"Impure thoughts about suburbia" and New Albanian corridors.

It's interesting reading about "the virtues of America's aging inner ring suburbs."

The topic was raised by Diane Benedetti at Thursday's council meeting, pertaining to the area around the Colonial Manor shopping center on Charlestown Road. It's also something Scott Blair and I have discussed, given that we're both property and business owners on Plaza Drive off Grant Line Road.

These are not far-flung suburban areas, but they're the oldest suburbs within the enveloping ring of I-265. Often I've decried the absence of economic development planning closer to the historic city core, but there are no plans for these corridors, either.

My business has a footprint in both, and I am interested in improving both. With downtown as a reference point, State Street is the Hospital Corridor, Grant Line Road the IU Southeast Corridor, and Charlestown Road the Purdue Center Corridor. In the real world, the first step in making sense of these categories would be consistent public transit options.

We live in New Albany, though. Plan B, anyone?

DR. STRANGELOVE: OR HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE SPRAWL (SORT OF), by John Sanphillippo (New Geography)

I’m a longtime advocate of walkable, mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-served neighborhoods. But lately I’ve been having impure thoughts about suburbia. Let me explain.