Graceland Cemetery

One day after I mention it in class, the Chicago Tribune exhorts readers to visit Graceland Cemetery. After reminding us that the entire cemetery is an arboreal wonderland sprinkled with amazing architecture, including several Louis Sullivan monuments, the columnist drops an exclamation mark on it with a closing sales pitch for the Burnham burial site.

As powerful as the Sullivan-designed monuments are, my favorite place at Graceland is not a work of architecture, but a piece of environmental design — the island in the lake where the architect and urban planner Daniel Burnham and his family are buried. You reach the island by crossing a narrow wood footbridge. It leads to an irregularly-shaped boulder that marks the resting place of Burnham and his wife Margaret.

A canopy of trees offers a sense of shelter, while the water surrounding the island adds a dose of serenity. The lakefront that Burnham championed as a great public space is closed to the public, but here, at least, the visitor can honor the visionary who did so much to create it.

Daniel Burnham

Daniel Burnham famously said, "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will never die, but long after we are gone be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistency. Remember that our sons and our grandsons are going to do things that would stagger us. Let your watchword be order and your beacon beauty."

 But do you realize how grand his plan was? The entire Plan of Chicago (1909) is available online. The images are still remarkable and his writing holds up well. The eighth chapter sets out six goals the plan seeks to accomplish and all six are achieved to some degree.

As an aside, Variety reports that Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are making a film dramatization of the book, The Devil and the White City. No word who will be playing Daniel Burnham. Based on the painting below, who do you think it should be?

Lathrop Homes

Here is a story to watch for a while. It seems unlikely to get resolved without a few rounds of news coverage.

In Chicago, an old housing project is getting update. In an effort to turn the historic project into a riverfront destination, some buildings will be torn down and others will be renovated. The proposal is for a mixed income development that will feature kayak launches and lush parks.

The Chicago Tribune describes the proposed changes this way: "The exterior of the historic buildings would be restored to their Depression-era luster, while the buildings will be gutted and updated with modern amenities. New buildings would be designed to fit with the original architecture." It will include But the project is controversial. Perhaps because project reduces the number of affordable units from 925 to 525. But the Tribune says that there are currently only 140 low-income families living there.

The slideshow accompanying the Tribune story gives a sense for some community protests and concerns. Curbed reports that the landscape architecture is being designed by MVVA.

The projects were named after Julia Lathrop who led the United States Children's Bureau from 1912 to 1922.

The 606 Trail is open

Urban Land Blog takes you on a ride of the first open section of the 606 Trail. In case you don't know Chicago that well, the Tribune has mapped out this elevated park for you.

Late night reading

It is one thing to read about the 1909 Plan of Chicago it is another thing to read the actual plan. It is a fun distraction and an amazing look back at a document that transformed the city. The graphics in this digital version are impressive, too.

GIS Day Common Lecture Live Blog: Erika Svendson

Visualizing the Social: Understanding and Mapping Urban Environmental Stewardship
Erika Svendsen, Research Social Scientist
People and Their Environments: Social Science Supporting Natural Resource Management and Policy
NYC Urban Field Station, Northern Research Station, US Forest Service

Cultivating more places of places of social meaning - a little green or a lot
Different research types
...Intensive-Extensive + Social-Biophysical
  
Inspired by Prof. Bill Burch at Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
Human Ecosystem Framework (HEF)
Virtuous vs. Viscous Cycles - Disturbance can be useful

Stewards as first responders.- adaptive/polycentric
Gardeners as first responders - urban fiscal crisis 
...Strengthening social cohesion and fostering new forms of governance
Resilience cycles
Giuliani and community gardens

Book/blog: Greening in the Red Zone - this isn't just for wealthy urban enclaves


Joplin Tornado Memorial - USFS still has a forester there, helping the city recover - extending the recovery timeline - already planted over 5000 trees

Nature: As asset and a threat


Stewardship mapping
STEW-MAP Project
Online and mail-in survey
initial n=5861
final n=2517

NYC Oasis map  Mapping stewardship "turf" like it was gang turf

Network analysis identified the individuals/groups that served as nodes within the massive stewardship network in NYC- bridge, broker, and bi-modal governing



Timeless threads and places of Social Meaning
Jamaica Bay neighborhoods after Superstorm Sandy
zone mapping for each of the parks - a new social layer for NYC Parks
found lots of 'mad love' for parks
Example: Frank Charles Memorial Park
Example: Sea Song Memorial

Tree planting helps strengthen democracy

Stewardship is a restorative mechanism, it is a part of our social infrastructure



See also: Stewardship, learning, and memory in disaster resilience (paper)
See also: Integrating grey and green infrastructure to improve the health and well-being of urban populations
And myriad other papers

Kim interview

Miyoung Kim was interviewed in yesterday's NY Times. While the interview is meant to focus on her healing gardens, it also evokes qualities of her design approach that permeate the rest of her work.

Daniel Burnham

If you need to re-watch the Daniel Burnham video from class, you can see it online at PBS.  But it might be just as useful to read his bio or his Plan for Chicago.

Chicago's plan for climate change

Chicago is getting serious about planning for climate change.  The NYTimes reports on their new plan, "Climate scientists have told city planners that based on current trends, Chicago will feel more like Baton Rouge than a Northern metropolis before the end of this century."  All that without the benefit of boiled crawfish?

Lots of green roof projects (they are already a leader).  And check out the diagram of the street of the future.  It seems like it requires an equal mix of planning and design.   (h/t Bognar)

Millenium Park

I can't believe how long it took me to get there.  But here it is.

Gift idea?

For that planner or urban designer in your life. You could get them a tie for Valentine's Day.

What made Burnham's plan work

As promised, the centennial of the Burnham plan for Chicago has brought lots of new commentary and reporting on the plan. Continuing the celebration, Urbanophile has written up an 8-point list of what made Brunham's plan work.

Burnham's plan turns 100

Daniel Burnham's Plan for Chicago is turning 100. The New Yorker explores what is means. Some people want to celebrate with a memorial, some don't like the current proposal. Others want a new plan. I'm sure there'll be more in the coming weeks and months.

Chicago plan

This year is the 100th anniversary of Daniel Burnham's Plan for Chicago and the locals are trying to make the most of it.