Arizona

The Benefits of Creating Hybrid Zoning Codes

Roger E. Eastman recounts the process and product of a recent effort by Flagstaff, Arizona to replace an outdated zoning code with an innovative hybrid of form-based and Euclidean elements.

12 February 2012 - 1:00pm

Planning

The Challenges of Building A House on Mars

Because of the relative motions of Earth and Mars, the pioneering astronauts who touch down on the Red Planet will remain there for a year and a half. For this reason, NASA has already started experimenting with a habitat fit for life on Mars.

9 January 2012 - 7:00am

Txchnologist

Shrinkage in Phoenix? Call it 'Smart Decline'

Shrinkage -- the term long associated with rust belt cities like Detroit and Cleveland that saw their heydays 60 years ago and have been in decline since -- is now being applied to Phoenix and other fast-growing areas of the Southwest and Sun Belt.

29 December 2011 - 7:00am

National Public Radio - Morning Edition

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4 comments

Sustainability and Affordability Don't Always Go Hand in Hand

Op-ed columnist Andrew Ross notes that while some progressive cities are being lauded for sustainable, green design, most American cities struggle to achieve sustainable results that are available to all residents.

8 November 2011 - 8:00am

The New York Times

The Fizzled Vision for a "Megapolitan" Sun Belt

Only 7 short years ago, planners in the Phoenix/Tuscon area were envisioning a region of 10 million people. Today they're scaling back the predictions, but still have hope for a recovery.

25 October 2011 - 2:00pm

The Arizona Daily Star

Parkspace Brings Neighborhood Feel to Downtown Phoenix

A new public park in downtown Phoenix is both a venue for artists and performers and a public space that calls to mind a small neighborhood park, according to this piece from Next American City.

21 July 2011 - 7:00am

Next American City

Cities See Mixed Returns on Spring Training Investments

While some cities in Florida have shelled out big money to build baseball stadia for professional teams' spring training, many of those teams are moving their spring programs to other cities, raising concerns about the wisdom of those investments.

22 March 2011 - 10:00am

Governing

Ancient Canals Offer Water Solution for Desert City

The ancient irrigation networks lying below Phoenix could offer a solution to the sprawling desert city's water problems.

13 March 2011 - 7:00am

Archaeology

A Night At Arcosanti

George Haugh describes his visit to Arcosanti in the summer of 2010. A town conceived, designed and built by the charismatic Italian architect Paolo Soleri in Arizona. It is the largest example of Arcology in practice: Soleri's theory of miniaturized and complex human environments designed to utilize the surrounding ecology for building materials while simultaneously minimizing human impact upon them.

17 January 2011 - 10:00am

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Cattle vs. Subdivisions

Arizona's long-standing open range laws allow cattle to roam freely, but the state is now reconsidering the laws as residents of the West's suburban subdivisions are growing more frustrated by encounters with roaming cattle.

12 October 2010 - 1:00pm

New York Times

The Visions of Paolo Soleri: Dimmed, But Still Hanging in There

In 1970, visionary architect Paolo Solieri began envisioned a utopian city in Arizona. The resulting development, Arcosanti, and its architect have struggled for relevancy ever since.

7 September 2010 - 2:00pm

The Arizona Republic

Immigrants Leaving Phoenix Before New Laws, Leave Empty Communities Behind

July 29th is the day Arizona's new tough illegal immigration law goes into effect. As immigrants flee the state in fear of being arrested, neighborhoods are emptying and small businesses are feeling the lack of customers.

28 July 2010 - 9:00am

The Los Angeles Times

Save the Soleri Amphitheater

Officials in Santa Fe have announced plans to demolish an amphitheater designed by architect Paolo Soleri, the visionary behind the as-yet-unfinished Arcosanti project. David Licata says it deserves to be saved.

5 July 2010 - 5:00am

Funding Permanent Housing for the Homeless in Tempe

Officials in Tempe, Arizona and Maricopa County are using federal stimulus money to help end chronic homelessness by providing permanent housing options.

20 June 2010 - 9:00am

The Arizona Republic

A Paolo Soleri Structure In Danger

Urban designer Paolo Soleri - best known for his utopian experiment Arcosanti - also designed an open air theater for the Santa Fe Indian School. The campus wants to demolish it, but preservationists are up in arms.

18 June 2010 - 6:00am

The Architect's Newspaper

Building Boom In Land Of Foreclosures

It seems inconceivable - building new homes next to new, vacant homes, but with depressed prices for land and labor a new market for home-buyers who missed out on foreclosure sales has developed in states hit worst by the housing crisis.

17 May 2010 - 1:00pm

The New York Times - Business Day

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1 comment

Transit Officials Broaden Vision for Phoenix Light Rail

Changing demographics and transit demands in the Phoenix area are causing transit planners to rethink where the region's light rail system should expand.

20 April 2010 - 9:00am

The Arizona Republic

Immigrants Remain Uneasy About Census

Illegal immigrants in Arizona are wary about the Census, and are planning to avoid enumerators. But other illegal immigrants without the right to vote see the count as their only option for having a positive impact on their communities.

31 March 2010 - 1:00pm

NPR

Deciding Which Homeowners To Bail Out

The Feds have $1.5 billion to help homeowners at risk of losing homes to foreclosure. Deciding just which homeowners to help is no easy task. This article looks at the decision-making process in Arizona, one of the five states receiving federal aid.

24 March 2010 - 5:00am

The New York Times - Business