Community / Economic Development
India's Great Experiment
India's market-based approach to holds promise for long-term economic development but poor infrastructure could undermine economic growth.
Coal Exports Devastate Oldest Colombian City
Colombian exports of coal have been great for the national economy but a disaster for its main port and oldest city, Santa Marta. Air quality, the fishing and tourism industries, and the marine environment all suffer the effects of exporting coal.
Dramatic Changes In India's Vast Retail Market
Multinational corporations eye India's large retail market as Indian superstores expand.
Learning From Bangalore: Lessons For Declining U.S. Cities
What declining Detroit can learn from booming Bangalore.
Brownfields to Art Parks
When is a brownfield not a brownfield? When it's transformed by art works, as in two U.S. cities.
Future Silicon Valleys Need More Than 'Rich People And Nerds'
Joel Kotkin takes issue with Paul Graham's recent commentary on "How To Be Silicon Valley", asserting that his logic is elitist and much of his evidence incorrect, in this three-part Inc.com blog entry.
L.A. Stakeholders Perform 'Walk Audit' Downtown
L.A.'s downtown Business Improvement District calls on local business people, property owners, and residents to get stepping in L.A.'s Fashion District, to evaluate the area's walkability. The BID has $1.6 million to make improvements by 2008.
Reframing New Jersey's Competitive Challenge
New research by the Brookings Institution ties New Jersey's troubling economic position to multiple forces, including rising housing costs, persistent race, class and place disparities, and unbalanced development patterns.
Faux Suburban Downtowns Challenge Traditional City Centers
The popularity of mixed-use suburban town centers is threatening the viability of older, traditional downtowns. While many tout their urban-style amenities, the suburban centers often lack transit and -- sometimes -- even sidewalks.
Friday Funny: The Committee To Save Big Ugly Things
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels has produced a spoof political ad to mock the preservation of the city's controversial Alaskan Way Viaduct, although he may run into ethics violations for using a City Hall production crew.
Chicago Considers Living Wage For Big Box Stores
Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and other big box stores could pay Chicago employees a "living wage" as early as next month.
Texas Campaign Will Market Towns To Retirees
A major marketing effort hopes to attract retirees to Texas, through the "certified retirement community" program.
Next Generation Business Parks
Turning sprawling office parks into compact transit villages may be solve both congestion and energy issues at once.
Hip, Downtown Living Revitalizing Fading Small Towns
Even humble burgs like Mount Airy, N.C., inspiration for Mayberry on the "Andy Griffith Show," are experiencing the trend. A local tobacco warehouse there will be redeveloped into 43 market-rate apartments. Has technology made location irrelevant?
Is Keeping Wal-Mart Out of a Community 'Class Warfare'?
The controversial use of eminent domain to keep Wal-Mart out of Hercules, CA is criticized as a means of keeping lower-income shoppers away.
The Geographic Evolution of the U.S. Auto Industry
The U.S. automotive industry is one of the nation's oldest modern manufacturing sectors. Despite increasingly making its home in the south, 47% of the nation's motor vehicle employment still resides in three states: Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.
Where The Gas Gouging Buck Stops
Local gas station owners are hurt as much or more than consumers by high gas prices, as they lose business when gas companies force them to raise their prices.
Detroit-Canada Bridge Could Link City To Profits
Although some community members oppose the laborious and expensive physical construction process, many realize that the economic development benefits will be important.
Courting Business With Websites And Zoning Overlays
Southern California cities are using technology and other innovative techniques to promote economic development and attract local companies.
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
