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suburbs
A (Possible, Partial) Myth About Suburban Poverty
Submitted by MLewyn on Fri, 06/14/2013 - 9:45amA recent blog post commenting on the growth of suburban poverty has the headline: "As Cities Prosper, Poor Move to Suburbs." The headline seems to imply a simple story: poor people priced out of the city are moving to suburbs. (In fairness, the story itself is much less simplistic). ... read more »
Suburban Poverty? So What?
Submitted by MLewyn on Mon, 05/20/2013 - 12:54pmBecause of the release of a new book about the growth of poverty in the suburbs, there has been all sorts of chatter on Twitter and the urbanist blogosphere about the growth of suburban poverty. Obviously, poverty anywhere is not a good thing. But as long as there is poverty, is it... read more »
Two Cheers for Cheap
Submitted by MLewyn on Mon, 04/15/2013 - 11:38amIn new urbanist circles, "cheap" is often a dirty word; for example, I recently noticed a reference to "cheap" suburbs in a blog. I find this objectionable for two reasons. First, in a nation where many regions suffer from insanely expensive housing projects, we should be striving for ch... read more »
The pros and cons of elevator suburbs
Submitted by MLewyn on Sun, 03/31/2013 - 9:40amAs I was looking through my Twitter feed last night, I noticed an article on Canada's "elevator suburbs"- suburban streets (often, but not always, in low-income areas) filled with mid-and high-rise apartment buildings and shops, with lower-density housing on side streets. How do these places s... read more »
Kotkin and Florida, Part II
Submitted by MLewyn on Thu, 03/21/2013 - 11:03amRichard Florida has responded to Joel Kotkin's attack on "creative class" centered policies. Kotkin doesn't really deny Florida's point that places with high-skilled workers have higher wages, but says that wage gains in high-skill cities are outweighed by high housing costs. Florida agrees.&n... read more »
My Generation Chooses Urbanism (More Than Its Parents, Anyhow)
Submitted by MLewyn on Mon, 12/10/2012 - 12:55amWhile I was rummaging through some old files at my parents' house, I discovered two books that I thought were pretty interesting: the school directory for the boarding school I attended in the late 1970s, and the 1999 alumni directory for the same school.
As a new urbanist, my first thought wa... 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.
... read more »
The (Not Quite So) Suburban Jewish Holiday
Submitted by MLewyn on Fri, 10/12/2012 - 1:22amI have written about the uneasy relationship between Judaism and suburbanization: low density makes it difficult for Jews to live within walking distance of synagogues and generally makes it difficult to create a cohesive community.
... read more »
Who Should Really Favor "Burning Down The Suburbs"?
Submitted by MLewyn on Wed, 08/15/2012 - 9:20amNational Review's website contains an article accusing President Obama of "Burning Down the Suburbs." The article's basic claim is in the first paragraph: "Obama is a longtime supporter of “regionalism,” the idea that the suburbs should be folded into the cities, merging schools, housing,... read more »