Social / Demographics

Analysis Debunks Equity Criticism of Congestion Pricing
Oregon's recently approved gas tax legislation also calls for tolling of I-205 and I-5 in the Portland metro area, with the application of value or congestion pricing so peak period tolls would be higher, which have raised equity concerns.

Integrating Environmental Justice Into Planning Processes
National City, California pioneered a model for implementing environmental justice considerations into planning processes—state law compels states to follow National City's leadership.

'Grocery Walk' Gathers D.C. Residents to Bring Attention to Lack of Food Options
Neighborhoods with mostly minority populations in Washington, D.C. suffer from a lack of quality grocery stores. A large group of neighborhood activists are trying to do something about it.

Is Population Growth Worth Fixating On?
While mayors of shrinking cities do all they can to buoy a discouraging metric, others ask whether population growth is all it's cracked up to be.

Study: Urban Renters Move Often, and Voluntarily
The usual narrative of gentrification and displacement often assumes a static population. According to this study, urban renters move around very frequently, and most (but not all) of their moves are voluntary.

New Commuter Train Comes Through for Fire-Ravaged Santa Rosa
Sonoma-Marin Rail Transit (SMART) has been operating almost continuously at full schedule, collecting no fares since the epic wildfires began in Sonoma County on Oct. 8. Two stations in the fire-zone are shut down due to lack of access.

More Bad News From the U.S. Census: Economic Census Delayed Six Months
A budget shortfall for Census 2020 has already claimed one victim: the timely delivery of the five-year Economic Census.

Ranking the Safest Cities in the World—Tokyo Leads the List
The Economist's Intelligence Unit has released its 2017 Safe Cities Index.

Obama's Presidential Center Raises Displacement Concerns
As the former president seeks to distinguish the Obama Presidential Center from for-profit development, many locals still want to see a binding community benefits agreement.

Study: Integrated Neighborhoods More Common Across the U.S.
A Harvard study suggests that since 2000, the number of Americans living in racially integrated neighborhoods has risen. But this may be a temporary effect of gentrification, and integration remains an exception to the rule.

Interactive Map Locates Queer History of St. Louis
The ongoing project aims to show how LGBT history is embedded throughout the city.

Nine Charts That Explain Wealth Inequality
Any way you slice it: the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer.
Another Philadelphia Developer Tries to Rebrand a Whole Neighborhood
It turns out that locals don't like self-interested, unilateral decisions that erase the place names of the past.

Columbus Leads the 'Hottest Hipster Markets' in the U.S.
A list to probably take with a grain of salt…artisanal salt served by a man with a perfectly waxed handlebar mustache.

San Francisco Sets Five-Year Plan to Drastically Reduce Homelessness
A new plan in San Francisco aims to reduce the city's chronically homeless population 50 percent by December 2022. Other goals include ending family homelessness and eliminating large, long-term tent encampments.

Craft Beer and Small Towns—A Perfect Pairing
NPR has identified a cultural phenomenon in rural America: craft beer is economic development—and a draw for young people.

NAACP Lawsuit Targets the Trump Administration Over 2020 Census Preparation
The NAACP does not believe the Trump Administration intends to make an honest count of the country's minority populations when it comes time to perform the 2020 Census.
450,000 People Live in Food Deserts in the Cleveland Area
A new map reveals the scale of the food desert challenge in Cleveland and environs.

Study Touts the Public Health Benefits of Dense, Urban Living
A study of British cities find people living in dense urban cores are less likely to struggle with obesity and more likely to exercise—signs of higher quality of life—than their counterparts in suburban environments.

Wisconsin's $1.1 Billion Highway Widening Project on the Ropes
The proposed widening of I-94 in Milwaukee is a $1.1 billion chunk of a $6.4 billion road widening program in the region. The NAACP sued the project as a matter of environmental justice.
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