attributes. The automatic drinking fountains and toilets malfunction comically. The main counter is backlit by very bright florescent lights, turning anybody working there into a silhouette.

The "green" aspects, the services provided, the reasonably lengthy hours kept, the staff, and the positive impact on the community are all fantastic. But that building sure needed more attentive design.

[Zacha341]

I gather the Boll is the YMCA or whatever right? Why is it called the Boll? Well I am very paranoid about falling so your tell of ice is for sure a turn off. Should they "catch" a lawsuit of two that problem will be solved.

When "downtown" I want the building entrance to be fast access. I don't want to walk far looking for it, exposing myself to getting robbed or pestered. I've had problems before I don't want a repeat of.

Entrance options sounds like stupid "cute" planning in general.

And what's up with the wood decor as you describe it? That was bad contracting, as any good contractor would never use indoor delicate woods in Michigan outdoors? Or maybe it was the cheap route as agreed to by all parties.....

I use The Boll every week and find it to be a good facility, but the design is really silly.

Outside, it presents blank walls or fences on all sides except at the corner of John R and Broadway. It treats the street behind it as an alley, it has tropical wood on the facade that can't withstand a Michigan Winter and is deteriorating rapidly. A water spout drains directly onto Broadway, causing a permanent ice sheet all Winter. Though the entrance is near the corner, one must walk around a long fence, then backtrack, to enter from Broadway.

Inside, it is apparent that measures were made to make this a "green" building -- low-impact or recycled materials etc. Why then build cavernous spaces that must be heated? This seems to defeat the spirit of the other "green" attributes. The automatic drinking fountains and toilets malfunction comically. The main counter is backlit by very bright florescent lights, turning anybody working there into a silhouette.

The "green" aspects, the services provided, the reasonably lengthy hours kept, the staff, and the positive impact on the community are all fantastic. But that building sure needed more attentive design.

[ghettopalmetto]

Like saying the Fox Theatre was being used for a parking lot? A little preparation wouldn't have killed you, guy. If he's so wrong on Detroit, why on earth would I trust him for cities that I wouldn't know fact from fiction. His bit about the Joe's steps being like an Aztec temple of death was pretty funny, though.

Does it really matter if it was the Fox Theatre or the Michigan Theatre that was turned into a parking deck? Okay, he got the name wrong. But Detroit ALLOWED A GRAND THEATRE TO BE TURNED INTO A PARKING DECK. Kunstler's misspeaking does not negate this.

Likewise, does it really matter if Kunstler went the wrong-way on a one-way street named Woodward or Something Else? Or if they actually play hockey at Joe Louis Arena instead of basketball?

You guys are pulling weeds while the forest is burning down.