Community / Economic Development
Toyota's Move from Torrance to Texas: California's Wake-Up Call?*
Toyota's April 30th announcement that it would take its headquarters from Torrance to Plano, Texas is proof-positive that California's high regulatory, high tax, and high cost of living environment is unfriendly to business. Or is it?
APA Poll Finds Millennials and Boomers 'Investing in Place'
During the American Planning Association's (APA) 2014 National Planning Conference in Atlanta, the APA announced findings from a national opinion survey that shows a clear interest in place-making among the concerns of Americans of all ages.
Report: Beware the 'Race to the Bottom' of Film Tax Credits
The California Legislative Analyst's Office released a report, "Film and Television Production: Overview of Motion Picture Industry and State Tax Credits," which recommends caution by lawmakers considering an extension of the state's tax credit.
Is the Sharing Economy Succeeding Because the Real Economy is Struggling?
Money, not trust, is the driving force behind the willingness of so many people to open their doors to the sharing economy, according to one writer.
The Texas Miracle: Looking Beyond the Impressive Growth Numbers
Texas is booming—its growth in people and jobs puts it in a league of its own. But another set of growth data pales by comparison: Infrastructure, particularly in the water and transportation needed to accommodate the growth, is woefully lacking.
Ecocity versus Duplicity
If certain elements of masterplanning are not carefully chosen—and their impacts not carefully explained to final decision makers—then there runs great risk that the cities we design from scratch perform worse than the cities we already have.
Should Urbanists Care Which Airline They Fly? These Two Programs Say Yes
Los Angeles County Planner Clement Lau examines how airline companies and other private sector businesses can help with the greening of communities.
Engage; Don’t Rage: Use a Design Charrette to Negotiate Your Next Development Proposal
Despite the investments required of a design charrette, Robert Freedman makes the case that the process can save time and money on complex projects by way of three primary benefits.
Dallas Working to Streamline Approval Process for Sidewalk Cafés
A City Council committee got its first look at a proposed revision of the streetscape licensing process by which restaurants and cafés can acquire sidewalk seating. Councilmembers sent the plan back the drawing board again.
Alleyways as Pathways to Urban Revitalization
From D.C. to Seattle, alleys are being reinvented as people-friendly spaces. Often perceived as dirty and dangerous, alleys are moving beyond garbage and garages to become havens for pedestrians, public art, and small business.
Pitching a Queens-Brooklyn Streetcar
Michael Kimmelman resurrects an old plan by Alex Garvin to build a light rail connection between the waterfront neighborhoods of Queens and Brooklyn, except Kimmelman would build a streetcar line.
Strengthening the Bond between People and Placemaking
A research team at MIT Urban Studies and Planning, led by Susan Silberberg, released a paper examining “the interactions between placemaking, community participation, and the expanding ways communities are collaborating to make great public places.”
Questioning Hotel Tax Subsidies in Los Angeles
Desperate to build hotel capacity in the neighborhood surrounding the Los Angeles Convention Center, the city has granted hundreds of millions in tax breaks to hotel developers. Some are asking the city to rethink the subsidies.
Which Way, Dallas?
Architecture critic Mark Lamster describes Dallas as a city at a defining moment in its history. He poses the following questions: “What are our goals, and how do we achieve them? What exactly do we want Dallas to be?”
Finding Authenticity
The coveted creative class is in search of neighborhoods and communities with lots of character. Why are such places so hard to find? Maybe it is because we are trying too hard.
The Urban Reordering: Can the United States Make it Stick?
The trend toward the urban has been documented from every possible angle, but a recent op-ed wonders whether it will be possible for the federal government to make a course correction that ceases the endless subsidies for the suburbs.
How Cities Miss the 'World Class' Mark
A recent article on the Stanford Social Innovation Review blog argues that instead of chasing gleaming skyscrapers, planners in developing cities should build a new model of the "world class" city.
10 Common Characteristics of Successful Markets
Markets are important commercial and cultural spaces throughout South America, in small villages and big cities. The market landscape in South America is diverse, but thriving markets share a number of common characteristics across the continent.
Pittsburgh Land Bank Approved—With Compromises
Pittsburgh recently approved a land bank to acquire properties when owners fall behind on property taxes. The question about how much control to grant an independent authority, or maintain with the City Council, remains controversial.
Is Cleveland Too Negative?
A recent opinion article by Richey Piiparinen of the Center for Population Dynamics at the Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University says “Cleveland's negativity is a challenge to the city's future.”
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
KFH Group Inc.
Greater Baltimore Committee
Eagle County Government
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
