Columbus, Ohio's New Village Place -- winner of the 2006 James B. Recchie Award for Urban Design -- seamlessly marries market-rate and affordable housing with striking designs that respect the historic character and fabric of the neighborhood.
"'You don't often see public housing up for an architecture award,' [Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) Executive Director Dennis] Guest said. 'We've gotten nothing but compliments from the neighbors.'"
"CMHA chose Lincoln Street Studio architects Frank Elmer and Ruth Gless because 'they were creative and we wanted to do something different,' Guest said."
"'We really wanted to do the project because we live here,' Gless said. 'We wanted to make a contribution to our neighborhood.'"
"They designed New Village to resemble the rest of the neighborhood, mostly two-unit town houses built close together on a grid of new city streets."
100 units fill 37 buildings on the six acre site of a former 10-story housing project, whose demolition in 2001 removed its blighting influence from the growing appeal of Columbus' Italian Village neighborhood.
"Twenty town houses scattered among six blocks on Summit Street are set aside for public housing, whose residents pay an average of $300 monthly. The units are identical to the market-rate units, priced between $750 and $1,275 a month, property manager Sharon Giles said."
FULL STORY: Blend of public, private housing a winning mix for development
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
