Developers are building more and more residential communities around organic farms, banking on increased resident demand for locally grown food, outdoor recreation space, and small-town charm.
Across the country, a growing number of new housing developments are beginning to dramatically lessen the distance that produce travels from farm to table. However, these organic farm communities attempt to offer more than just a steady supply of fresh produce. Inspired by old-fashioned farming towns, many of the developments aim to foster a good dose of small-town charm and interaction amongst neighbors.
As The Los Angeles Times reports:
"Their emergence has banked on the growing demand for locally grown food and a changing outlook by some homeowners on what an upscale community should offer."
" 'People are willing to pay more for a smaller lot, because the lot comes with a 100-acre farm and 300 acres of forest or green space,' said Ed McMahon, a senior fellow with the Urban Land Institute in Washington."
"'Agriculture is the new golf,' he said."
FULL STORY: Suburban living, down on the farm

Florida Considers Legalizing ADUs
Current state law allows — but doesn’t require — cities to permit accessory dwelling units in single-family residential neighborhoods.

HUD Announces Plan to Build Housing on Public Lands
The agency will identify federally owned parcels appropriate for housing development and streamline the regulatory process to lease or transfer land to housing authorities and nonprofit developers.

Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?

Report Outlines Strategies for Resilient Wildfire Recovery in LA
Project Recovery offers a roadmap for rebuilding more sustainable and climate-resilient communities after wildfires and other disasters.

New Executive Order Renews Attack on Public Lands
An order issued late last week pushes for increased mineral extraction on federally owned public lands.

Study: Larger Vehicles Lead to More Congestion
New research links large SUVs to lower traffic throughput.
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