In stark contrast to recent laws targeting immigrants in Arizona and Alabama, Baltimore is joining a host of other (largely rust belt) cities in designing policies and programs to attract immigrants in order to stabilize their populations.
Following similar efforts in cities such as Dayton, Detroit, and Chicago, Baltimore is throwing out the welcome mat to immigrants, "in the hope they will encourage friends and family to join them," and reverse decades of population decline, report Carol Morello and Luz Lazo.
"Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (D) has told Latinos, in particular, that
she is counting on them to help Baltimore gain 10,000 families within a
decade," write Morello and Lazo. "As a first step, she signed an order in March prohibiting
police and social agencies from asking anyone about immigration status
- and in the order, she explicitly asked federal immigration
authorities to tell anyone they arrest that they are not agents of the
city."
According to Morello and Lazo, the "tipping point" that drove cities to change their attitudes towards immigrants was the 2010 census. "Most cities that grew had Hispanics
and, to a lesser degree, Asians to thank. Cities with few immigrants
lost political power and federal money as district lines and funding
formulas changed to reflect new census numbers."
Baltimore's pro-immigrant agenda is just one element of the mayor's strategy to increase the city's population. Other elements include, "programs that aim to improve public schools, reduce crime, cut
property taxes and create jobs, increasing the city's appeal to all
residents."
FULL STORY: Baltimore puts out welcome mat for immigrants, hoping to stop population decline
Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary
Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.
Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024
A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.
Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts
From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.
Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding
The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.
Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly
The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.
LA's Top Parks, Ranked
TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.