Government / Politics

There are 12 community benefit districts in San Francisco, which raise their own taxes to create funds for various local projects. But some argue they favor big businesses.

January 24, 2011 - San Francisco Chronicle

A new project is seeking to create the first citywide, comprehensive urban agriculture plan for New York City.

January 24, 2011 - Urban Omnibus

A group of city leaders and activists gathered in Sacramento to protest Governor Jerry Brown's plan to close the state's redevelopment agencies.

January 24, 2011 - San Francisco Chronicle

This TIME video is titled, "What Makes Cities Smart?" But the mayors interviewed - Villariagosa, Daley, Nutter - are mostly obsessed with building public transit and high-speed rail.

January 24, 2011 - Time

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa recently visited Washington D.C. to discuss his plans for expedited transit projects in L.A., but the new congressional leadership is not as supportive as the old.

January 22, 2011 - Los Angeles Times

Joel Kotkin argues that most U.S. cities that were struggling in the '60s and '70s have forged a comeback and should no longer need the sort of redevelopment and federal attention they've been given.

January 21, 2011 - New Geography

Redevelopment agency officials throughout California are moving rapidly to prevent a threatened takeover by the state (to reduce deficit) by signing deals on projects potentially prematurely. LA just turned $1 billion in 275 projects to the city.

January 20, 2011 - Los Angeles Times

While Gov. Walker's rejection of $810 million of federal stimulus funds for the Milwaukee-Madison rail upgrade has received much publicity, he has not ruled out using funds to upgrade the existing Milwaukee-Chicago Hiawatha Line pushed by businesses.

January 19, 2011 - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Officials in Ogden, Utah are considering a plan to launch an unmanned blimp to monitor the city from crime at night.

January 19, 2011 - Reuters

As states return money aimed at high speed rail projects, officials from North Carolina are hoping to scramble up some of this newly available funding to augment existing projects.

January 19, 2011 - News and Observer

With political pressure from both sides of the aisle palpable, Gov. Christie discusses how he analyzed and justified the ARC tunnel's cancellation.

January 18, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal

The city of Detroit is considering a plan to close nearly half of its public schools and greatly increase its class sizes.

January 18, 2011 - The Detroit News

The city of Pittsburgh is making progress on its first comprehensive plan. Next American City talks with Director of City Planning Noor Ismail about its process and potential impact.

January 18, 2011 - Next American City

British Prime Minister David Cameron wants to build a Silicon Valley-like "tech city" at the site of the 2012 Summer Olympics. But some question whether his plan can work.

January 18, 2011 - Wired UK

DOT Secretary Ray LaHood responds to a Washington Post editorial that condemned not only the California High Speed Rail project, but President Obama's vision for a national high-speed rail network.

January 17, 2011 - The Washington Post

Tao Rugkhapan reports on the etiology traffic accidents which are becoming all to common in Bangkok as vehicle speeds increase along with lane tolerances and the number of elevated expressways.

January 15, 2011 - This Big City

Aleppo, one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world, is undergoing a conservation project that includes the restoration of hundreds of houses, a new park, and rebuilding city streets and services.

January 14, 2011 - The New York Times

Despite laws meant to protect open space and limit sprawl development, developers in Washington have found a legal way to get major housing projects approved in Washington.

January 14, 2011 - Crosscut

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire is part of a growing national trend of empowering local government with areas that have been run by states, such as education. Reporter David Brewster says this is a movement the right and left can agree on.

January 13, 2011 - Crosscut

A new musical has been written about Robert Moses and his impact on New York City. Robert A. Caro, Moses' Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, attends a rehearsal.

January 13, 2011 - The New York Times