United States
Southern States Lagging in Energy Efficiency
The South eats up more resources than the rest of the U.S., says reporter Elizabeth Daigneau. With 36% of the U.S. population, the South uses 44% of the nation's energy consumption.
Homes Shrink As Lower-Priced Homes Sales Surge
More first-time, energy-conscious, urban home buyers with smaller households have contributed to a noticeable reduction in home size as shown in 2008-2009 housing Census data. Concurrently, lower-priced home sales outpaced more expensive homes.
Affordable Housing Makes Life - Well, Affordable
Households that are given affordable housing have more money to spend, which can bring more money into the economy, according to a new study from the Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy.
Retailers No Longer Asking for Help
Mall operators across the country were getting requests for rent relief during the economic downturn, but in a sign of possible recovery, the requests have mostly dried up.
Suburbs Lag As Urban Core Mark Population Gains
William Frey of Brookings Institution analyzes census data from 2008-2009 in a WSJ economics blog that unmistakably shows a reduction of growth within suburban parts of metro areas while the cities in metro areas have increased in population.
WSJ Editor Rethinks The American Dream
NPR's Steve Inskeep interviews Wall Street Journal economics editor David Wessel on aspects of the American dream of home ownership that apparently are not working. Not only does Wessel suggest eliminating the tax deduction, but pushes renting too.
Alternative Energy Booms in Rural Areas
The changing face of America's energy menu includes a variety of alternative sources, many of which are being developed in the country's rural areas.
Suburban Decline and Urban Growth Predicted
According to the new book, Foreclosing the Dream: How America's Housing Crisis Is Reshaping Our Cities and Suburbs, development is shifting to cities more strongly than most Americans realize.
Buildings Alone Do Not Constitute Regeneration
The "Bilbao Effect" is the apotheosis of the notion that a struggling post industrial city can be regenerated through set-piece art and design. But Frank Gehry, the architect of the Guggenheim, suspects the gallery was only part of a larger gestalt.
Urban Activism 101
Alison Arieff talks with Jason Roberts Go Oak Cliff, a neighborhood advocacy group in Austin, Texas, about his techniques for advocating for better neighborhoods.
The Growth of Municipal Debt
Municipal debt is on the rise, as state and local borrowing has grown to nearly one-quarter of the U.S. GDP.
The Social Supermarket
A new Safeway in Washington, D.C. is breaking the mold in grocery design by tucking the parking away behind the entrance and putting the market upstairs in a 2-story building, with smaller shops for lease on the street.
The Secret to Strong Neighborhoods
According to Robert Weissbourd, the secret is "positive mobility"; that is, the ability to be in constant motion, turning over with people and businesses coming and going.
Americans Spending More On Housing Than Ever
18.6 million American households –renters and homeowners alike – spend more than half their income on housing, according to a new study by Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies.
Note to Environmentalists: Stop Being NIMBYs
Some of the resistance that killed a major smart growth project in Alameda, California came from environmentalists. Josh Harkinson argues that its time for enviros to stop fighting smart growth and embrace density.
Tapping the Crowd to Solve America's Transportation Problem
Slate is soliciting ideas from its readers to improve the nation's transportation system.
Amount of Families in Shelters Increases
The number of families in homeless shelters increased by 7% in 2009, according to a new report from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Bank Rule Change Could Help Struggling Neighborhoods
A new rule proposed by federal regulators would allow bank investments made for neighborhood stabilization efforts and donations of foreclosed properties to be count towards compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act.
Addressing Our "Addiction To Oil": Have We Heard This Before?
Jon Stewart examines Obama's and his seven predecessors attempts to end this addiction, stated in various ways, showing how popular the term is, yet how ineffectual every president has been.
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
