Author Archives: Christopher Winters

The Queens Quay renovation in Toronto

When I was in Toronto, I also explored a much smaller project: the renovation of Queens Quay. Queens Quay is a short (3.3 km) street along Toronto’s “Harbourfront.” Over the last forty or so years most of its western 2 … Continue reading

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Toronto’s extends its subway even further into car country

I spent several days in Toronto this month. This was perhaps my twentieth trip to Toronto since 1966. I had been a witness over the years to Toronto’s astonishing transformation from a socially conservative place whose inhabitants were mostly of British … Continue reading

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Chicago hospital thinks it’s in Schaumburg*

Thorek Hospital is a 118-bed hospital on Chicago’s North Side. It is most definitely not a major research institution. It ranks as “below average” in U.S. News and World Report ‘s evaluations of U.S. hospitals. Many (although not all) of its … Continue reading

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Hamburg’s ambitious HafenCity

In the world of urban planning, Hamburg has perhaps become best known for HafenCity, which has been slowly replacing Hamburg’s obsolete 19th-century port in the years since 2003 (an enormous new container port has grown up across the Elbe). HafenCity is claimed to … Continue reading

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Jakarta tries to get beyond 1960s “modernity”

I had been in Jakarta only once before, in 1998. I concluded then that Jakarta was just about the most pedestrian-unfriendly city on earth. Many of its roads had only the narrowest of cracked sidewalks—and carried mind-bogglingly huge amounts of … Continue reading

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Tall residential buildings (including hotels) by urban area

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The skyscraper apartment buildings (and some other distinctive features) of Panama City

I spent a few days in Panama City at the end of January. I had been there only once before, in 2012, before the Metro opened. It’s a surprisingly distinctive place. Panama City’s most astonishing feature is surely its skyline, … Continue reading

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The difficulties of carfree life in Bangkok

I’d been in Bangkok half a dozen times since the 1990s and had come to know the city moderately well. Although it’s a large, pleasantly complicated place, with a rich traditional culture and a distinctive approach to modernization, Bangkok had … Continue reading

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Spatial inequality in central Havana

I spent three days in Havana in mid-December. This blog would not exist if I didn’t believe that intense observation for a short period can lead to real insights about places. I wouldn’t, however, claim that three days in a city of … Continue reading

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Change in population by “race” and Hispanic status, Chicago area, 2010-2012/2016

The Census Bureau released the 2012/2016 American Community Survey (ACS) tract-level data last month. I’ve used these data to map tract-level ethnic changes between 2010 and 2012/2016 for the Chicago area. These maps are comparable to the 2000-2010, 1990-2000, and … Continue reading

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