A local example of why commercial parking mandates are silly. The owner of this small plaza purchased land to build *more* parking than required. Do I love the idea of more surface parking? No, but in the suburbs this will happen—the mandates aren’t needed. Owners build what they think they need.

And at the top there’s apparently a French garden w/a memorial to Joan of Arc! Running is really one of the best ways to see a city. You can cover a ton of ground while still taking it in from a human-centered perspective. Badass park that I’d never heard of.

Morning run to the gorgeous Meridian Hill Park in Washington, D.C. Running water and fountains really turn a park from something nice to something special. More running water in public spaces, please! (Shockingly nice monument to President James Buchanan)

Stars Hollow also totally illegal to build again in the state because of onerous commercial parking mandates that outlaw cute downtowns and main streets

2/ this 1782 document acknowledges that a black man named “Dick Freedom” will be picking up the 32 pounds owed to Cuff Liberty. Both men changed their last names, again giving us such a wonderful insight into their motivations.

1/ A letter bearing the signature “Primus Freeman” requesting payment for his arrive in the 4th CT regiment during the Rev War, with one of his commanders vouching for him. The last name “Freeman” and his clear signature give us a hint about what he fight for (even if forced to by his enslaver).

Spending time in DC doing a teacher PD program focused on the Revolutionary War. My chosen research topic: CT’s black revolutionary war soldiers. Our founding was diverse from its start—up to 800 served as part of *integrated* units. Some of the best sources we have? Payment debts/receipts🧵/

Took a break for a walk around DuPont circle, aka what our cities looked like before parking mandates cut them up for asphalt. There’s still so much zoning/code reform work to do in CT, but I can’t wait to see more developments like this now that residential reform is live 🤞🤞🤞

4+ mile morning run through Georgetown. Lukewarm take: imagine if we made it legal to build places like this in Connecticut’s suburbs!

Yes, if you’re going 10+ mph over the speed limit in a school zone, you absolute chud

Two recent Fairfield County meetings: one trying to block a new coastal park, one trying to remove school zone speed cameras that reduced speeding by over 80% Copy/paste these demographics to every NIMBY meeting in the state

I remember when CT’s minimum lot size reform bill was being debated last year and a member of Trumbull’s gov said to me “5,000sqf how are people going to live?!” And I always wonder if these people have traveled…anywhere? Georgetown and NW D.C…famously no one wants to live here!

One hill I’ll die on as a history teacher is that we should replace the use of “farm” and even “plantation” with what these places really were: slave labor camps Like sorry visitors this part of Arlington House wasn’t a calm seating area it was full of enslaved people doing forced labor

By “Keeping Trumbull’s Children Safe” this flyer really means “all the onus is on the kids” and we’re not going to change a single thing about town to make it safer for them

I think we’re safe without doing any Old Lyme outreach this time around

Yale and New Haven’s tree-lined streets are impossible to beat in the summer. 80+ degrees yesterday and you never feel it walking through huge parts of the city.

Finally got to check out the Farmington Canal tunnel in New Haven. Such a great piece of infrastructure (and historical interpretation!) that’s helped nearly complete the New Haven portion of the trail. Walking around yesterday had New Haven feeling like the most “European” city on the continent.

The wonderfully car-lite Court Street in New Haven, leading to Wooster Square. Key lessons: ➡️ car-lite can be as pleasant as car-free while allowing residents to drop off goods ➡️ the concrete—not plastic—planters are what really slow down the cars

I’m also not the aesthetic police, we need housing. But I think New Haven has the best looking housing of any place in CT, and it’s not clear why?

Fantastic walking tour of New Haven’s ped/bike infrastructure and infill housing today from @awebr.bsky.social. New Haven has the most positive action happening of any CT city and it’s not close. It’s already great, but in 10 years it’s going to be on the best cycling cities in the country.

Your periodic reminder that in 2022 Darien rejected participation in the Open Choice school program citing the “financial burden” of 16 additional kindergartners from Norwalk www.ctinsider.com/data/article...

Babe, wake up the CT NIMBYs are inventing new reasons to block housing: “it might impact views of the Heublein Tower as we drive by in our cars on a busy route”

Let me tweak Cheryl Moss’s quote: “We need to be preserving what makes our town the place where only millionaires can afford to stay and raise our families” www.ctinsider.com/news/article...

I’m sorry, people, but may just need to bear-proof houses if you want to live here!

But there are a ton of great, supportive quotes here, too. Shout-out to the reporter for including voices other than the NIMBYs!

One key argument for *state-level* reform: municipalities get themselves stuck with these stupid parking policies that no one working in government today designed. This is the perfect place for the state to step in. You don’t need 4 off street spaces for an ADU!

The arguments for parking flexibility—which we’ve made over and over—are straightforward. Let people decide how much parking is needed. ➡️ missing middle pencils more often ➡️ residents in affordable homes often have 1 or no cars ➡️ reform can boost home building Leung 40-70%

Left: downtown Kinderhook, built before parking mandates and professional planning Right: modern Trumbull “center,” built with planning+modern parking mandates Parking mandates make places where you can park but don’t want to spend any time—can’t wait to eliminate commercial mandates in CT

I’ll never be a Yankees fan (i have a shrine to Dave Roberts lol) but taking a one seat ride to the game and walking 5 minutes to the stadium? It’s incredible!

I hate the Yankees (Mass born and raised), but transit-accessible stadiums are the absolute best