Roberta Gratz, award-winning journalist and urban critic, lecturer and author of three books is asked her opinion about the City of Portland’s plans to change Burnside and NW Couch from two-way to one-way streets (aka “a couplet”).  This two minute audio link was recorded Wednesday night at the Lab of Museum of Contemporary Craft at an event sponsored by the Pacific Northwest College of Art and Architecture Foundation of Oregon, featuring Ms. Gratz and her newest book:  The Battle for Gotham – New York in the Shadow of Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs.

Roberta Brandes Gratz is widely credited for coining the term “Urban Husbandry”, the notion of shaping a city’s growth and revitalization incrementally, piece by piece, slowly, organically, and with individual components.  By illustrating the advantages of low-cost, modest initiatives, Gratz demonstrates that rebuilding authentic places, reconnecting communities and stimulating innovative change are within everyone’s reach.

More about Roberta Gratz and her accomplishments: http://www.pps.org/rbgratz/

Click here to read, rather than listen to, Ms. Gratz’s response to the proposal of a Burnside Couch Couplet.