Travis Gilbert
2 essays · 7 projects · 7 field notes
The Parking Lot Problem: How Minimum Requirements Shaped American Cities
Parking minimums quietly became the most powerful force in American urban design. Then cities started repealing them.
The Sidewalk Tax: How Curb Cuts Changed Everything
A 3-inch ramp became one of the most impactful design decisions in urban history.
The Gatehouse
Managed the development of mixed-income condominiums in Flint, Michigan, from planning through grand opening.
Porchfest
Organized the 6th annual Porchfest in Flint's Carriage Town neighborhood, a community music and arts festival celebrating local talent and public space.
Against Legibility in Public Space
What if the push to make every public space 'readable' is actually erasing the complexity that makes cities worth living in?
The crosswalk that leads nowhere
Found a crosswalk in downtown Flint that deposits you on a curb with no sidewalk. Just grass and a fence.
The Maintenance Question
Every design decision is also a maintenance decision. We almost never talk about it that way.
Materials that age honestly
Brick weathers. Vinyl pretends nothing happened. What does that say about the values embedded in material choices?