United States
The Best Housing Markets for 2009... and the Worst
Builder Magazine selects 15 picks for the best housing markets to be in in the U.S. in 2009. Houston, Texas comes out on top, and, predictably, Detroit scrapes the bottom.
Better Transportation Needs Better Cities
A new design competition is seeking solutions to L.A.'s transportation problems. But the real solution may not have anything to do with transportation at all.
Recovery or Rerun?
A new government-sponsored watchdog website will allow citizens to track stimulus-funded projects. It's an effort to insure accountability. Neal Pierce wonders if that accountability will translate into smarter patterns of development.
Obama Budget A Boon For New York
The new federal budget represents a broad increase in funding for urban programs. New York in particular is to benefit greatly from the new spending plan.
Sprawl A Major But Ignored Factor in Infrastructure Costs
The federal stimulus package has made infrastructure into a hot topic among states. But, as Mary Newsom writes, states are not addressing the land use patterns that drive up the costs and bring down the efficiency of infrastructure.
HUD's Budget Money
This brief from the New York Times outlines how federal budget money will be used by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
As Gas Prices Drop, VMT Rises
Sightline's Clark Williams-Derry looks at low gas prices, a down economy, and vehicle-miles-traveled, noting that the precipitous declines in VMT have halted, and suspects it may plateau.
Poverty and Development: Two Birds, Possibly One Stone
Some organizations believe they hold the key to fighting poverty--economic development in the inner cities, which will in turn bring in private investment. But others maintain that both are hard to come by simultaneously.
Trucking Industry Prepping for Reauthorization Bill
The American Trucking Associations is preparing to focus their upcoming annual meeting on advocacy, promoting their agenda on the TEA-21 Transportation Reauthorization bill to Congress and the Obama administration.
Thinking Twice About Growth
Although denser is inherently greener, cities whose populations boom have their own set of challenges regarding sustainability. According to this article, achieving a balance between urban and rural growth is the most sustainable way to go.
How to Spend $8 Billion in High-Speed Rail Funds
Transportation reporter Tom Belden of the Philadelphia Daily ponders how and where the $8 billion in stimulus funds allotted to high-speed rail should be spent, referencing a report by the Progressive Policy Institute.
A Better Transit-Oriented Design
Kent Kammerer asserts that by jumping too quickly on a TOD bandwagon that stresses density, local municipalities may leave out elements of social infrastructure and adequate services--the real driving forces behind successful, walkable areas.
Metros Show Signs of Order Over Stimulus Money
As stimulus money trickles down to states, many worry the best laid plans for spending it will devolve into a frantic money grab among municipalities. But, according to this piece from Mark Muro, there are signs of order at the metropolitan level.
Feds Seek More Control Over Grid Transmission Lines
New legislation is expected to seek greater federal control over the siting of electrical transmission lines, a move lawmakers hope will ease the creation of a "smart" electricity grid.
It Started, and Should End, with Real Estate
If the government bails out banks, it also better put aside money for structural reform that ensures the proper valuation of property. According to Elena Panaritis, a housing market driven by speculation catalyzed the recession in the first place.
Stimulus For Transit, Un-Stimulus For Auto Industry
Funding in the federal stimulus package for high speed rail has been cheered by transit advocates across the country. This opinion piece argues that in addition, funds should be taken away from the auto industry.
With Nowhere to Go, Rail Cars Stall and Stay Put
Over a hundred boxcars have sat for about a year in an Indiana hamlet, proving to be the biggest nuisance to those who, live, and play near them. Of no use to railroad companies with nothing to ship, such rail cars now sit idle all over the country.
Building Green For the Low-Income
New green building projects aimed at low-income residents are popping up across the country, and federal stimulus money is helping.
'Keep Freeways Free' Legislation Introduced
In 2007, the PA legislature passed Act 44 that calls for converting Interstate 80 into a tolled facility. A freshman PA Congressman, continuing in his predecessor's footsteps, introduced a bill to ensure that never occurs.
Infrastructural Evolution
In this piece from Metropolis, Andrew Blum looks at how America's infrastructural philosophy is evolving from "repair" to "renew".
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
