Community / Economic Development
Hope for Informal Settlements
Collective action and micro financing are two promising models for improving the livability of informal settlements, writes Neal Peirce.
How Tucson Can Learn From Portland
Civic leaders and city officials in Tucson recently traveled to Portland to get advice about how to improve their city while dealing with an expected population boom. The trip highlighted the big differences between the two cities.
Street Vendors Face Ousting In Mexico City
Half a million street vendors fill the squares of Mexico City to make their living. The mayor wants to wipe out the vendors, whose businesses contribute no taxes to the city. But the vendors have their own organization that opposes the city's plans.
Beyond Moses and Jacobs
Neither the block-level gentrification inspired by the patron saint of city planning nor the wide-scale mega-project redevelopment advocated by New York City's infamous planning czar are useful models for the realities of 21st century cities.
The Positive Effects Of Block Parties
Getting neighbors together for community events does more than prevent crime, according to the Project for Public Spaces.
Small Town Residents Uneasy About New Development
Residents in small-town, suburban Boston are on edge about the impending demolition of historic housing to make room for what they fear will be a national chain retailer -- a first for the town.
Developer Ties Mix Of Uses Into Stadium Plans
Officials and developers in St. Louis continue their quest to draw a Major League Soccer team to the city with recently revealed plans for a major stadium-housing-retail-office complex.
Town Hopes Smart Growth Plan Will Boost Economy
The city of Germantown, Tennessee, is on the verge of approving a new "Smart Code" based on Smart Growth and New Urbanism principles. City officials are hoping the new zoning changes will allow the city's economy to blossom.
Will The Auto Mall Come To Berkeley?
The City of Berkeley, California, is considering changing is long-held policy against auto malls within city limits.
D.C. Suburb Redevelopment Plans Lack Guiding Vision
Local government has big plans for redevelopment in the inner suburbs of Washington D.C. But some say the approach is too segmented and lacks a greater vision for many of the region's smaller towns.
Beautification Project Leaves Local Businesses On Shaky Ground
A city-sponsored streetscape beautification project currently under construction in Washington D.C. has been keeping many customers away from local businesses. Many are calling on the city to help out businesses during the construction-caused lull.
Cleveland Region Focuses On Municipal Cooperation
Cleveland and its suburbs are trying to remove some of the regional competition between cities by sharing revenues and resources.
Small Towns That Hit The 'Google' Jackpot
Small towns hungry for economic stimulus have found a willing suitor in the Internet giant, though some accuse Google of using the promise of jobs to win unfair concessions.
The Redevelopment Of Asia's Largest Slum
The Dharavi neighborhood of Mumbai -- home to 600,000 residents -- is set to be razed and rebuilt under a massive redevelopment scheme.
Drinking The 'Downtown Revitalization' Kool-Aid
Boosters like to sell downtown revitalization as crucial to a region's economic interest -- but for most cities, that's rarely the case.
Architects Help In Post-Disaster Reconstruction
Architecture for Humanity is a group of volunteer architects helping in the reconstruction of the Gulf Coast communities hit by Hurricane Katrina.
Why Gentrification Is Good
Opponents to gentrification often have a romanticized view of neighborhoods that prevents them from seeing how development is beneficial to everyone in a community -- rich and poor.
Making Mexico City More Livable
The city's new mayor is hoping to follow the footsteps of Bogotá's Enrique Peñalosa and transform the Mexican capital of 20 million inhabitants into a people- and environmentally-friendly metropolis.
Working Together For Great Neighborhoods
In Kalamazoo, Michigan, citizens of all ages are engaging each other to create and maintain safe and active neighborhoods.
The Rise Of The Surburban Slum?
William Fulton observes that while high-income households are flocking to the inner-city and gobbling up pricey condos, poor families are having to double and triple up just to afford a home in the suburbs.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
