• New urban opportunity: Alleys, mews, and accessory units

    The unsung alley has the potential to create an intimate American urbanism, it just needs a little attention from urban designers.
    Alleys were a neglected and unused element of the American built environment for at least a half century, until they made a comeback through the New Urbanism in the 1980s. Traditional neighborhoods developments (TNDs) included alleys for trash collection, utilities, and the primary purpose—to move...Read more

  • Micro-townhouses designed for flexibility

    Twelve-foot-wide townhouses in Utah? They combine transit-oriented density with homeownership, and buyers can cut costs in multiple ways.
    Daybreak in South Jordan, Utah, a top-selling community nationally, shows how transit-oriented design can be achieved with production builders—and it is a laboratory of housing ideas . The latest is the “micro-townhouse.” The 12-foot-wide units range from 1,125-1,450 square feet on lots less than 1...Read more

  • Anticipated ‘car-free’ development moves forward

    Culdesac in Tempe, Arizona, a model community that combines urbanism with technology, is demonstrating an untapped demand for car-free living. Opticos Design won a merit award in the Emerging Projects category of CNU's 2021 Charter Awards.
    In one of the nation’s most automobile-dependent cities, a development is testing a new model of car-free living. The market is responding well: Phase one of Culdesac Tempe, due for completion by the end of 2021, is pre-leased, and more than three thousand people nationwide have expressed interest...Read more

  • An agile approach to multifamily in the pandemic

    A unique missing middle housing development in Papillion, Nebraska, shows how smaller increments of multifamily are beneficial in economically uncertain times.
    I recently picked up the phone to talk to Gerald S. Reimer, from Urban Waters based in Omaha, Nebraska, about the status of the ongoing construction of the 35-acre Missing Middle Neighborhood we planned for him . Jerry is finishing the last of three sub phases of the multifamily Bungalows On The...Read more