Elections
Candidates Take Stance on Urban Issues
2 November 2008 - 7:00am
City Limits
City Limits breaks down the differences between the two presidential candidates with a focus on urban issues.
Is L.A. Willing To Pay For Safe Trains?
16 September 2008 - 1:00pm
California Planning and Development Report
Although it is a public transit success, Metrolink was cobbled together with old freight rail lines. It was a relatively cheap and quick way of providing rail service, but its drawbacks have become obvious.
McCain, Obama, and urbanism
14 September 2008 - 11:15pm
The battle for the White House has reached my inbox, as even listservs about urbanism crackle with endorsements and denunciations of Obama, McCain, Palin, etc.
But all of this frenzied activity assumes that what a President says or thinks is particularly relevant to urban issues. But this need not be so. The policy areas most relevant to sprawl and urbanism, land use and transportation, are not likely to be directly affected by the results of the presidential election.
In particular, zoning and similar land use issues are generally addressed by state and local governments. Even the most pro-urban president is unlikely to take on anti-infill NIMBYism (1), make strip malls more walkable. or make streets narrower.
Term Limits Affecting Long-Range City Planning
11 September 2008 - 8:00am
New York Times
Elected city officials in dozens of cities want to overturn term limits, saying current ones keep them from being able to tackle long-range projects.
Density Creates Democrats
8 July 2008 - 1:00pm
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe says that when suburbs become denser, 'Democrats promising mass transit become more appealing than Republicans promising to protect gun ownership.'
California Voters Show Support for Redevelopment
4 June 2008 - 12:00pm
California Planning & Development Report
Election Day provided a big boost for proponents of redevelopment in California. A statewide measure to restrict use of eminent domain lost badly, while voters in San Francisco and Napa County showed support for redevelopment projects.
Infrastructure Needs to be a Major Election Issue
16 May 2008 - 6:00am
Scholars & Rogues
None of the major presidential candidates are paying enough attention to the nation's deteriorating infrastructure, according to this article.
