Bloomberg News

The Unified New Orleans Plan was supposed to unite seven separate, and often competing, official Hurricane Katrina rebuilding plans. But it has not been able to sidestep the controversial need to align the physical city to its shrunken population.

World's tallest skyscrapers tend to top out just as economic growth cycles end. With megatowers in Taipei, Shanghai, and Dubai are nearing completion, will the "skyscraper curse" kick in yet again?

Many historic architectural details -- shutters, for example -- work because they were honed by time and experience. Why do so many architects and developers ignore these simple and elegant architectural details?