For ninety days, Ben Brown lived out of a 308-square-foot cottage designed by Marianne Cusato. He discovered that you really needed to be connected to your community when living in tight quarters.
Brown learned from his experience that these homes work better when sited together:
"They need a critical mass to achieve their promise as a viable alternative to neighborhoods of 3,000-square-foot-plus homes. Dropped randomly into acre-lot subdivisions and diminished by surrounding McMansions, they look eccentric and experimental. They need small-lot site-planning and the company of friends."
Thanks to Hazel Borys
FULL STORY: Livin’ Large in Small Spaces: It Takes a Town
Urbanism in a Time of War
The first in a series of posts reflecting on urbanism and rebuilding efforts in Ukraine following the Russian invasion in 2022.
Is the Urban Form Sustainable?
One author offers a framework for resilience that rethinks common assumptions about the inevitability of cities as we know them.
Study: Americans Spending Less Time Interacting in Public Space
American pedestrians are moving faster and spending less time connecting with other people when walking down city streets.
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?
Research: Walkability Linked to Improved Public Health
A study reveals that the density of city blocks is a significant factor in communities’ walkability and, subsequently, improved public health outcomes for residents.
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.
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.
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Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
City of Piedmont, CA
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland