May is underway! I’m a bit late with this month’s newsletter, but hey – better late than never. It’s bike month. Whether it’s your first time riding a bike or you’re a daily rider, you’re sure to see the freedom that biking unlocks!
The Urban Connector monthly newsletter looks back on the best of the previous month as well as ways to get involved in the coming month. Please make sure you sign up below to have these delivered straight to your inbox and follow on YouTube, Twitter, BlueSky Social, and Instagram.
April Content
Happy 404 Day Atlanta: A collection of my favorite photos from the past year
2025 Q1 Drone Tour: First edition of drone imagery from 2025.
Urban Thoughts: Too small for an article, too big to miss
I finally made it out to Chicago for the first time a few weeks ago. What a City! I’ll have a full article of takeaways and photo album soon but here are some rapid fire thoughts:
- How is this City not growing?! Maybe it’s the winters, but my goodness from the lakefront, riverwalk, skyline, neighborhoods and more; what a place!
- For such a transit friendly, walkable city, the streets Downtown are MASSIVE. Right turning drivers are pretty aggressive with people in the crosswalks too. Related, what is up with some of the “Lower” streets?
- The mix of architecture is beautiful. There seems to be a lot of recent builds. However, it seems there was only one building under construction.
- ORD makes me appreciate ATL even more.
My Threads algorithm SUCKS! I can’t scroll at all without seeing someone complain blindly about parking, new builds or have car-brained takes about Atlanta. There’s just so much misinformation and bad takes out there when it comes to how cities operate.
If you missed Propel ATL’s Blinkie Awards last night, you missed a great time. Please consider making a donation to support the fight for safe streets in Atlanta.
Developments that Excited Me
Amsterdam Walk Passes: Yes it’s entirely too many parking spots. However, it’s over 1000 homes. It has an affordability component where nothing under $1,000,000 exists today. That is a win any day of the week. Then when you factor in it’s near perfect location and walkability it’s a no-brainer to me. While there were some good faith arguments against it, most were rooted in racism, classism, and flat out ignorance. I’m more than pleased that over 1000 families will get to call a place home that would not have otherwise had the opportunity. Also, as I always say – would you prefer 1000 people to drive 5 miles a day? Or would it be better for them to drive 30 miles a day if these 1000+ families had to move to the suburbs? They’re moving here regardless.
Southside Mega Development: As I’ll be exploring in my inPhil sketches, we could easily fit 25,000+ units along the Southside Beltline. (Which should be the plan by the way if we’re
“starting” rail down there.) This would be a great start.
Get Involved, Atlanta!
| Date | Event | Notes |
| 5/12 | Housing Commission | 10:00 AM |
| 5/12 | Zoning Committee | 11:00 AM |
| 5/14 | Transportation Committee | 10:00 AM |
| 5/18 | Atlanta Street’s Alive – West End to Grant Park | 2:00 PM-6:00 PM |
| 5/19 | City Council | 1:00 PM |
| 5/28 | Zoning Committee | 11:00 AM |
| 5/30 | Transportation Committee | 10:00 AM |
| 6/5 | City Council | 1:00 PM |
Raleigh folks, I miss y’all! Make sure you’re keeping up to date with the great people at Raleigh Forward, WakeUP, Oaks and Spokes and The Downtown Raleigh Community.
What I’m working on this month (and probably later)
- South side BeltLine infill concepts
- Updates to earlier drawings of the Reconnecting Communities sketches
- More suburban spotlights
- InPhil Designs ideas
- UrbanConnector First Thoughts: Chicago
I’m sure this newsletter will evolve as time goes on. Comments or suggestions? Let me know!
Phil Veasley is a Professional Engineer and CNU-Accredited Professional member working to design safer multimodal infrastructure in cities throughout the US.
My goal is to create cities that are safe and effective for all people to move about outside of cars. To achieve that we have to focus on creating equitable, dense, and vibrant cities full of walkable neighborhoods with a various mix of housing choices, schools, restaurants, and services. We cannot have safe multimodal infrastructure without the density to support it and we cannot have equitable density without safe multimodal infrastructure. Outside of designing safe streets, my passions are sketching ideas for infill neighborhoods, floor plans, urban photography, and exploring our cities on foot or bike. Please check out the menus above for all of my ideas and also check out my YouTube, Instagram, BlueSky Social, and Twitter accounts.
Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization.
Phil Veasley 