Now, how much space do you really, truly need? As this diminutive house shows, sometimes it is good to think small. At an aptly named website, tinyhouses.net, mini-dwellings, for both temporary and permanent residence, are featured. My personal favorite is the HELP (Housing Every Last Person) house pictured here, developed by Carib Daniel Martin and Rob Bragan in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. This compact 8 foot x 12 foot structure comes fully equipped, and even sleeps three!
More information on the HELP House here
This week, July 7-11, steal a New York City bicycle, if only for a 30 minute free ride. The Storefront for Art and Architecture invites you to re-imagine your city with public bikes for the taking on sidewalk corners. Why not? bike-share programs already exist in many cities in Europe – Barcelona, Stockholm, Olso and Vienna to name a few. If you want to learn more, an exhibit of eight successful bike-share programs is on view at Storefront – 97 Kenmare Street. Get inspired by public presentations of European bike-share program organizers.
Looking for a place to lock up your bike while you do a little shopping perhaps? You may experience the same problem I had when I rode up to the Union Square Greenmarket last Saturday. Bikes were locked to every conceivable piece of street furniture, and not a bike rack in sight. I now know that bike racks need to be requested, through the NYC Department of Transportation website. Only 3,000 have been installed to date, so let our city know where and when you need one (though I think Union Square is obvious!), and it will benefit all.
