A developer's look at Adaptive Reuse of old buildings

The last post was some insane BMX riding in an adaptive reuse project of a swimming pool that was closing in London.  This post is a great interview on the Commercial Real Estate Show where Michael Bull interviews developer David Cochran of Paces Properties in Atlanta, on the ins and outs of actually putting old buildings to new uses.  Now, if we can get developers like this working with action sports people....  some really cool things could happen. 

Ten great examples of Adaptive Re-use of abandoned buildings

Looking for examples of old, abandoned buildings that have been re-purposed successfully, I came across this article on Urban Ghosts of 10 great examples of "adaptive re-use" of old buildings from around the world.   With thousands of abandoned buildings of all types standing in the U.S., and hundreds, probably thousands more struggling, we need lots of people doing projects like there where possible.

My Absolute Favorite Re-Use of an Old Building: Ray's MTB

Here's one of many clips of someone riding their mountain bike at Ray's MTB in Cleveland.  The story goes something like this.  In 2004, Cleveland area carpenter and mountain bike rider Ray Petro decided he was sick of not being able to ride his bike during the tough Cleveland winters.  So he rented a chunk of an old, abandoned factory, and built weird little wooden tracks and ladder trails to hone his mountain bike skills during the winter.  Lots of other riders thought that was a great idea, and paid to ride there as well.  For those who don't know, "MTB" stands for MounTain Bikes.

Here's a look a Ray's MTB in 2007: Pabst Video Zine #1

The park is open during the six colder months, in the old factory shown in the beginning of that video zine clip.  Last I heard the park is now 92,000 square feet, highly successful, and they rebuild it every summer to keep it fresh.  Here's a bunch more clips from over the years.
My favorite "Odd Couple" Clip  (Pro riders doing things not allowed normally)
 Ray's in March 2008
Women's Weekend at Ray's- February 2009
Riders from Columbia Missouri- Spring Break Trip 2010
Ray's MTB Cleveland 2011
Ray's MTB Milwaukee 2011  It has since closed due to issues with the building owner.
Ray's MTB 2012
Ray's Cross Country Loop in 2013
Ray's MTB 2015
Ray's Old Fools Jam 2017

If you're an old school BMXer, watch that last clip.  If you're an urban planner, commercial real estate agent, mayor or city council person, search "Ray's MTB" on You Tube.  Ray's is profitably using a huge old space, there are people from around the country who actually travel there just to ride Ray's, AND there are dozens and dozens of You Tube videos by everyday people from Ray's.  In addition to showing off their riding and promoting Ray's MTB, all those videos are promoting CLEVELAND.  Think about that.

Urban Exploring is a Thing Now

NSFW.  If you're under 30 or so, then you know this.  But you older folks checking this out might not realize "urban exploring" (or UE) is a thing now, and has been for quite a while.  People have been exploring abandoned places for centuries, there's nothing new about that.  We're all familiar with photos of Roman, Mayan, and other ruins.  But now people, LOTS of people, are going out on little expeditions to explore paces that have been abandoned in our lifetimes, and many in very recent years. 

As a BMX freestyler from the mid 80's, and occasional skateboarder and longtime video guy, I've been exploring urban places much of my life.  I can remember sneaking into an abandoned (and supposedly haunted) house when I was 10 in Ohio.  Abandoned houses were a novelty back then in the thriving industrial economy.  Now one of the factories my dad took me in as a kid is rotting like the place in this video.  Huge chunks of big cities are in decay for a variety of reasons.  The bad part is, there's a lot more to come. 

This blog is about trying to find legitimate uses (not meth labs, crack houses, or homeless toilets) for all the buildings that still have a chance out there.  I'm going to look into the reasons why places wind up abandoned, delve into the economy and see what the future looks like, and scour the web and other sources for the people putting old buildings to good use.  If any of this interests you, hop on, it should be an interesting ride. 

The 12 Worst Places To Live in the U.S.

According to Destination Tips You Tube channel, these are the worst places to live in the U.S..  Apparently these people have never lived in a really boring small town like the ones I grew up in. 

Abandoned Military Bases Montage

I lived in Orange County, California (just south of L.A.) in the 1990's when the Tustin Marine helicopter base and El Toro Marine air station were closed.  Those are just a couple of dozens of bases closed, and in some cases completely abandoned over the years.  This clip shows a montage of other bases left to decay.

The Large U.S. Cities That Have Lost huge Chunks of Their Population

Here's the Big American Cities with the largest population declines from 1950 to 2010.  This one hits home for me, because I grew up moving around Ohio as a kid, and actually lived in Cincinnati when I was about four.  It was a time when the factories were booming, most women were stay-at-home moms, and a single paycheck family could buy a house fairly easily if they handled their money well.  This is the ruins of the world I grew up in, the fading remnants of the Industrial Age that most of our current political and business leaders (aka The Old White Men running the show) are trying to recreate.  Sorry guys, it's not coming back.  But there are a ton of hardworking, tech savvy, younger people out there with big ideas looking for a place to set up shop. 

Medium Sized U.S. Cities in Serious Decline

From the same You Tube channel as the last post, here are ten  mid-sized American cities that have lost huge chunks of their population.

Modern Small Ghost Towns of the United States

The Industrial Age of the Untied States has withered away into a new age dominated by ideas rather than building physical objects for consumption.  Some small towns have lost some factories, businesses, and people.  The towns above have lost most of their population for a variety or reasons.  We have a glut of abandoned buildings in the U.S. these days.  Some a slowly crumbling into ruins and will never see a viable purpose again.  But there are thousands of old buildings that may be able to find a new life.  That's what this blog is about, looking for ways to re-purpose old buildings, form creative scenes, and create much needed good jobs and businesses in the withering areas of the country.