Category Archives: Zoning

Robert Stark talks to Adam Mayer about San Francisco Architecture

1960's, 1970's, 1980's, Adam Mayer, aesthetics, Architecture, arcology, Art Deco, Beverly Hills, Brutalism, California, Cities, Culture, Danville CA, Economics, Environment, Futurism, gentrification, Historic Preservation, History, John C. Portman Jr, Los Angeles, Los Gatos CA, Mass Transit, Matthew Pegas, Mid-Century Modern, Mount Diablo, Neon, Oakland, Postmodernism, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, Urbanism, Wilderness, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk to architect Adam Mayer about San Francisco’s architectural history and current trends. Check out his Twitter, Instagram, and Architectural Portfolio.

Topics:

Robert’s meetup and architectural tour with Adam in Downtown SF
Ghirardelli Square and the Cannery
SF Neon TOURS
Beaux-Arts Palace Hotel
Art Deco highrises Sir Francis Drake Hotel, Shell Building, and Pac Bell Tower
Mid Century Modern Joseph Eichler highrises, the Fairmont Hotel, and the Hilton
William Pereira’s Transamerica Pyramid and Louis Kahn’s use of concrete inspired by ancient monuments
Underappreciated 80’s post modernism, Art Deco revival, Marriott Juke Box, and Crocker Galleria
Philip Johnson’s 101 California Street and Union Square Neiman Marcus
The John Portman designed Embarcadero Center, it’s attributes of a self contained city and urban oasis, and the JW Marriott
Portman’s uniqueness in being both an architect and real estate developer
Jonathan Segal’s project ‘Architect as Developer’
SOMA highrise boom, Central SoMa Rezone, 5M development, and, Caltrain redevelopment 
New Transbay Transit Center
SOMA skyscrapers 181 Fremont, Salesforce Tower, and Rem Koolhaas’ Tower
The end of the high-rise boom cycle
The Missing Middle Housing
Addressing the housing crisis while respecting historic preservation and aesthetics
Current trends in architecture and marriage between modernism and post modernism(meta modernism)

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings, Stark Truth TV, and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Ashley Messinger about Restructuring Education in Self Contained Cities

aesthetics, Architecture, arcology, Ashley Messinger, Aspergers Syndrome, automation, Basic Income, Brandon Adamson, Cities, City-State System, Class, College, conformity, Culture, demographics, Economics, education, England, Eugenics, Futurism, High School, Internet, Introversion, Personality Types, Police State, Psychology, Sexuality, Skyscrapers, social capital, Social Isolation, social status, social trust, technology, Urbanism, Utopia, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to ASHLEY MESSINGER about restructuring education to adapt to future social, economic, and urban trends. Ashley is based in the UK and writes for AltLeft.com. You can also find Ashley on Twitter.

Topics:

Ashley’s article Educational Formality and Its Abundance
How education is primarily about job-market signalling, hence the phenomenon of credential inflation
Education as a form of day care
How Geniuses tend to be self-taught
The problem of age segregation
Free-range parenting movement
Education as conditioning for wage slavery and the need for a leisure culture
Education alternatives such as virtual education and apprenticeships
The need for specialization in education and the economy
Ashley’s article The Harmless Psychopaths
Finding niches for different personality traits
The lack of social cohesion caused by our education system, internet culture, demographic change, and suburban sprawl
How self contained cities can address these social ills
Universities campuses as models for self contained cities
The U-Shaped Fertility Trend and Affordable Family Formation in a self contained city

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings, Stark Truth TV, and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Alt-Center Solutions to LA’s Urban and Social Dynamics

1960's, 1970's, 1980's, aesthetics, Alt Center, Alternative Right, American Culture, Architecture, Art, Art Deco, Baby Boomers, Beverly Hills, Blade Runner, California, Cities, Class, Conservatives, Crime, Culture, demographics, Diversity, Economics, education, gentrification, Hipsters, Historic Preservation, History, Immigration, income inequality, John C. Portman Jr, Liberalism, Los Angeles, Mass Transit, Matthew Pegas, Mid-Century Modern, Middle Class, Millennials, Neoliberalism, Neon, Politics, Prison, Prison Rape, Retro Futurism, Skyscrapers, social capital, social trust, Suburbia, Urbanism, US Prison System, Utopia, Wealth, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and  Matthew Pegas discuss their recent trip to Downtown LA, Matthew’s experience as a newcomer to the city, observations on the regions cultural dynamics, and solutions to social and urban problems.

Topics:

Skid Row, “ruin porn” and the Creepy History of the Cecil Hotel
Gentrification of the Historic Core
Broadway, neon signs and historic theatre marquees, and plans to revitalize and light up Broadway’s signs
Historic landmarks including the European style Spring Arcade and Art Deco Eastern Columbia Building
The Arts District, art bros, and the chadification of the hipster scene
The South Park highrise boom and new tallest skyscraper the Wilshire Grand
80’s Art Deco revival and new highrises influenced by Mid-Century aesthetics
John C. Portman’s Retro Futuristic Westin Bonaventure Hotel, Interior Urbanism, and Fredric Jameson’s Postmodernist review
The pros and cons of diversity and issues of social cohesion
The appeal of enjoying diversity from exclusive enclaves
The LA County Jail, Donny the Punk, and Jail as a metaphor for the problems of American society
The extreme social, economic, and aesthetic inequality in LA
Social problems caused by mass immigration, Neoliberal economics, and sprawl oriented development
Robert’s article Building a Based Urban Middle Class SWPL Utopia
Sane urbanist solutions to right wing grievances such as White flight
The political ironies of gentrification as re-colonization of urban areas
Family formation and reasons for declining demographics such as housing and education
How these social problems are now impacting the upper middle class demographically
An Alt-Center must offer solutions that cater to urban needs
Building a political movement based on aesthetics with visions for new urban communities
The hypocrisy of pro-immigration liberal elite NIMBY’s
How combining YIMBY policies with immigration restriction will gradually rebuild the urban middle class

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings, Stark Truth TV, and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Alt-Urbanism: Building a Based Urban Middle Class SWPL Utopia

1950's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, aesthetics, Alt Center, American Culture, Architecture, Asia, Asian Culture, Baby Boomers, California, Cities, Class, Conservatives, Culture, demographics, Economics, Environment, Falling Down, gentrification, Giovanni Dannato, Immigration, income inequality, Korea, Le Corbusier, Los Angeles, Middle Class, New Urbanism, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, SWPL, Urbanism, Utopia, Wealth, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Robert Stark: Originally Published on Alt of Center

Prior to the 1950’s, the urban core of LA, centered around Downtown, was relatively small. It was also much more compact and vibrant, however, than it became in the second half of the 20th Century. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in urbanism and walkable communities, and LA’s downtown, historic core is now revitalized and booming with new highrise construction.

While LA is just in the early stages of creating an integrated metro system, the region once had a vibrant street car system connecting the urban core with extensions to street car suburbs such as Santa Monica and Pasadena.

According to Curbed LA : “in 1945, a sinister corporation called National City Lines took over the thriving Los Angeles Railway, which served most of the sprawling region. Then, over the course of the next two decades, LA’s extensive streetcar network was eliminated and the iconic Red Cars that Judge Doom mentions were replaced with shiny new buses.

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Alt Urbanism: Retrofitting The Aesthetically Pleasing Suburb

aesthetics, Architecture, California, Cities, Class, Culture, Danville CA, Eco-Cities, Environment, Historic Preservation, Lafayette CA, Mount Diablo, New Urbanism, Orinda CA, Richard Register, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Sonja Trauss, Suburbia, Urbanism, Utopia, Walnut Creek CA, Wealth, Wilderness, Zoning

By Robert Stark: Originally Published on Alt of Center

There has been a growing movement within the New Urbanist scene to retrofit car-oriented suburbs. There is even an excellent book on the subject titled Retrofitting Suburbia by Ellen Dunham-Jones. The book focuses primarily on retrofitting aesthetically unappealing, car-oriented suburbs that were built in the 2nd half of the 20th Century.

Despite opposition from suburban NIMBYs this idea makes practical and aesthetic sense. Your typical American suburban commercial thoroughfare is lined with ugly strip malls with massive parking lots that are aesthetically unappealing, ecologically unsustainable, and unfriendly to pedestrians. The safety of pedestrians is rarely secured. It really should come as no surprise that law firms like lamber goodnow are often required to assist pedestrians who have been struck by cars in these areas.
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Robert Stark interviews Richard Register about Ecocities

aesthetics, Architecture, arcology, Art, Asia, Berkeley, California, China, Cities, Culture, Eco-Cities, energy, Environment, Futurism, Galápagos Islands, Global Warming, Historic Preservation, History, John C. Portman Jr, Lafayette CA, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Nature, New Urbanism, New York, Oakland, Orinda CA, Phoenix, Richard Register, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, Urbanism, Utopia, Wilderness, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Richard Register is a theorist in ecology and urban design, the author of several books on the topic of ecologically sustainable cities, and founder and President of Ecocity World.

Topics:

Richard’s concept of an Ecocity
Paolo Soleri’s concept of an Arcology and his project Arcosanti in Arizona
The Ecosa Institute which is doing what Soleri intended on a smaller scale
Ancient examples of the Arcology go back to Ur in Mesopotamia and Çatalhöyük in Turkey
The city as a complex living organism
Horizontal vs. three dimensional cities
Implementing an ecocity on a large scale as an Ecotropolis
Why density is more ecologically sustainable
Ecocity Zoning
The goal of creating a car free city
The use of bridges between structures
John C. Portman’s Embarcadero Center in San Francisco which has aspects of an Arcology
Exterior glass elevators
Richard’s book Ecocity Berkeley and NIMBY imposed barriers to change in Berkeley
Opening up the creek systems in urban areas
Creating Ecocity village cores in the suburbs and how to retrofit aesthetically pleasing suburbs(ex. Santa Barbara, Marin County, and wealthy East Bay suburbs)
Reducing the foot print of cities and suburbs and opening up new land to agriculture and wilderness
Richard’s illustrations and the importance of aesthetics in urbanism
New Urbanism as a step in the right direction but too rigid in height and density
Richard’s trip to the Galapagos Islands and observations of how architecture coexists with nature
Ecocities in China
Robert’s observation that Las Vegas despite being an ecological catastrophe has many aspects of the Arcology

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks about The YIMBY Movement & The Alt-Center

aesthetics, Alt Center, Alternative Left, Alternative Right, American Culture, Architecture, Black Culture, California, Cartrell Payne, Cities, Class, Conservatives, Crime, Culture, decentralization, demographics, Donald Trump, Dystopia, Economics, Environment, Falling Down, Film, gentrification, Historic Preservation, Huey Long, Immigration, income inequality, John C. Portman Jr, Las Vegas, Leftism, Liberalism, Libertarianism, Los Angeles, Malibu, Market Urbanism, Mass Transit, Middle Class, New Urbanism, New York, Norman Mailer, Oligarchy, Police, Police Brutality, Police Corruption, Police State, Political Parties, Politics, Pornography, Portland, Race Relations, Radical Center, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, SWPL, The Adventure Kid, The American South, Third Way Economics, Twin Peaks, Urbanism, Wealth, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark joined with Cartrell Payne(aka The Adventure Kid) to discuss the YIMBY movement, the Alt-Center, and how those issues relate.

Topics:

California Senator Scott Wiener’s housing-transit measure Derailed
Factions of the YIMBY movement including left leaning housing advocates, real estate developers, and the Market Urbanist
Left Wing anti-gentrification activists and their alliance with NIMBY’s
Cartrell’s observations on gentrification in Memphis, Tennessee
The hypocrisy of pro-immigration Limousine Liberal NIMBY’s, and how that combination exacerbates the housing crisis
How the YIMBY movement is also very pro immigration
Income Inequality in California and the mass exodus of the middle class
The film Falling Down which is set in LA in the early 90’s and a warning of a dystopian future
What makes California great and can it be saved?
The New Great Migration of Black Americans back to The South
White Middle Class Conservative NIMBY’s, their motivations, and how they are sabotaging their own self interest
Why YIMBYism and immigration restriction are compatible, and why the Alt-Center should take up those causes
Why YIMBYs need to address aesthetic concerns
Why YIMBYism is compatible with environmental and historic preservation
Citylab and City Journal; their writings on urbanism and political agendas
Why mass transit is inefficient in LA and other Sun Belt cities
The political and cultural flaws of both Blue and Red States
A vision of an Alt Center which include alternative economics, pro middle class policies, New Urbanism, environmentalism, SWPL culture, and socially centrist
Cartrell’s political orientation as an Old School Southern Democrat minus the racism
Cartrell’s critique of both the Black Liberal Establishment and Black Conservatives
Conservative views on the poor and police issues and Conservative Class Cucks
The early 20th Century Populist movement
Norman Mailer’s plan for breaking up New York City which addressed both the concerns of the Left and the Right

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Architect Adam Mayer

1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, Adam Mayer, aesthetics, Architecture, arcology, Art Deco, Asia, Brutalism, California, Chicago, China, Cities, Culture, Environment, Historic Preservation, income inequality, James Howard Kunstler, John C. Portman Jr, Lafayette CA, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Los Gatos CA, Malls, Mass Transit, Mid-Century Modern, Mount Diablo, New Urbanism, Orinda CA, Postmodernism, Retro Futurism, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Sonja Trauss, Suburbia, Urbanism, Walnut Creek CA, Wealth, Wilderness, Zoning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adam Mayer is an architect based out of San Francisco. Check out his Twitter, Instagram, and Architectural Portfolio.

Topics:

Growing up in Los Gatos which is a small town on the edge of the Silicon Valley
Studying architecture at USC and observations on LA
Art Deco and Mid Century Modern Architecture in LA
New Urbanism and Retrofitting suburbia
The Bay Area Housing Crisis and the importance of developing smartly while protecting greenbelts
How ugly architecture leads to NIMBY sentiment and why the YIMBY movement needs to address aesthetics
California Senate bill would force more dense housing near transit hubs
Working on a redevelopment project at the Walnut Creek BART Station
San Francisco’s SOMA district’s new skyline
San Francisco’s new Transbay Terminal
Architect John C. Portman; The Embarcadero Center and Hyatt in San Francisco and the extension of the urban realm to the inside
Architect Jon Jerde; his projects including Westside Pavilion and the Universal City Walk in LA, Horton Plaza in San Diego, and the Wynn and Bellagio in Las Vegas
Architect William Pereira who designed the Trans-America Pyramid in San Francisco
Brutalism
1980’s architecture and whether it will make a comeback
Frank Gehry
Modernism vs. Postmodernism and where to draw the boundary
How current architecture lacks one cohesive aesthetic
Adam’s work as an architect in China, master planned projects, and observations on architecture in China
Winner Take All? Richard Florida’s ‘New Urban Crisis’
How to accommodate families in cities

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Old Urbanist Charles Gardner

1970's, aesthetics, American Culture, Architecture, arcology, Art, Charles Gardner, Cities, Culture, Disneyland, Economics, Environment, Europe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Historic Preservation, History, James Howard Kunstler, John C. Portman Jr, Las Vegas, Market Urbanism, New Urbanism, New York, Sam Kevorkian, San Francisco, Skyscrapers, Strong Towns, Suburbia, Urbanism, Utopia, Wilderness, Zoning


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Sam Kevorkian talk to James Gardner. He is an Attorney based in Stamford, Connecticut and blogs at the Old Urbanist.

Topics:

Jane Jacob’s The Death and Life of Great American Cities
The Curated Landscape  and how European towns and cities have starker divides between urbanized and undeveloped land than those of the United States
The Streetcar suburb model and Bourgeois Utopias: The Rise And Fall Of Suburbia: Robert Fishman
That 70s Urbanism, 70’s Urban Renewal projects(ex. the Embarcadero Center in SF and the Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia), and how those projects are underappreciated
Paolo Soleri’s Arcosanti
Cruise Ships: The Densest (Urban) Environment in the World
Disneyland and Urbanism
Heroic materialist
Green Urbanism, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Broadacre City, and the Garden City movement
Rehabilitating Walmart
The European Arcade and the Middle Eastern Souk as a model for retail
Height Acts and Restrictions
Narrow Streets
Vancouver and the Zoning Straitjacket
Lot Sizes: Regional Trends and Causes
NYC Suburban Demographics: and the  demographic collapse among the young adult population in wealthy suburbs
Urban growth boundaries

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Santa Barbara Mayoral Candidate Hal Conklin

aesthetics, Architecture, Art, California, Cities, Culture, Economics, Environment, Hal Conklin, Historic Preservation, Mass Transit, Police, Santa Barbara, Urbanism, Zoning

Robert Stark talks to Santa Barbara Mayoral candidate Hal Conklin for a written interview. Hal Conklin was the former Mayor of Santa Barbara and is the President of USA Green Communities.

Topics:

Hal Conklin’s accomplishments as mayor
Environmental solutions for the City and his work for USA Green Communities
The need for leadership in the future, giving the entire community a voice, and the Mayor’s role of “mediator” of dialogue
The Arts
Historic preservation and the City’s legacy of maintaining historic standards since the 1925 Earthquake
The Average Unit-Size Density Program, Height Restrictions, and the Housing Shortage
The Homeless Situation
Retail Vacancies
Tourism
The City’s Budget, the proposed Sales Tax, and revenue solutions
Bringing new jobs to the City
Mass Transit, the Bus System, and a hypothetical Light Rail Line

Check out Robert Stark’s Artwork




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