Community / Economic Development

A new report by the McKinsey Global Institute finds that the global consuming class will grow by 1 billion people by 2025, and undergo a profound geographic shift. Cities and businesses should prepare for this shift with targeted investments.

July 11, 2012 - McKinsey & Company

Joseph Berger examines how gentrification in certain Brooklyn neighborhoods has revealed a conflict of values among residents.

July 11, 2012 - The New York Times

Following on historic new powers granted recently to cities across England, RIBA and ResPublica have published a new paper arguing for greater collaboration with local communities in neighborhood planning, writes Irina Vinnitskaya.

July 11, 2012 - ArchDaily

A new bill proposing major cuts to the EPA could rob cities across the country of a specialized set of programs created to boost economic well-being.

July 10, 2012 - Next American City

Having two of the top universities in the world within a couple of miles of each other doesn't hurt. But Boyd Cohen looks at Boston's cutting-edge efforts to foster innovation within and outside of its universities, that make it a global leader.

July 9, 2012 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Community agriculture this is not. Large scale, urban agriculture is the vision of wealthy businessman and 20-year Detroit resident John Hantz that would transform blighted, East Side's vacant and city-owned properties into a profit-making tree farm.

July 8, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal - U.S.

An armory built for the National Guard at the turn of the century may see a second life as Crown Point's newest community-oriented, multi-use complex, Raanan Geberer, reports.

July 6, 2012 - Brooklyn Daily Eagle

What exactly is defined by mixed-use is often somewhat up to debate. Howard Blackson of Better Cities & Towns helps us clarify what the term "mixed-use" should really mean.

July 6, 2012 - Better Cities & Towns

A common criticism of streetcars are their relative slow speed combined with high capital and operating costs. Still, streetcars are being constructed in both large in small cities to help incentivize development.

July 6, 2012 - The Naked City

Julie Stern reports on a presentation by NYU professor Eric Klinenberg, who says that the number of people living by themselves in the United States is growing and is having an impact on city life.

July 6, 2012 - Urban Land

James Howard Kunstler has a new book, which goes deeper into an idea he's often explored: that the U.S. has a misguided sense that new technologies will save the American lifestyle.

July 5, 2012 - Urban Times

Neighborhood Improvement Districts in Philadelphia are facing challenges from a skeptical public for the first time since their introduction over 20 years ago, Alex Vuocolo reports.

July 5, 2012 - Next American City

The nation of Iraq is building itself anew after the last of the US troops evacuated six months ago, but experts are saying that their wealth, which has created an invasion of shopping malls around the country, is subsidizing the public agenda.

July 5, 2012 - The New York Times

So says the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, releasing a new report that says this all-too-common strategy rarely pays off.

July 4, 2012 - The Boston Globe

Tehran is known for being congested and polluted, but Elyana Javaheri credits mayor Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf for making the Iranian capital more livable.

July 4, 2012 - This Big City

Richard Close, a member of the Oversight Board supervising the dissolution of the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, discusses the challenges of defining 'enforceable obligations' and the legal battles he anticipates in the coming year.

July 3, 2012 - The Planning Report

In order to save Coney Island from dwindling unemployment rates and high poverty levels, developers rezone the 46-year-old amusement park, but the plans may never actually leave the paper.

July 3, 2012 - The Brooklyn Bureau

Will Doig considers the growing pressure cities face to build a marketable identity, and why that's a particular challenge for generally livable cities.

July 2, 2012 - Salon

Since the mid-1970s, Detroit’s riverfront has been transforming from a depressed industrial area into a bustling district for families and businesses.

July 1, 2012 - Detroit Free Press

One brazen entrepreneur from Detroit is looking to raise funds to bring his "zombie theme park" concept to life, Sarah Cox reports.

June 29, 2012 - Curbed