The Sidewalk Ballet Field Guide
The Sidewalk Ballet Field Guide is a growing collection of the people, organizations, projects, books and ideas shaping the way we think about cities. It begins with the conversations on the podcast, but extends beyond them—connecting the people doing the work, the places where it’s happening, and the ideas worth carrying forward. Think of it as part reference library, part trail of breadcrumbs: a way to follow the ongoing conversation about cities wherever it leads.
Explore the Field Guide by type, browse alphabetically or by date, or search for something specific. Use the tags to follow connections between people, places, projects, ideas and conversations.
Ice Cream Tour of California
Don Lane’s month-long celebration of ice cream, small pleasures, and the places that create them. During July 2026, he traveled across California visiting nearly 100 independent ice cream shops—not to rank them, but to celebrate everyday sources of joy in communities across the state.
Don Lane
Don Lane is a longtime Santa Cruz civic leader, educator, and advocate whose work spans downtown recovery, housing and homelessness, local government, and community development. A three-time mayor, his decades of public service reflect the unusually interconnected nature of civic life in Santa Cruz.