One need look no further than the 2nd annual Smallest, Coolest Apartment Contest 2006, sponsored by Apartment Therapy.

Qualifying entrants must be under 650 s.f. (quality trumps quantity in the city) and among the 48 contiguous states (what the judges have against Hawaii, Alaska and Washington DC I don’t know), and are usually submitted in the early spring. This year’s tied-for-first winners are:

- David & Im’s OneSpace - 426 s.f. loft in San Diego (pictured above) - “truly innovative,

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So why is the University of South Carolina’s Innovista (profiled yesterday) worthy of proclaiming itself as “the model for the new research campus of the next 100 years”?...

...When’s the last time you’ve seen a research “park” with marketing like this - “Imagine your home is a meandering stroll from your office. Along the way you pass delightful distractions, quaint bistros, art galleries, and unique shops. Just a few more steps and you’re on a tree lined riverfront parkway, or watching a

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We’re all familiar with university research parks - they look just like suburban office parks, and yes, prospective workers avoid choosing such places (no one lives there) because they’re not about to sacrifice two hours of their daily life to commuting, much less the additional time it takes to get to any form of authentic entertainment.

Well, that was in the days of the industrial economy, and in the knowledge economy we’ll start to see places like the University of South Carolina’s

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As the Netherlands shifts from industry to knowledge-based economy, they certainly know their placemaking, transforming blocks of a neglected industrial district into a $150 million mixed-use development, Arnhem City Center, known locally as ‘Musiskwartier’.

Opening last month, the predominantly a retail/entertainment center hosts a residential community above its shops of condos with terraces, gardens and balconies.  The largely pedestrian-only development features a timeless architectural

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The bad news is, once a place is on an irreversible track towards being uncool, you can bet the creatives will flee.  The good news is, it works vice versa.

We all know the familiar pattern of risk-taking artists moving into an undesirable neighborhood, attracting the cool risk-taking indie venues, coffeehouses, restaurants and workplaces and infusing it with desire, which then attracts the risk-averse executive-types who then attract the risk-averse chains (ie Starbucks, McD’s, Gap, etc.) 

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Is there a standard definition of what a local, independent business is?  Or in other words, when does an independent business become a chain?  There’s probably no better person to ask than Stacy Mitchell, a senior researcher at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and author of the just-released Big Box Swindle: The True Cost of Mega-Retailers and the Fight for America’s Independent Businesses.

An excerpt from the book:
“There is no commonly agreed upon definition, but in this book, a

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Continuing our look at yesterday’s entry on Maine’s Midcoast Magnet group of proactive creatives and entrepreneurs, here’s a look at where they perceive things are, where they’d like it to be, and how they plan to get there.

First, 400 of them were surveyed, and below are percentages of how many of them felt the particular asset was important to whether they stayed or left, followed by what’s actually there.  You can see why people flee.

Cost of living:  90%
- Perceived as above average: 

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The creative class population of Maine’s northern MidCoast region longed for more of the kinds of jobs, housing and entertainment/nightlife they felt was necessary to retain them and attract others to Maine, so they took it upon themselves to make that message clear and established Midcoast Magnet, “a non-profit organization of people dedicated to vibrant culture, entrepreneurship, and bringing people together socially and professionally”.  The governor was so impressed that he had the state

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If you’re a member of any one of 29 entrepreneur/business networking organizations, this recently opened workplace - The Hubworking Centre (THC) in downtown London is indeed free.  The membership requirement is simply to ensure that it’s frequented by people who are running their own businesses, mainly because people enjoy being there to network with other entrepreneurs.

First question I’m sure is, how does the place make money?  They do so by charging for the following additional services:
-

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We continue yesterday’s entry on learning about cool places, venues and daily cultural events from the World’s Best Cities to Visit.  Please add your comments below, especially on the happening hot spots in each city.

Mexico and Central and South America:
1. Buenos Aires, Argentina - The Paris of the Pampas (plains) reinvents itself with youthful vigor
2. Oaxaca, Mexico - Where ‘bold’ and ‘authentic’ flow through the food, drink, music and architecture
3. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico - A

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