Portland, Maine tops a variety of lists as one of the most livable communities in America, but can it afford to pay the price of its success?
Still, while most people like living in Portland, the city faces critical challenges in the next decade, namely high property taxes, expensive housing and, increasingly, the white-knuckle traffic congestion that comes with urban sprawl... City officials worry that the West End and Munjoy Hill, downtown neighborhoods that once welcomed working families, are becoming gentrified. Homes and apartments built for families now house one or two people. Often they are young professionals or empty-nesters moving back to the city. Real estate prices have doubled or tripled in the last decade, depending on the view of Casco Bay.
Thanks to Chris Steins
Read the full story: In transition: Can Portland afford to pay price of growth?
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
This MA town is drowning in its own sewage — and residents like it that way
Susan Murcott, a waste water expert, said if Carlisle didn't address their leaking sewage, the problem could turn “deadly.”
Iowa taxpayers are paying thousands to clean manure out of their water
While the Clean Water Act makes states responsible for regulating factory farms that discharge pollutants, Iowa has turned a blind eye to the polluting farms.
Amtrak cuts ribbon on Seattle Airo maintenance facility
The $250 million, nearly 100,000-square-foot building can house an entire Cascades Airo trainset.
To power data centers, Google seeks autonomous control of thousands of homes’ electricity
The tech company has signed a deal to indirectly pay Mid-Atlantic residents to reduce their power demand when the grid is strained.
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
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello