United States
Revenue-Hungry Cities Look to PILOTs
Budget-constrained cities are increasingly looking at PILOTs -- payments in lieu of taxes that some tax-exempt nonprofit organizations contribute to cities.
Cities Preparing for Lower Revenues
As recession-reduced property tax levels begin to play out in cities across the U.S., municipalities are beginning to react to the realities of lowered revenues.
For Community Attachment, It's Love and Then Money
A new study shows that three qualities - social offerings, openness, and beauty - strengthen residents' level of community attachment more than other urban variables, and that passion for place may be a leading indicator of local economic growth.
For Sale: Organic Farm Included
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.
Theft Apparently Not a Problem for Bike-Sharing Programs in the U.S.
Bike-sharing can't seem to shake its reputation for being a crime magnet, as in Paris. But here in the United States, theft and vandalism simply haven't emerged as problems, says Noah Kazis.
A Boom in Bike Commuting
NPR reports on the impressive growth - a tripling, even - of bicycling in the United States, with a particular focus on commuting.
Commercializing the Landscape
When an Apple Store wanted to move into the Georgetown neighborhood in D.C., the Design Review Board pushed for a more fitting facade. After a backlash from residents eager for an Apple, the trademark building went in. Is Georgetown better off?
The Modern-Day Reality of New Deal Utopias
This slideshow from Design Observer takes a look at New Deal-era utopian cities as they exist today.
Changing Federal Politics, But Potential at State and Metro Levels
In this episode of Next American City's podcast, the Brookings Institution's Bruce Katz discusses the future of federal policy as the country's political makeup changes after the mid-term elections.
Mayors Call 'Dangerous Cities' List a Turkey
The annual list of America's "Most Dangerous Cities" has prompted complaints from the U.S. Conference of Mayors -- a group typically dissatisfied with the list.
GOP Moves to Rescind Stimulus Funding for High-Speed Rail
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Rescission Act was introduced by House Republicans to return $12 billion in unspent American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds, aka stimulus funds, targeting the nation's largest public works project, CA HSR.
Rendell on the Future of America's Infrastructure
Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell has been one of the loudest voices championing the importance of infrastructure investment in recent years. In this interview, he talks about where things are heading and what work remains.
A Traffic Engineer Questions His Profession
Charles Marohn is a traffic engineer. Despite years of training and millenia of precedents, Marohn now feels that the common practice of traffic engineering is creating bad and even unsafe streets.
Local Governments Struggle Even As Private Sector Recovers
Though private sector employment shows signs of recovery, the National League of American Cities predicts 500,000 municipal workers will lose their jobs over the current and coming fiscal years. The Economist considers solutions.
Tea Partiers Target Smart Growth "Conspiracy"
Mother Jones magazine reports on how tea party hostility towards "big government" is now being levelled at Agenda 21 and other smart growth initiatives, in the belief that they are part of an international conspiracy.
Developers Turn to Facebook and YouTube to Sell Houses
While builders still see social media as "consuming to sustain and difficult to track", they are experimenting more and more with unconventional ways to connect with potential buyers over the Internet.
No Cell Phones in Cars, Says LaHood
DOT Secretary Ray LaHood's passion is eliminating the threat of distracted driving from cellphones and texting. Now he's taking it a step further and saying the in the future cellphone scramblers might be mandatory in cars.
Watershed States
This post from GOOD points to an old map of the Western U.S. in which state lines are redrawn based on the locations of watersheds.
An Ecological Urbanism or a New Urbanism?
Urban Omnibus offers a summary of the recent debate that went down over the future of Harvard's Graduate School of Design concerning urban design, landscape urbanism and new urbanism.
Friday Funny: Obama's High-Speed Bus Plan
The Onion reports on how President Obama's ambitious high-speed rail agenda is being replaced with a plan for high-speed buses that will use existing roads and be outfitted for a fraction of the cost of trains [Video].
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 Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
