A few words about the whys and wherefores of the intersection of building and planning, with a side comparison of buildings and eating utensils.  The two (uh, building and planning, not building and forks) should be a lot more similar than they are to many designers.  Here's also what that approach means in the instance of a particular Texas A&M component campus.

San Antonio's Brackenridge Park reflects the character and history of one of the state's oldest large cities. The park is embedded in the fabric of the city, but more than that, the park itself has shaped the development of the city around it. This ongoing project, the first phase of which was completed while the author was at Ford, Powell & Carson, is of critical importance to the city.

One of Work5hop's specializations is master planning. Many of the things that designers do are easily comprehensible -- architecture, interior design, and a host of related fields are well understood.  Master planning, however, isn't.  That's unfortunate, because master planning is the step most critical to the success of building projects and how they relate to larger goals.  This is true for a project as small as home renovation and as large as a university campus.  My perspective on master planning relates directly to the belief that what you build should be translated directly from those larger goals.  Read on for details.

If you live in or have visited San Antonio, you've probably heard about the acequias.  Ever wonder where they were?  On a visit to the Alamo, have you ever wanted to know where the historic limits of the mission were?  Did you know that San Antonio had 90 ( ninety! ) miles of streetcar lines in the late 1920s? Context is an important thing, and San Antonio has more of it than any other city in Texas.  Learn more about what was there by exploring this map, which overlays historical features on a modern map.

Maybe you've read our articles on right-sizing your house, renovating a historic property, or table design and thought to yourself "these guys sound like they know what they're talking about.  I want them to work on my [fill in the blank]."  Well, great.  We're in.  Please contact us.  But if you have questions about the design and construction process, then this series of articles is for you.  We're going to walk through the process of hiring a designer, designing your project, hiring and working with a contractor, and completion.

San Antonio has seen significant increases in property values over the past three years.  That affects more than just your property tax: public policy adapts as well to address the changes in actual versus perceived land value.  But dollars are only half of the equation for public entities.  Just as important are how we want our city to develop and the kinds of places we want to create here.  As a city, we should make decisions about public land which take quality of life into consideration, not just money.  Read on for more thoughts.

Flasher Equipment Company is one of the largest landholders in Tobin Hill, and their property is the linchpin to the next phase of changes coming to one of the city's rockstar urban redevelopment precincts.  As their property changes hands -- and character -- what should happen to make the most of it from an urban planning perspective?

We believe that it's best to think about cities, and how they are run, as a means of improving the quality of life of all of the people who live in them.  This analysis examines questions of density and financial sustainability and how they relate to the choices that we make about cities, drawing the perhaps counterintuitive -- but supported by data -- conclusion that developments that are more dense and on smaller lots are the best performers from a financial perspective.

We have worked for several years both for and alongside the Christian Assistance Ministry (CAM), a San Antonio nonprofit which provides support to those in need or facing crisis.  They particularly focus on providing a safety net for vulnerable and at-risk populations.  Read on to learn about our work for CAM and on improving McCullough Avenue.

Work5hop recently completed a comprehensive master plan update for Texas A&M University at Galveston (TAMUG) which demonstrated a new collaboration-focused vision for the campus. We thought this might be a good opportunity to talk a bit about how good planning can relate on a deep level to how a university operates: who lives, studies, and works there, and how the campus shapes experiences.

Brackenridge Park is in the news a lot these days -- we're working on its first new master plan in over 30 years, the Brackenridge Park Conservancy is starting to gain steam, and there's a bond election coming up that could fund some transformative projects in the park.  In spite of that, many people don't really know much about the city's most popular park.  So here are some facts and figures that you might find surprising.