Lack of parking isn't a "problem"--what's the city's breaking point?

It's funny how we hear so many neighborhood residents and even Alderman (including Nataras) say that lack of parking is a 'problem'. That's news to me. Was it a problem when the loop was built a century ago? Was it a problem when Chicago's neighborhoods were built? Just when exactly did this become a problem? What exactly do people expect the solution to be? Should Chicago dissolve itself and no longer be an urban city? But to get to the point of this thread, at what threshold of traffic congestion in Chicago (due to on-site parking and garages being built all over the place) does the pressure (for the masses of people of decent means) to use transit outweigh the ignorance, laziness, or even embarrassment of its use? What's the breaking point, if there is one? Of course, I'm referring to its day-to-day use for everything, not the morning commute to work downtown. At what point will Joe the attorney in Lincoln Park decide to take a bus to Armitage instead of driving? Will Chicagoans ever be pushed to this threshold? I say this because I sincerely believe that people will never choose transit over driving unless driving becomes far, far too inconvenient.>

Stranger Than Fiction Locations/Buildings

I just watched Stranger Than Fiction which featured some really neat shots of really neat buildings in Chicago. I was trying to figure out some info about some of these buildings but my poor internet sleuthing skills came up short. Hopefully, some of you would be able to help me out. Building A: Tony Hale's (from Arrested Development) space age apartment building. Buildings B: The row of modernist buildings that line the street by Harold Crick's Bus Stop. Any help would be appreciated.>

New Chicago: more height than bulk?

My sense is that the new Chicagoland skyline that we'll (hopefully) see ten years from now is being led by the super talls like Trump and Chicago Spire rather than a mass of tall filler skyscrapers. The result: the new skyline is heading towards emphasising height rather than pure bulk. If (big if) you accept that premise, how do you feel about the concept? Downtown Chicago will probably never be the massive, skyscraper-by-skyscraper the way that Midtown Manhattan is. It won't be a city of endless canyons. Viewed from the distant, it will never overwhelm based on its huge mass of undifferentiated structures. What it will have is numerous peaks and valleys, tall buildings that can really be seen and far more jagged skyline than what you see in Manhattan. Perhpas downtown Chicago might be seen more like the ultimate descendant of the Lower Manhattan of the 1930's and 1940's with its spires clearly defined before the boxy post war buildings flattened the whole place. If you agree with any of the above, do you like the trend suggested (height over mass) and in preference, how would you compare that with the Midtown Manhattan model of overpowering mass with less differentiation?>

urgent parking question...snow route ticket?

Okay...so I attend UIC. I usually pay to park in the lots 2 days a week, and then take the train in on Fridays so I can do some extra studying. Tomorrow, I am only going to one class, which is 50 minutes long. I don't feel like paying $9.00 for less than an hour of parking. I know that there is metered parking all the way at the end of Taylor Street....can you park there during the winter? Or are the snow regulations? I never paid attention.... thanks fo any input.>

Chicago and Rockford.....in the national media

What can Skyscrapercity learn from the AP coverage of Rockford's Danica Patrick.....???? Posted on Sun, May. 29, 2005 In Danica's hometown, pride in Illinoisan's strong Indy finish Associated Press CHICAGO - People across Illinois hailed the strong showing of Roscoe native Danica Patrick in Sunday's Indianapolis 500, saying her performance proved she'll be a force to be reckoned with in auto racing. "We're very, very, very happy," said Linda Oldenburg, a bartender at the Whiffletree Tavern in Roscoe, a village of about 6,200 people in northern Illinois. "We hoped she would win first, but we're happy with fourth." Patrick's finish was the best showing for a woman in Indianapolis 500 history. She became the first woman to lead a lap in the 89-year history of the race, but Englishman Dan Wheldon took the checkered flag after a duel with Patrick late in the contest. Roscoe residents packed into the Whiffletree and other local bars and cheered as Patrick pulled into first place. At Roscoe's Croc's Pub, there was still a buzz in the air hours after the race ended, manager Steve Lyons said. "She will eventually win the big one, the Indy," he said. "This is a foretelling of what's to come. She is not just a flash in the pan." Some residents, including Croc Pub owner Steve Quies, made the five-hour drive to th e Indianapolis Motor Speedway to watch Sunday's race, Lyons said. Signs saying "Go Danica!" mixed with the U.S. flags lining streets for Memorial Day. And pride in Patric extended to some menus. At Meg's Daily Grind, you can order a "Danica's Lucky Charm" - a type of latte with vanilla and creme de menthe. The owners bought the place three years ago from Danica's parents, T.J. and Bev Patrick, who are daily customers. Patrick started racing go-karts at Sugar River Raceway in Brodhead, Wis., about 30 miles away from Roscoe. When she was 16, Patrick's parents bought her a Mustang, and she proceeded to wear out the brakes and tires every few thousand miles. Patrick's Illinois fans weren't limited to her hometown. Several hundred people crowded around large-screen TVs at the ESPN Zone in downtown Chicago Sunday to watch the race. Bar employee Brian Bauer said the crowd overwhelmingly backed Patrick and a roar went up when she briefly grabbed the lead. "There was cheering for the five straight laps she was in first place," he said. "When she dropped back, it got quiet. There was definitely not a celebration for Wheldon.">

Official Aerial Chicago pictures thread

I start Let's see who can find more >

Individuals....and the rise of Chicago

Who are some of the individuals that took a major part in the rise of global Chicago (in the last 30 or so years) and the perceptions outsiders have of a thrieving, sohphisticated city? Would you include Richard M. Daley Orprah Winphrey Michael Jordan Rich Melman Arhtur Rubloff (for the Mag Mile) Jay Pritzker Harold Washington>