best_use_principals

Now we go back to the beginnings of my obsession with the Evans School. My first “real job” was at a litigation consulting firm housed no more than a bow shot from the Evans School. I walked past my school all the time. I’ll confess, I stalked the structure.

Long ago when I would set out for “The Koop” to shoot pool with my mates I’d ride out of my way to nurture my fantasy. Yes, far back in the days of my invincible youth I would foolishly ride past that majestic building in a motorcycling act I called “paying homage”. I just wanted to nourish the fire.

Here’s the deal with my first job. I worked on some S & L failures. As a result, I read a lot of appraisals. I know a little something about Highest and Best Use and I am a glorious spreadsheet monkey. I know how to work the figures and I’ve witnessed the working of numbers create two massive social catastrophes in my comparatively short professional lifetime. AND, I am utterly dumbfounded by the fact that, as a collective, society took the S&L failures I got a front row seat for (Episode I, Deregulation Strikes Back) and within about half a generation expanded those failures by two orders of magnitude and unsettled the world. It really was quite the societal effort.

Consequently, when people try to lecture me about Highest and Best Use in absence of any numbers, or worse yet using fake numbers, I get extra special bitter.

  • Style: Extra Special Bitter
  • Liner note: Before my Evans School dreams began my brother envisioned a revitalized building with a spectrum of musical rooms (1 jazz + 1 rock + 1 folk + some n others). I am virtually certain his School of Music came before my mixed use mix-and-match. And, I’m positive-ish my idea is better.
  • Beer tangent: I’d love brew a beer all for me called The Golden Spreadsheet Monkey because IF I called it Excel Kung Fu, THEN I’d probably get sued.