Governing Magazine
The Personal Cost of Transportation
A new website created by the Center for Neighborhood Technology calculates how much an average household in your neighborhood would spend on transportation, with results for cars and public transit.
Can A City Function on Low Taxes?
Colorado Springs, Colorado has some of the lowest property taxes in the nation, and its heavily right-wing residents like it that way. But with the recession, the lack of tax income is causing some heavy cuts to city services.
Freeways Going Green
Dallas, Texas is building a new park on a deck over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway, a strategy for creating new public spaces that is being tried across the country.
The Island of EVs
Hawaii is an ideal test case for creating an electric car infrastructure because fuel costs are very high and distances are manageable. Charging stations are going up all over the islands with a goal of making it easy to envision driving an EV.
State Fairs Latest Casualty of Budget Cuts
The Michigan State Fair, the oldest state fair in the nation, won't happen this summer. Gov. Jennifer Granholm nixed the state's usual subsidy due to the serious strain on the state's budget.
Southern States Lagging in Energy Efficiency
The South eats up more resources than the rest of the U.S., says reporter Elizabeth Daigneau. With 36% of the U.S. population, the South uses 44% of the nation's energy consumption.
The Risky Business of Airports
Airports are important investments for cities, but are also highly risky because they rely heavily on the whims of the airline business. Alex Marshall looks at how some of the underrepresented airports are coping.
Government Turns to Prize-Sourcing
The Federal government spends almost $137 billion a year on research. A new paper suggests that Federal, state, and local govs would encourage significantly more innovation by holding contests with a cash prize.
Do California's Environmental Regulations Harm Business, or Drive Innovation?
Bill Fulton takes a rational approach to determining whether California's strict environmental regulations are a burdensome expense to business or if they drive them to innovate and succeed.
15% of Cities Vacant or Abandoned
That's according to the National Vacant Properties Campaign. But there is a glimmer of hope as cases of 'temporary urbanism' and 'pop-up stores' fill the void.
Chicago's Privatized Parking Meters: Fiasco, or Success Story?
The City of Chicago, in a much criticized move, recently privatized its parking enforcement. Stephen Goldsmith says the program should be celebrated instead of booed.
Life is a Two-Way Street
Vancouver, Washington's Main St. had languished for years, until city officials turned the street back to two-way traffic. Everyone was surprised at how much difference it made.
A Stoplight With A Countdown
Designer Damjan Stanković has proposed a stoplight with a "progress bar," the same sort of countdown that many walk signals have today. Zach Patton wonders if this is a good idea.
Are States Outdated?
Alan Greenblatt reports on increasing chatter among liberal blogs over whether states as a form of government are obsolete, while regional interests are more valid and under-represented.
Track Your Bus With Mobile Devices
Writer Ellen Perlman heads to Washington, D.C. to use the new "Where's My Bus?" mobile tracking.
A Tale of Two Niagaras
Niagara Falls, NY and Niagara Falls, Ontario are a study in contrasts -- Ontario's a success story of good governance and planning, New York's the complete opposite. Rob Gurwitt has the story.
Quality vs. Time in Transportation
Alex Marshall points out the fallacy of creating transportation policy based solely on figures like miles traveled per hour, average commuting times, and cost per passenger. Quality of the time spent commuting is rarely taken into account.
Urban Farming Made Profitable
An online publisher set out to show that urban farming could be profitable. In her fourth year, she brought in $68k from her half-acre plot in Philadelphia.
Expensive Sewer Drives County to Bankruptcy
In 1993, Jefferson County, Alabama issued $3 billion in bonds to pay for a sewer system that would serve 150,000 people. Today, their financial situation is so bad they've stopped paying creditors and are close to declaring bankruptcy.
The Challenge of Adaptive Reuse
City manager of Phoenix Frank Fairbanks talks about how the city created a program to advise residents on how to effectively and creatively reuse old buildings.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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.
