What makes a model neighborhood? GOOD Magazine devotes an issue to the topic, beginning with a list of traits that make a neighborhood great.
Top of their list? A signature event.
Patrick James writes, "There's nothing like a recurring event to celebrate and shape a neighborhood's identity-though everything needn't be as massive as, say, Munich's Oktoberfest. Anything works-from the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon, to 1st Fridays in the Abbot Kinney neighborhood of Venice Beach, California, to the annual ArtPrize competition in Grand Rapids, Michigan-as long as it gets people out of their houses and interacting."
Human scale, third places, and diversity all make the list.
FULL STORY: Model Town

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts
Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement
An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.
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