Community / Economic Development

The Public Interest Design Institute encourages architects to embrace participatory approaches in design that address complex social needs; demonstrating that it's possible to "make a career as an architect serving those who need the most help."

November 28, 2012 - American Institute of Architects

Transit-oriented developments multiplied and held their values comparatively well in the housing crisis. In this article, Josh Stephens explores whether the trend will continue post-recession, or if sprawl is poised for a comeback.

November 28, 2012 - InTransition Magazine

Thomas Friedman uses Chattanooga, Tenn. as an example of the "innovative thrust building, bottom-up, in the U.S. economy today." In an opinion piece for the Times, he urges leaders in Washington to help unlock America's embryonic growth surge.

November 27, 2012 - Jonathan Nettler

We all have our role models in life. Never are they more pivotal than in the visioning required for placemaking. Failing to have patterns that perform economically, socially, and environmentally is a critical mistake says Nathan Morris.

November 27, 2012 - PlaceShakers

A decade of relentless, and exhausting, opposition by those "who saw democracy being trampled in the interest of a developer whose methodology they found offensive," has taken its toll on the ranks of opponents to Brooklyn's Atlantic Yards project.

November 27, 2012 - The New York Times

Seen as a source of economic development and easy money for cities (struggling or not) throughout North America, casino projects are neither a revenue panacea nor the win-win "economic bullet" that supporters claim, argues Richard Florida.

November 27, 2012 - New York Daily News

As part of a broader effort to encourage less vehicular traffic city-wide, D.C. is expanding permit parking and reducing on-street parking in some of the city's most crowded neighborhoods. Not all are happy with the changes, reports Tim Craig.

November 27, 2012 - The Washington Post

Philip Bump contemplates a future in which Arctic Ocean trade routes give rise to thriving port cities dotting the northern coasts of North America and Eurasia alike.

November 24, 2012 - Grist

In the three steps of placemaking, crafting a meaningful vision is the first and most straightforward, yet it's the most under-leveraged. Continuing his series on "Municipal Placemaking Mistakes," Nathan Norris describes how to get it right.

November 23, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Despite all odds, “Miami’s roller coaster real estate market is booming again” reports Nadja Brandt. Is "the hottest [residential] real estate market in the U.S." primed to boil over?

November 22, 2012 - Business Week

Hurricane Sandy exposed the need for New York City to be able to house large numbers of residents following natural disasters. Matt Chaban examines the Bloomberg administration's "secret" plan to build modular apartments out of shipping containers.

November 22, 2012 - The New York Observer

Soumya Karlamangla profiles a once-thriving hippie mecca, hit by hard times and largely abandoned, even by the nearby student population. Is it down for the count?

November 21, 2012 - SF Gate

Often depicted as drivers of local economies, airports have struggled to stay profitable as passenger air travel continues to languish. Steve Malaga presents the case that throwing money at this particular problem can actually make things worse.

November 21, 2012 - City Journal

In the latest entry in a series on informal urban livelihoods, Sally Roever of WIEGO provides insight into how planners can better understand, acknowledge and manage street vending through the development of appropriate policies and best practices.

November 20, 2012 - The Global Urbanist

Allyn Gaestel outlines the tensions that arise as a growing Vietnamese community begins to define the visual character of Washington Ave. in South Philadelphia.

November 20, 2012 - Next American City

As the holiday travel season begins, Becky Krystal reminisces on rest stops encountered along family road trips and observes that "stops are evolving from small, flypaper-plastered restrooms into airy, high-tech travel plazas and welcome centers."

November 20, 2012 - The Washington Post

Officials in Chicago envision an ambitious plan for a 100-acre urban agriculture district as the foundation for reviving an area of the city now "riddled with vacant lots, poverty, and blight," reports Lori Rotenberk.

November 18, 2012 - Grist

A new study of the Philadelphia area commissioned by the Congress for New Urbanism “finds new urban characteristics play a role” in how households and neighborhoods weathered the recent economic downtown.

November 17, 2012 - Better Cities & Towns

Happiness and health are generated or depleted by the way our neighbourhoods, towns, cities, and rural landscapes are developed. Creative placemaking adds to walkable urbanism by sealing the deal on physical, mental, and social well-being.

November 17, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Bottom-up urbanism, now becoming increasingly popular in the academy under the rubrics of “do-it-yourself (DIY) urbanism”; “guerilla urbanism”; “tactical urbanism” etc., are the surest sparks of brilliance and hope for our urban future.

November 16, 2012 - Vinayak Bharne