bstanley

Homeownership is slipping out of reach for many Americans, caused largely by the lack of affordable housing inventory. There is a solution to the inventory shortage that many buyers, advocates and policymakers are overlooking: Manufactured Housing.

Brookings Institute's “Confronting Suburban Poverty” is generating a lot of buzz. Community development leaders and planners took to Rooflines to voice opinions and critiques of the book, moving its authors to submit a response that you must read.

For far too long, the shaping of public spaces has been left to architects and urban planners, who plan from the top down. The most successful projects involve people directly in deciding how their public spaces will look, feel, and operate.

Dollar stores were already a presence in rural communities, but recession has caused dollar chains to ramp up development to keep pace with the public's growing need to stretch their paychecks. Urban communities aren't immune from chain creep either.

Isolating poor residents from rich ones is not only bad for those being segregated, it leads to the worst outcomes for a city as a whole. Fighting displacement results in less crime and more stable and healthy communities.