• Let's build age-friendly communities

    America is aging. Let's make places worth aging in.
    As an urban advocate in Northwest Arkansas, I have lots of conversations with local residents. When talking with retirees, the same themes surface regarding their desired retirement environment: affordability, low maintenance, convenient amenities, and accessible transportation. Regrettably, a lack...Read more

  • Busting the myth that alleys cost more

    A careful apples-to-apples analysis shows that the classic urban pattern can actually cost less – but it mostly depends on the shape of the lots.
    One of the frequent complaints we hear from homebuilders – at least those who aren’t familiar with successful new urbanist development models – is that they “can’t afford alleys”, and that “alleys just double the number of streets”. Indeed, perhaps the most commonly cited reason that national...Read more

  • From edge to epicenter

    How the curb became a key space in modern cities.
    The curb, as we know it, is more than just a parking lane. It’s a dynamic space where the city meets the street, it is a connector and a public resource that should be equitably shared by all. While curbs were originally created to support drainage and sanitation, enhance pedestrian safety, and...Read more

  • The resilience built in

    What Porchfest teaches us about place.
    There’s a lot to love about Porchfest, the increasingly popular, oversized block party experience where porches become performance stages and lawns become venues. The music, the neighboring, the strange but welcome sense of permission to wander across a stranger’s lawn and linger on their grass,...Read more