Stephen Fesler
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.
In June, The Urbanist's transportation reporter and senior editor, Ryan Packer, had a wide-ranging discussion with Port of Seattle Commissioner Toshiko Hasegawa. High-speed rail, climate action, and cruise ships were among the topics.
Reece Martin on RM Transit discusses Portland's transit system, which has an expansive light rail and streetcar network. Martin show how Portland is doing a lot good things with transit, but there are some areas that could use some improvement. Among other things, he argues that frequency could really...
Fast electric ferries: Stockholm is getting the world's fastest electric passenger ferries.
Montlake Playfield revamp: Under a unique agreement, Seattle Prep is replacing the turf at Montlake Playfield.
Fiscal cliff: Governing sheds light on how many American transit agencies are facing a fiscal cliff.
Fires and crashes: Fires temporarily close Glo's in...
The Fourth of July holiday is coming up and Puget Sound transit agencies are planning a mix of service plans on the weekday holiday. Here's a roundup of service around the Sound:
AgencyService PlanSound TransitMixed service operation, including: Sunday service on the Link 1 Line with extended 15-minute service in...
Shipping container homes have become all the rage in recent years. But they're not necessarily as practical as they might seem when it comes to bringing them up to code for habitation. They also aren't exactly inexpensive. Vox takes a dive into the hot building trend.
This week’s Transpo Notes roundup touches on a mix of bus, train, and driving stories, including:
The hiring of Sound Transit's next CEO;Naming of the forthcoming Link stations;Free transit passes for University of Washington employees;Noisy escalators and cracking tiles at new Link stations;Park-and-ride demand remains low; New Sounder service agreements...
Broadway Plan: Vancouver's Broadway Plan has been approved.
Diversion: States are diverting road safety money away from safety programs.
Chi tree canopy: Boosters in Chicago want the city to increase tree planting and tree canopy.
Federal housing funding: The Biden administration wants to increase funding for supportive housing programs.
Disproportionate impact: Black people...
About Here takes a dive into corner retail and front yard and accessory commercial units in single-family areas. Architects have a lot of ideas about how to design these small scale uses and spaces to fit meld into residential areas. The video also touches on a Seattle example.