Community / Economic Development
News Summary: Urban Policy and the Obama Presidency
The balloons have fallen, and the yard signs have been yanked up. The people have chosen, and in a historic win, Senator Barack Obama will soon be our next president. Now the hopes and promises of the campaign must harden into reality. Managing Editor Tim Halbur summarize what we can expect from an Obama presidency in regards to urban issues.
Across From Watts Towers, Facade Improvement as Art
Artist Edgar Arceneaux is the man behind the Watts Towers Project, a collaboration of international artists to make the poverty-stricken neighborhood facing on the famed folk art structure into works of art in their own right.
Smaller Cities Better For Small Business
Entrepreneurs do better in smaller cities than larger ones, according to a new study by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
Light Rail Brings Housing Values Up in Denver
While home values in the rest of the region decline, homes near Denver's light rail system have experienced an increase in values over the past two years.
Mobility Infrastructure: A Better Stimulus Package
Stimulus packages are nothing more than an "economic sugar rush", according to columnist David Brooks. He argues that the country needs to create a larger-scale transportation-based infrastructure project to really bail out the economy.
Baltimore Makes Grander Vision for Arts District
Planners in Baltimore have unveiled a 30-year plan to remake its arts district into a mixed-use, transit-oriented, regional destination.
Kotkin: Crisis Won't Bring About Urban Renaissance
Joel Kotkin derides urban boosters who have looked to external forces -- such as the mortgage meltdown -- to fuel an "urban renaissance", rather than looking at altering their own economic environments to be more attractive to investors.
Cities With a Global Outlook: The Top 12
A team of management consulting and foreign policy professionals has released a report analyzing which cities of the world are most global in reach, looking at business activity, human capital, and information exchange. New York comes out on top.
'Design as Activism': The Rise of the Citizen Architect
This special issue of Metropolis Magazine highlights "citizen architects" working on small-scale projects to improve local communities.
Adaptively Reusing Brooklyn's Industrial Spaces
Preservationists say that there are better ways to use buildings along Brooklyn's industrial waterfront than to demolish them.
Car Dealerships Closing Shop
Car dealerships -- long-sought by cities as big tax revenue generators -- are struggling in the economic downturn. Nearly 600 have closed this year, and another 100 are expected to shut down by the end of the year.
The Work of Neighborhood Stabilization
Foreclosures are blighting neighborhoods across the country. There's no question that something needs to be done. But to react effectively, the field of community development needs to carefully consider which areas should be targeted and how much can be saved, argues Charles Buki.
Segregated in the City
As more and more people move to the cities, the prevalence of economic and racial segregation becomes more and more apparent.
Obama, the 'Tin-Cup Urbanist'
If history is any indicator, Senator Obama's presidential plans to pump more federal money into fixing cities' problems are futile and wasteful, according to Steven Malanga.
America's 'Worst Slum' Revitalized
Thirty-one years ago, Jimmy Carter called Crotona Park East the worst slum in America. Today, this Bronx neighborhood has overcome its past with new homes and a lively park.
Op-Ed: Russia's Health Crisis Belies Its Economic Success
Russia's economic transformation due to its oil wealth is well-known, but not so the state of its public health which shows an alarming contrasting picture.
An Iconic Promise, But Empty Returns
What was meant to be an icon for the city of Memphis has become a burden, as the city's pyramid-shaped sports and concert complex sits vacant and unused. The city is still trying to find a way to reuse it.
New Urbanism in North Augusta
The first phase completed, the residents of North Augusta, SC contemplate the effect of New Urbanism on the neighborhood known as Hammond's Ferry.
China's Mortgage 'Bailout'
Officials in China are moving to implement a handful of strategies to combat the housing slump, including tax breaks, smaller down-payment requirements and lower loan rates for first-time buyers.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
