Brer Marsh
@brerbear.bsky.social
California Knucklehead Architect - AIA -
The bicycle, the bicycle surely, should always be the vehicle of architects. It is the city hack that opens the door to great ideas.
🚲❤️
The bicycle, the bicycle surely, should always be the vehicle of architects. It is the city hack that opens the door to great ideas.
🚲❤️
Infrastructure can be iconic and when it is no longer useful we can choose to keep it as a reminder of how far we have come and how our city has changed.
Exhibit A: Our very own North Park Water Tower
Exhibit A: Our very own North Park Water Tower
December 7, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Infrastructure can be iconic and when it is no longer useful we can choose to keep it as a reminder of how far we have come and how our city has changed.
Exhibit A: Our very own North Park Water Tower
Exhibit A: Our very own North Park Water Tower
… meanwhile, in other rooms
December 6, 2025 at 8:00 PM
… meanwhile, in other rooms
Primed and ready for flat white ceiling paint.
December 6, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Primed and ready for flat white ceiling paint.
Struggled with the finishing as it set up faster than expected. Some light filling later will be all I can do.
November 29, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Struggled with the finishing as it set up faster than expected. Some light filling later will be all I can do.
Bonding coat on. Will be applying the finish coat in a bit.
November 28, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Bonding coat on. Will be applying the finish coat in a bit.
It’s a bike rack, not a Julian Opie. Here’s a concept photo from FB. You can see the intent is a long bike rack with some seating attached at the end. What they installed was a smaller version.
November 28, 2025 at 3:53 AM
It’s a bike rack, not a Julian Opie. Here’s a concept photo from FB. You can see the intent is a long bike rack with some seating attached at the end. What they installed was a smaller version.
When you look at these benches does your brain automatically assess their functionality and label them hostile? If so, you have been trained to see this object through a specific political lens. The politics of seating is much more complex than that.
November 27, 2025 at 6:21 PM
When you look at these benches does your brain automatically assess their functionality and label them hostile? If so, you have been trained to see this object through a specific political lens. The politics of seating is much more complex than that.
I managed to get the cracks fixed and hole patched in the evening after work. Coming home and working late to get things prepped for the weekend is the only way to get things done sometimes.
November 12, 2025 at 8:15 PM
I managed to get the cracks fixed and hole patched in the evening after work. Coming home and working late to get things prepped for the weekend is the only way to get things done sometimes.
Smokestacks are cool when they aren't billowing smoke. If its not hurting anyone why not let it remain as a monument? It wouldn't be the first time its happened. We might find a productive way to rehabilitate it as something else, like housing.
November 11, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Smokestacks are cool when they aren't billowing smoke. If its not hurting anyone why not let it remain as a monument? It wouldn't be the first time its happened. We might find a productive way to rehabilitate it as something else, like housing.
Anchoring plaster doesn’t always go perfectly. Lost a section that was loose but it’s for the better as the fill will be new and firmly attached.
November 10, 2025 at 2:33 AM
Anchoring plaster doesn’t always go perfectly. Lost a section that was loose but it’s for the better as the fill will be new and firmly attached.
First step of stripping the ceiling is done after three days and hand chipping and scraping. Where the top coat wouldn’t separate I used a 2” carbide scraper to remove old texture and smooth the surface. Three basic tools to do this.
November 9, 2025 at 6:33 PM
First step of stripping the ceiling is done after three days and hand chipping and scraping. Where the top coat wouldn’t separate I used a 2” carbide scraper to remove old texture and smooth the surface. Three basic tools to do this.
Another ceiling underway. First, remove the bad skim coat back to the brown coat, then start the repairs.
November 2, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Another ceiling underway. First, remove the bad skim coat back to the brown coat, then start the repairs.
Whether or not they stay submissive is to be seen and experienced. Some robo-taxis have already been reported as behaving more aggressively toward pedestrians.
archive.is/2024.12.30-1...
archive.is/2024.12.30-1...
October 21, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Whether or not they stay submissive is to be seen and experienced. Some robo-taxis have already been reported as behaving more aggressively toward pedestrians.
archive.is/2024.12.30-1...
archive.is/2024.12.30-1...
City staff will be accepting input until Sept. 15th, 2025 and I hope people will support the parking fees as it will help provide much needed funds for the park while discouraging gratuitous car trips in the neighborhood. Traffic and pollution cause by park visitor can be a lot for Uptown.
September 5, 2025 at 12:02 AM
City staff will be accepting input until Sept. 15th, 2025 and I hope people will support the parking fees as it will help provide much needed funds for the park while discouraging gratuitous car trips in the neighborhood. Traffic and pollution cause by park visitor can be a lot for Uptown.
Of interest to me and every Uptown cyclist who tuned in to the Park Blvd hearings is the table showing parking space availability and average occupancy of named lots. The average for Balboa Drive of 52% is incorrect, I have months of data on this. Balboa Drive official parking count is 408 spaces.
September 4, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Of interest to me and every Uptown cyclist who tuned in to the Park Blvd hearings is the table showing parking space availability and average occupancy of named lots. The average for Balboa Drive of 52% is incorrect, I have months of data on this. Balboa Drive official parking count is 408 spaces.
looks like they built more parking. Lol.
August 27, 2025 at 7:43 PM
looks like they built more parking. Lol.
In the case of the Santa Monica/ Venice boardwalk, one more lane did in fact fix it bro.
August 27, 2025 at 3:11 PM
In the case of the Santa Monica/ Venice boardwalk, one more lane did in fact fix it bro.
I've pointed this out before, and I think its an idea that deserves expansion into more spaces, but two standard size lanes will be needed for properly functioning mobility lanes in the near future. Some places need them now to accommodate differing speeds and vehicles like E-delivery.
August 27, 2025 at 3:05 PM
I've pointed this out before, and I think its an idea that deserves expansion into more spaces, but two standard size lanes will be needed for properly functioning mobility lanes in the near future. Some places need them now to accommodate differing speeds and vehicles like E-delivery.
Revisions to the code are almost always to address known problems. The fact that so many lots in this area are non-conforming (less than 20,000sf) is a problem. I would call it a practical solution to a problem for many residents.
August 25, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Revisions to the code are almost always to address known problems. The fact that so many lots in this area are non-conforming (less than 20,000sf) is a problem. I would call it a practical solution to a problem for many residents.
This is the site at Klauber Ave. The zoning in this area has a min. lot size of 20,000sf, which can easily be observed in this image as not true for many properties. Non-conforming lots predominate complicating the permit and redevelopment process for many homeowners.
August 25, 2025 at 6:38 PM
This is the site at Klauber Ave. The zoning in this area has a min. lot size of 20,000sf, which can easily be observed in this image as not true for many properties. Non-conforming lots predominate complicating the permit and redevelopment process for many homeowners.
Chollas Valley Community Planning Group has filed a lawsuit against the City of San Diego over approval of a lot split from (4) large lots into (25) smaller SF Lots.
August 25, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Chollas Valley Community Planning Group has filed a lawsuit against the City of San Diego over approval of a lot split from (4) large lots into (25) smaller SF Lots.
The solution is expand bike infrastructure to accommodate both fast and slow movers. We already have these types of bike lanes on popular hill climbs in San Diego.
August 17, 2025 at 3:56 PM
The solution is expand bike infrastructure to accommodate both fast and slow movers. We already have these types of bike lanes on popular hill climbs in San Diego.