Before Silicon Valley, There Was Paper Valley

From 2013 06 Wisconsin

Long before Richardson's Telecom Corridor or even California's Silicon Valley, the Fox River Valley in northeastern Wisconsin was known as Paper Valley. The combination of Wisconsin's vast timber resources and water and power from the Fox River was ideal for making paper. The resulting paper mills created prosperous communities and wealthy paper barons with names like Kimberly and Clark. A hundred years ago, it was said that there were more millionaires per capita in Neenah, Wisconsin, than in any other city in America.

After the jump, the Fox River today.

Meek's Cutoff (2010)

IMDB

Meek's Cutoff (2010): Realistic portrayal of Western migration. Unvarnished. Unromantic. Moving. Pioneers were tough as nails. A-

Insurance Intersection

Richardson is in need of rebranding. Telecom Corridor is so 1990s. With all the recent hoopla over State Farm building three new office towers at the intersection of the Bush Tollway and Central Expressway, may I suggest "Insurance Intersection?"

Absurd, you say? Well, sure. But think about why. Last week, my whining about the missed opportunity for these 186 acres of prime real estate focused on the form of the development (see here and here). I claimed it was more 1980s traditional office building, with maybe some nearby apartment buildings to come, than it was 21st century mixed-use, transit-oriented development.

After the jump, what I did not focus on: State Farm itself.

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2011)

IMDB

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2011): Turkish crime drama. Long moody scenes of rural Turkey at night lit by car lights. Nothing happens. D+

Searching for Sugar Man (2012)

IMDB

Searching for Sugar Man (2012): "American Zero, South African Hero." Oscar-winning documentary of poet/singer almost too good to believe. A+

Not Just an Accident. It's State Farmageddon.

From Pantagraph.com

The State Farm development at PGBT and Central is even worse than I thought. For anyone who cares about mixed-use, transit-oriented development, it's not just an accident. It's a disaster. Call State Farm and see if we're covered for disasters of our own making. Call FEMA. We're facing State Farmageddon.

More after the jump.

How Green Bay Does Light Rail

From 2013 06 Wisconsin

The Bay Beach Amusement Park in the city of Green Bay claims to be the ninth oldest amusement park in the United States. It opened in 1892. Its latest attraction is the relocated and restored "Zippin Pippin," the fourth oldest wooden roller coaster in the world, dating to 1912. Since 1956, another ride, the Bay Beach train, has provided convenient, safe, green transportation with some of the best views around. The park is on the shore of Green Bay, a vast body of water connected to the even vaster Lake Michigan. More photos of the shoreline after the jump.

State Farm Accident in the Making

Along with the three office towers, KDC's initial phase of the mixed-use development includes 1,000 multi-family residential units, an 150-room select service hotel, a health clinic and fitness facility, a specialty anchored grocery store and more than 75,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space.

Source: DBJ Confidential.

After the jump, why this is all so damned depressing.

Wait List for Packers Tickets Shrinks

Being an NFL team owner brings a responsibility to keep an eye on operations, so our trip to Wisconsin included a visit to Lambeau Field to check up on construction activity. Lambeau Field is adding 6,000 new seats to bring the total to 77,000, still not quite enough to hold the whole 106,000 population of Green Bay. The expansion means that about 5,000 people on the wait list, all of them waiting for at least 30 years, will finally get the opportunity to buy season tickets. Inside the stadium, those new decks in the south end zone will be hard to miss. Outside the stadium, the big new scoreboard is hard to miss. Approaching Green Bay from the south on US Highway 41, the big "G" on the back of the scoreboard is visible from miles away. Construction is expected to be complete this month, in time for the 2013 season. Go Pack!

OTBR: A Mill on a Pond in the Czech Republic

Latitude: N 49° 10.146
Longitude: E 015° 25.086

A child on a road trip with his family asks, "Where are we?" and the father answers, "Let's check the map. We're off the blue roads [the Interstate Highways marked in blue on the road atlas]. We're off the red roads [the US and state highways]. We're off the black roads [the county highways]. I think we're off the map altogether." It was always my dream to be off the map altogether.

After the jump, a few of the random places (and I mean random literally) that I visited vicariously last month that are "off the blue roads".