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THE GRIMSHAW PODCAST

CITIES OF OPPORTUNITY

Ep. 1
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Visionary American developer Jonathan Rose, author of The Well-Tempered City, offers us his vision for the ‘City of Opportunity’ in the wake of Covid-19 and the practical approach he applies to creating developments which embody that vision. Full of wit and wisdom, Jonathan describes the inclusive values he seeks to promote in the affordable housing communities from The Rose Companies, where good homes are located near to mass transit and close to jobs – often comprising educational and health facilities. One such project is Via Verde, his first collaboration with Grimshaw, on a brownfield site in the Bronx. When it opened, NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg described it as “one of the most environmentally advanced affordable housing developments in the nation”. The famous architectural critic, Michael Kimmelman chose Via Verde as the subject of his front page New York Times debut, writing that the development “makes as good an argument as any new building in the City for the cultural and civic value of architecture”. Jonathan’s enlightening conversation with Tim Williams ends with an excerpt from “Summertime” by Jog Blues, Rose’s excellent band that fuses Jazz, Blues and Indian Classical Music, a rare treat. 

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