‘Miscellany’ Archives
“Going the extra mile”¦beauty is an essential element in one”'s life.”
by Michael Simms I”'ve always believed that having beauty in one”'s life was an essential element for my own happiness. When we started rehabbing properties in Minneapolis, we had many discussions with various contractors whose mindset was “Just do what”'s absolutely necessary” to rent, and we”'ve insisted on going the extra mile to make our buildings more liveable and to try and instill some pride in the people who live there. We ultimately believe it will extend the life of the property and,”¦ it”'s also the right thing to do. Whether it”'s restoring a magnificent porch, or keeping or restoring hard wood floors that have been covered up by cheap carpet, or keeping beautiful built-in buffets and wainscoting that dramatically add beauty to a property, we”'ve always insisted on going the extra mile to attract renters who want a sense of beauty in their living accommodations. Of course, we also make sure that they are even [...]
KUDOS HOMES AND GARDENS-April
By Harvey Winje The Alley occasionally features aproject in the Community that has accomplished an improvement project that adds to the view on the street, is pleasing to the occupants, and deserves special attention so that everyone knows that others care and appreciate it. The Kudos this month go to the work on 2704 16th Avenue by Tahoe Holdings and SafeHaven Development. If you know of a small or large project you enjoy seeing, let us know so we can feature it here. An Ode to Porches Porches are more than an amenity. Porches have historic and architecture value that adds to the livability of a house, complementing the house as they beautify the streetscape. Some suburbs have begun building porches on new developments calling them one feature of a “New Urbanism” referring back to the folksiness of people enjoying a summer”'s evening on the porch in plain enough view to greet the neighbors and passersby. Porches in this area usually didn”'t have [...]
Thinking Ahead Connecting a Midtown Greenway Streetcar to Lake Street
by Joyce Wisdom Thinking ahead to what the results would be of a new Streetcar system in the Midtown Greenway and envisioning strategies to meet those results before it becomes reality was the topic of a study by four CURA students from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota. Blending Midtown Greenway Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Streetcar Traffic with existing Lake Street businesses, traffic and culture Jeremy Jones, Simon Blenski, Nicole Doran, and Kyle Weimann presented the results of their study recently to a combined meeting of the Boards of the Midtown Greenway Coalition and the Lake Street Council. Here are their recommendations on connecting a new Midtown Greenway streetcar line with the existing Lake Street and vicinity business community and activity: Small businesses must be actively engaged to ensure the business ecosystem is not disrupted so that businesses are not priced out of the market. Encourage and support more commerce in the Greenway [...]
