Lauren
banner
lpangborn.bsky.social
Lauren
@lpangborn.bsky.social
Product designer
Urbanist and bike advocate in Spokane
Columnist for @rangemedia.co
Pinned
Alright new to the neighborhood.

Here’s some stuff that you might like:

- Spokane bicycle infrastructure project tracker: trello.com/b/eFMhFOsB/u...

- And a map of current and future infrastructure: felt.com/map/2030-Net...
Trello
Organize anything, together. Trello is a collaboration tool that organizes your projects into boards. In one glance, know what's being worked on, who's working on what, and where something is in a pro...
trello.com
Reposted by Lauren
WA's bill to allow housing in commericial zones SB 6026 passed the Senate today 36 -12.

It's a good housing abundance bill that could be even better if it didn't exempt so much land from its provision to make ground floor commercial optional.

lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/202...
February 14, 2026 at 1:19 AM
Reposted by Lauren
HB2095 would strengthen accountability for drivers who hit people biking and walking -- let's get it through the House by emailing your Reps to tell them to Vote Yes! cascade.quorum.us/campaign/155...
February 14, 2026 at 12:14 AM
Reposted by Lauren
By a 41-7 vote, the Washington Senate just directed the state's building code council to adopt updated regulations for elevators in buildings with up to six stories or 24 units, "minimally sized to meet federal accessibility requirements."

The final version:
lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/202...
February 13, 2026 at 10:28 PM
Reposted by Lauren
One of the coolest streets in Manhattan is Stone St. A former road that's been converted into outdoor dining. Pike Place could go this route and provide so much more revenue opportunities for restaurants, and better dining options for patrons.
February 12, 2026 at 9:11 PM
Reposted by Lauren
A bill has passed the House in Washington State to form a technical advisory group to study the issue of scissor stairs app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?...
HB 2228 Washington State Legislature
app.leg.wa.gov
February 12, 2026 at 10:35 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Incredible update: "This article was updated to note that CNN reports there were at least four party balloons shot down by DOD, not just one."

gizmodo.com/one-mexican-...
Mexican Cartel 'Drones' Near El Paso Airspace Were Actually Party Balloons: Report
FAA initially ordered the closure of airspace over El Paso for 10 days before backtracking.
gizmodo.com
February 11, 2026 at 9:48 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Our argument is simple but radical: transportation policy should maximize access, not movement.

For a century, we’ve measured success by car throughput and speed. But that's only a means. The end is connecting people to destinations they value.

We've been measuring, then building, the wrong thing.
February 11, 2026 at 4:42 PM
Oh wow, congress making moves to support single stair and point access blocks
February 10, 2026 at 6:16 AM
Reposted by Lauren
This technology already exists and is widely used. It doesn't involve 'government surveillance' and would not allow ICE or any other government agency to stop individual cars.

Just say you think thousands of kids dying every year is worth it so you can speed!
www.autoweek.com/news/a615322...
Speed Limiters Now Mandatory in All New EU Cars
Intelligent Speed Assist (ISA) isn't an ironclad speeding prevention system, but could be just annoying enough to spark a backlash.
www.autoweek.com
February 9, 2026 at 4:16 PM
I recently attended a meeting where a police officer was advocating *against* a road diet on a road that is very well known for speeding, has seen too many fatalities and serious injuries, and is nigh impossible to cross on foot.

They truly don’t get the concept of self-enforcing design.
In my experience police have no idea how urban design can and should achieve MANY public goals. They don’t even know how to design for safety.
Most Londoners have no idea how involved the cops are in urban design.

The cops said that local gangs were hiding drugs in the flowers, by which they mean there were brown people hanging out there, so a park now looks like this.

Vid www.instagram.com/reel/DUJRDNJ...
February 9, 2026 at 5:57 PM
New housing coming to Spokane

- 40 units in the Perry District (love seeing dense housing in walkable districts)
- 40 units on the west side of downtown (adaptive reuse of vacant buildings!!)
- 19 townhomes on 1 acre near Gonzaga Prep

Let’s goooo

www.spokesman.com/stories/2026...
The Dirt: 40 housing units planned for Perry District
A housing developer has plans to build a four-story apartment building with 40 units of housing in the Perry District north of Grant Elementary School.
www.spokesman.com
February 9, 2026 at 4:19 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Good morning. The President of the United States was in the middle of the most serious child sex trafficking ring of the last quarter century.

He is referenced not a dozen times in the case files. Not 100 times. Not 1,000 times. He’s referenced 38,000 times.
February 8, 2026 at 7:50 PM
Reposted by Lauren
ICE told nurses this Minneapolis man “purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall.”

What actually happened is that they pulled him from a car, beat him so viciously with a steel baton that he had 8 skull fractures, 5 life-threatening brain hemorrhages, and couldn’t remember he had a daughter.
February 7, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Want to know more about journalism co-ops like us? We're featured in this article from @niemanlab.org alongside some of the worker-owned news greats like @defector.com, @hellgatenyc.com, @coyotemedia.org, @sequencermag.bsky.social and @aftermath.site.
Journalism coops seem utopian. What’s it like working in one?
"If I was less self-directed, I'd probably be freaking out."
www.niemanlab.org
February 4, 2026 at 7:45 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Experts say the U.S. needs an additional 2 million to 20 million homes to fix the housing shortfall.

The disparate projections reflect the challenge of quantifying the nation’s housing needs.
Why nobody really knows the scale of the U.S. housing crisis
Experts say the U.S. needs an additional 2 million to 20 million homes to fix the shortfall, underscoring the challenge of meeting the nation’s housing needs.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 4, 2026 at 3:30 PM
Reposted by Lauren
All bike infrastructure is car infrastructure.

If we built cities and places for people, instead of cars driving by, we wouldn't need expensive infrastructure to protect us.
“What sometimes seems like millions being spent on bikes is actually millions being spent to avoid impacts to vehicle traffic.”

Even though I am still learning about bike infrastructure, I say a version of this line to people who complain to me about bike lanes.
My Council Update from last week's meeting: Lakes, Bike Network modifications, a One-HRM Membership for Parks and Rec, and regulating ride share companies. Read it here: samaustin.ca/council-upda...
February 4, 2026 at 3:37 PM
Really good explainer on how building codes hamstring our cities 👇
Very comprehensive Vox article on building code research and reform efforts across the country, fearing John Zeanah’s report for the Center for Building on low-rise multifamily housing and Michael Eriksen’s academic work on building code costs www.vox.com/future-perfe... (gift link)
The hidden double standards driving our housing crisis
Apartments are safer and more affordable than single-family homes. Why do we treat them like a hazard?
www.vox.com
February 4, 2026 at 6:21 PM
ngl car horns should be illegal in Manhattan
February 3, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Also BREAKING: two @spokanepd.bsky.social officers showed up to last week's vigil for Alex Pretti in masks and plain clothes, prompting an apology from Chief Hall. from @aaronhedge.bsky.social and I.

rangemedia.co/spd-masks-he...
Masked SPD officers dismissed from healthcare workers march – RANGE Media
At a demonstration last week to honor Alex Pretti, protesters thought two men were ICE officers. They called the local cops, and the pair turned out to be Spokane police.
rangemedia.co
February 3, 2026 at 2:38 AM
Reposted by Lauren
What kills kids in America:

1. cars
2. guns

Guess what the GOP has worked relentlessly to support for half a century now?
Gov. Landry: "I like to ask Democrats if they like their communities to be dangerous or safe. Do they want their children to be able to walk to school or do they want to worry if they send them on the sidewalks, that unfortunate violent things are going to happen to them?"
January 29, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Thanks to everyone who helped stoke the trans moral panic. The inevitable next chapter has arrived.
They're coming for gay marriage
January 29, 2026 at 5:53 PM
Reposted by Lauren
Example of the critical thinking we need to place crash types and devices into the larger context of traffic safety. The biggest issues on our streets are the biggest things on our streets, period.

#RoadSafety #VisionZero #CrashNotAccident #SafetyOverSpeed #CarCulture #CarBloat #motornormativity
We've spent a ton of time talking about teens getting injured on e-bikes (or illegal e-motos).

We've heard that crash rates are skyrocketing. Marin County Dept of Health even set up a dashboard to see how many e-bike/e-moto crashes are happening.

But how many kids are getting hurt *in cars*?
🧵
January 29, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Reposted by Lauren
There can be some gatekeeping in the cycling community so just remember that when it comes to biking there are only two rules: Wear what you want. Ride what you want and don't let anyone tell you differently

@thebikinglawyer.bsky.social
January 29, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by Lauren
After the Washington House's local government committee unanimously approved a bill legalizing scissor stairs last week, the Senate's housing committee just unanimously approved the companion bill.
app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?...
SB 6001 Washington State Legislature
app.leg.wa.gov
January 28, 2026 at 7:41 PM