Positive Change In City Leadership Will Guarantee Main Street’s Successful Outcome – ‘Urban Infill’ For Instance

There are subtle design details that have a powerful ability to make a building look or feel “right” in a certain area. Context tells us whether a design fits in and guides our decisions. We want a city’s buildings to share some regional characteristics that make a place a place. -Joe Bucher, AIA Urban infill is … Continue reading Positive Change In City Leadership Will Guarantee Main Street’s Successful Outcome – ‘Urban Infill’ For Instance →

New Leadership and Justice for Rocky Mount Is At Hand – Thanks to Investors with Vision, The Reimagining and Revitalization of Main Street Is Picking Up

Let us look to New Orleans for preservation inspiration with this trio of mid-19th-century buildings that sat vacant for decades. Even in their key location, the buildings suffered the indignities of leaking roofs, rotting floors, and termites. This situation sounds familiar to us on Main Street. **Constructed in 1858 during the city’s booming antebellum years, … Continue reading New Leadership and Justice for Rocky Mount Is At Hand – Thanks to Investors with Vision, The Reimagining and Revitalization of Main Street Is Picking Up →

Consulting with Thomas Sowell on Rocky Mount’s City Government

Do you ever think about your 'unlived lives?" When I do, it is more with curiosity than with regret. What would my life have been if I had pursued other avenues? We've come a long way from wanting to be a fireman or a professional baseball player; a ballerina, or a doctor with our plastic … Continue reading Consulting with Thomas Sowell on Rocky Mount’s City Government →

Rocky Mount Is Being Lead Down The Yellow Brick Road Over Parking and Low-Income Housing

I have remembered the Yellow Brick Road song from the Wizard of Oz since I was a child. I used to sing it to my grandchildren when heading out in the car for an adventure. "We're off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz." I never dreamed I would find it applicable, transpose and … Continue reading Rocky Mount Is Being Lead Down The Yellow Brick Road Over Parking and Low-Income Housing →

Saying NO to Tarboro Street Housing For At Least 3 Reasons

#I - THE WRONG ANSWER FOR MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING: Affordable housing in historic districts and Wards should be looked at as a sustainable method of housing development. Buildings are durable commodities that can be used for decades. The addition of historic districts, which Rocky Mount has seven, into the housing equation is a win-win for … Continue reading Saying NO to Tarboro Street Housing For At Least 3 Reasons →

The talk around town – Basketball, New Leadership and Housing

The overall #1 seed team in the tournament WINS! Well, that's what the ladies in my story would say. Some years ago, I drove from Chapel Hill to Durham to the beauty shop. Waiting my turn during the NCAA Tournament, I listened to four ladies talk Duke basketball. It was a Norman Rockwell moment. In … Continue reading The talk around town – Basketball, New Leadership and Housing →