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In the News
Gentrification and rent- a fuzzy connection
Submitted by MLewyn on Tue, 12/04/2012 - 11:17amOne common argument for allowing cities to continue to decay or de-densify is the specter of gentrification: the fear that a retrofitted city might price out the poor.
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CNU Featured in New York Times Article, "Regulatory Break for Mixed-Use Projects"
Submitted by Alex McKeag on Wed, 11/28/2012 - 12:44pmThe New York Times reported on a recent rule changed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) that increases the allotment for government-insured mortgages for condos built within mixed-use projects. The change, championed by CNU via its Live/Work/Walk: Removing Obstacles to Investment ... read more »
Where Republicans Carried The City Vote
Submitted by MLewyn on Mon, 11/26/2012 - 12:29pmToday's New York Times has an interesting graphic showing the precinct-by-precinct vote in this year's Presidential election. Although Republican nominee Mitt Romney did very poorly in Manhattan and in most of New York City, he carried numerous outer borough precincts.
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Smart Growth In Not-So-Dumb Places
Submitted by MLewyn on Sat, 11/24/2012 - 10:01pmNot long ago, Brigham Young's law review published a provocative article entitled "Smart Growth in Dumb Places." The basic theory of the article is that building near the water is dangerous, and where downtowns are near the water, infill development is thus dangerous.
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What I Am Thankful For
Submitted by MLewyn on Thu, 11/22/2012 - 11:07amSince today is Thanksgiving, I thought I would post about what I am thankful for (instead of complaining as usual about what I am not thankful for):
I am thankful that in the year 2012, urbanism is, in some ways, winning over sprawl: (some) cities are being repopulated, transit ridership is rising, ... read more »
Nonsense about Nixon and Reagan
Submitted by MLewyn on Wed, 11/14/2012 - 12:33pmA recent article in the New Republic has the reassuring (to me) headline: "Republicans Can't Afford to Ignore Cities Anymore." I'm certainly all for Republicans not ignoring cities, but there was a passage in the article that made me want to bang my head against the nearest brick wall.
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The Real Swing Voters
Submitted by MLewyn on Sat, 11/10/2012 - 10:46pmMy sense is that the conventional political wisdom is that urban voters are Democrats, rural voters are Republicans and suburbanites are in the middle.
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The News From Sprawl Is Not Good
Submitted by MLewyn on Fri, 11/02/2012 - 9:01amGiven the widespread public transit closings in the 48 hours before Hurricane Sandy, it could be argued that one advantage of a car-centric society is that cars enable quick evacuation (assuming that people aren't stuck in traffic).
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Taller Buildings = More Storm Safety (Up to a Point)
Submitted by MLewyn on Wed, 10/31/2012 - 12:14pmHurricane Sandy is over (at least as far as we New Yorkers are concerned) and commentators are already beginning to discuss its meaning for urbanism-- for example, whether coastal cities like New York may have to do more to protect their citizens.
But one area in which New York City has an ad... read more »
Is New York really cheaper than Miami?
Submitted by MLewyn on Fri, 10/26/2012 - 10:45amThe Center for Neighborhood Technology recently issued a report suggesting that compact cities with high housing costs (such as New York or San Francisco) might actually be less expensive than otherwise cheaper but car-dependent areas such as South Florida and Southern California. As provocati... read more »