Take a (virtual) walk in Jane Jacobs' neighborhood

Through this thread in the Wired New York website. There are a couple dozen great photos of West Greenwich Village.

West Greenwich Village, image from Wired New York.

Relatedly, Barack Obama seems to understand some of Jane Jacobs, judging by this youtube video of a campaign event in Toledo, Ohio (when I was bored in Ann Arbor sometimes I would drive, yes I used to have a car, to an all night diner near the airport in Toledo).

My concern about the stimulus is that we should slow down, and take the time to invest in projects that will truly add to the nation's and metropolitan region's ability to compete and grow. Rather than just focus on projects that are "shovel ready." You see, once we commit to this money in FY 2009, there is a good chance that there won't be more money available to invest in projects that aren't just spending money now, but investing in substantive ways in our future.

E.g., I'd rather spend $80 million on streetcars in Philadelphia and Washington, DC, than on loading docks for the Philadelphia Museum of Art. See "Phila. seeks federal funds for list of projects" from the Philaelphia Inquirer.

Click here for a list of all the projects submitted by members of the US Conference of Mayors.