The Columbian

Universities across the country are reviving their connections to their host cities, participating in urban renewal projects and investing in their cities' futures.

Housing affordability is becoming a major issue in Washington, where workers increasingly have to "drive to qualify".

In a fact-finding mission to see if the technology is right for their city, officials from Vancouver, Washington, will hop over the state line to Portland to try out the city's streetcar system.

Citizens and homeowners in Washington have teamed up against a number of proposed housing developments that would replace more than 100 acres of open space and wetlands.

Facing a transportation funding shortage, a county supervisor in Washington has proposed letting some roadways get more crowded and congested to save the money that would have been spent to improve them -- money the county doesn't have.

Planners in Eugene, Oregon, have nixed plans for light rail in favor of a bus rapid transit system. However, they say the system's dedicated lanes could be converted into light rail routes in the future if the population increases enough.

The Columbian profiles Clark County Community Development director Richard Carson about his 'contrarian' perspectives on planning.

The residents of Portland, Oregon are moving across the Columbia River to Washington for a better planned quality of life.