David Bickford
banner
exit2lef.bsky.social
David Bickford
@exit2lef.bsky.social
Urban advocate, slow cyclist, desert hiker, and amateur epicurean.

Author, PHX Rail Food
https://phxrailfood.com

President, Phoenix Spokes People
https://phoenixspokespeople.org

Located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Personal account for personal opinions.
Most fans of short form video, especially vertical video, are more interested in "vibes" than information.
December 5, 2025 at 12:27 PM
"Dead" is a relative term. I lived in Providence in the '80s when everyone called it that. When I returned earlier this year, I couldn't believe how much more vibrant Downtown is now compared to then.
December 2, 2025 at 6:15 PM
The location is not ideal under current circumstances, but the land is ripe for redevelopment, near areas with favorable demographics, and along a proposed streetcar line. Having the venue there might help catalyze much needed redevelopment and investment in a formerly busy area.
November 29, 2025 at 4:51 AM
The colors are different, but otherwise the team’s new logo isn’t much different than the actual transit agency’s.
November 27, 2025 at 8:54 AM
Given the quality of AI customer support I've experienced, never.
November 27, 2025 at 1:13 AM
The Camelback one is lovely, but the city had to put a fence in the middle of the street to force mid-block crossers to use it. Some activation might make pedestrians more naturally drawn towards it.
November 19, 2025 at 12:05 AM
If totally car-free, I'd rather live in a downtown Phoenix or Tempe high-rise with amenities like a grocery and drug store nearby.

My biggest concern, though, is excessive hype. If Culdesac fails, naysayers will use that as an excuse to oppose incremental measures like reduced parking requirements.
November 15, 2025 at 8:32 PM
It’s even more complicated than that. In American English, periods and comma always go inside quotation marks. With question marks and exclamation points, it depends on whether they are part of the quotation.
November 11, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Even at its much ballyhooed car-free development in Tempe, Culdesac has a fair amount of land devoted to surface parking for its retail tenants.
September 11, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Local resort restaurants used to be both upscale and distinctive. Over the past decade or two, many of the best have become standardized steakhouses.
September 5, 2025 at 5:12 AM
Never been there, but I promise to look down upon the place both literally and figuratively next time I hike Pinnacle Peak.
September 5, 2025 at 12:41 AM
It’s amazingly hard to find Spanish restaurants even where they do exist. Both Google Maps and Yelp seem to think that “Spanish food” = food from any Spanish-speaking country, yielding unhelpful listings of Mexican, Peruvian, Salvadoran, etc. restaurants.

Which place transformed into a steakhouse?
September 5, 2025 at 12:19 AM
I remember traveling with coworkers before smartphones. I asked for confirmation numbers and opened a browser tab for each so I could check us all in at exactly 24 hours before the flight. A colleague told me I was taking things too seriously but was happy to avoid the B boarding pass walk of shame.
August 29, 2025 at 5:12 PM
The creator seems to have adopted a definition of “skyscraper” more strict than the typical layperson would use. Phoenix has plenty of high-rises in its Downtown and Midtown areas, but nothing that meets the 500-foot standard he is using.
August 22, 2025 at 4:08 AM