Greg Hanscom, cities editor at Grist, picks his top stories for 2011, including Occupy Wall Street, bright flight and the "urban renaissance that isn't (yet)."
Hanscom says that one of the most significant stories of the year was the Census analysis showing that the much-cited move to urban areas and out of the suburbs hadn't happened to as significant degree as reported:
"When the final 2010 Census came in, it made clear that the renaissance had not arrived yet -- at least not in any statistically meaningful way. An analysis of eight metro areas, including Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Austin, revealed that in the past decade, 96 percent of the population growth occurred in the suburbs. Some took great exception to this number crunching, arguing that it lumped a number of full-fledged cities in with the 'burbs. But while the Census, stripped of much of the nuance that it had contained in previous years, painted a rather fuzzy picture, there was little to suggest any inmigraiton into urban centers."
Read the full story: Top cities stories of 2011
15 US cities and their global namesakes
Hundreds of cities around the United States are named after other places. We tour a few of them.
New study visualizes how city shapes impact mobility
Whether circular or linear, the shape and layout of cities affects how their residents get around.
William Whyte’s Seminal Urban Film Restored
‘The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’ changed the way planners view public space and ushered in a new way of understanding urban patterns.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion
Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.
Nation's most wind-powered state turns to coal as data centers increase energy demand
For the first time in decades, Iowa has increased its generation of coal power.
Boston has spent millions making the Green Line more accessible — and there’s no end in sight
While the city has invested millions into expanding and adding platforms to the Green Line to make it more accessible, new train cars set to arrive next year will be too tall for disabled passengers to board without raising the current platforms.
Idaho may see an 18% drop in federal surface transit funding — the largest estimated cut in the US
Transit systems in rural communities are much more reliant on federal funding to provide their services.
How ‘post-disaster gentrification’ alters neighborhoods after natural calamities
After hurricanes, fires or other calamities, the original residents of a community are often replaced by younger, wealthier residents.
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 Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
KFH Group Inc.
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello