Housing
Climate, Housing and Health: A Tripartite Challenge for the Poor
Recent weather related news usually includes mounting death tolls, as typhoons, hurricanes and other natural disasters devastate populations. The intensity and frequency of, and damage inflicted by, these natural occurrences are directly related to climate change, and sadly, those most vulnerable are also the least prepared. The shift in climate has severely impacted life in informal settlements (slums), not the least of which is the already inadequate state of health.
The Solution for Homelessness? Homes.
Neal Peirce says that there is finally light at the end of the tunnel in the debate over homelessness, and a consensus that stopgaps don't work. The real answer is to, duh, give them homes.
Citiwire.net
Boom in Utah Town
Growth is at a standstill in most western boomtowns, but not in well-planned, thriving South Jordan, UT. An expedited permitting process and good planning are given credit as catalysts for growth.
Desert News
Vancouver Seeks to Avoid Tragedy, Make Shelters More Practical
Homeless people may avoid seeking help or services because there is a lack of space secure their belongings in shelters. The death of a homeless woman in Vancouver last winter highlights the severity of the problem.
The Globe and Mail
Seattle Approves Backyard Cottages
The Seattle City Council has unanimously approved an ordinance that will allow owners of single family homes to construct additional cottage-like housing units on their property.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Housing is Recovering - Will It Last?
Business Week looks at the recovering housing market, and believes that even though it was driven by massive government support there are signs that it might actually continue.
Business Week
One Drug Hotel at a Time
British Columbia has converted nearly two dozen formerly notorious hotels into housing for the homeless.
The Tyee
Coalition Promises $4 Billion to Green Affordable Housing
A collection of non-profits working with HUD is promising to spend $4 billion on updating affordable housing across the country to be more sustainable.
Grist
Portable, Stackable Housing Units
GOOD Magazine highlights designer Michael McDaniel's Reaction Housing System, a temporary shelter that can be stacked up and loaded onto a flatbed 20 at a time.
GOOD Magazine
Residential Construction Declines Sharply in New York City
2009 is expected to turn out as a bad year for residential constructoin in New York City. After five consecutive years with more than 30,000 units constructed, at total of 6,300 are expected this year.
The New York Times
Human Rights Violations in NY's Affordable Housing?
The United Nations has appointed a special envoy to evaluate whether lack of access to affordable housing in New York is so bad it violates basic human rights.
The New York Times
Cohousing Catches On
Cohousing, which is cooperatively-managed but independently-owned housing, is gaining popularity in the Northwest. A new cohousing project in Portland just opened its doors last weekend.
Northwest Hub
Foreclosed Homeowners Turning to Homeless Shelters
A new report shows a dramatic trend in homelessness: increasing numbers of former homeowners left with nowhere to live after foreclosure are turning to homeless shelters.
The New York Times
Testing Grounds
Housing development, architecture and community building have found a new learning lab in the lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans.
The Atlantic
From Foreclosure to Green TOD in Phoenix
Foreclosed homes in Phoenix are a new goldmine for one developer, who is buying up land near the city's mass transit lines and marketing properties as transit oriented development.
NPR
Bloomberg's Housing Plan Gains, Loses
Despite the NYC Mayor's progress in preserving or creating affordable housing, overall the city has seen net losses.
The New York Times
To Save Water, Developers Ditch Lawns
Developers of Sterling Ranch, a proposed master-planned community in Colorado, want its future residents to curb their water use. One way they're ensuring this is by nixing traditional, lush lawns from their plans.
The Wall Street Journal
Halfway Towards Ending Homelessness in Portland
Portland, Oregon is half-way through its ten-year plan to address homelessness. The city's seen improvements, but many challenges lie ahead, according to this report.
Oregon Public Broadcasting
Study Shows Shelter Reduces Costs
A four-year study by United Way of Greater Los Angeles has shown that stable housing provides benefits to taxpayers as well as the homeless.
Los Angeles Times
Contribute
- Walkscore to Get Bus Points
- Finding A Sustainabe Path for Jakarta
- Isn't This How We Got Into This Mess in the First Place?
- Simulating Mount Rushmore
- Talking 'Bout a RailVolution
- The Solution for Homelessness? Homes.
- The History of the Parking Lot
- The Most Polluted Metro Areas in America
- 'No Credits, Just Prerequisites'
- Center for Developmentally Disabled Doesn't Fit Zoning - Any Zoning
Fleeting Design -- Scott Page
Public Options in Transit and Health Care -- Michael Lewyn
Let Me Clear My Throat -- Ian Sacs
Don't Bogart That Joint, My Friend -- Dwight Merriam
Healthy, Wealthy and Wise Transportation Policy -- Todd Litman
D.C. Area Professional Development Courses Offered in Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability– Last Chance to Register!
Planning Academy at Virginia Tech, VT National Capital Region campus in Alexandria, VA
Nov 05, 2009
Step Up Your Site Analysis with Planetizen's Advanced Google Earth Webinar
Planetizen
Nov 04, 2009
Managing Growth With Priority Funding Areas: A Good Idea Whose Time Has Yet to Come
Routledge
Nov 04, 2009
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