• New housing slows or lowers rents

    A Pew report came out last year on housing construction and rents that is worth commenting on, because it addresses the most common complaint about new housing: That it drives up living costs. People see new, expensive housing that is unaffordable, they see housing prices going up, and they put two...Read more

  • Urban building recycles rainwater

    The Sundial Building is nearing completion in Minneapolis, and architect Marques King has posted images and some of its features on LinkedIn. The building features a cool rainwater collection system that recycles approximately 90,000 gallons of water anticipated to fall on the roof annually,...Read more

  • What is a SLUG? A term for rural sprawl

    This image was recently posted on LinkedIn along with a discussion of the term SLUG, which stands for spread-out, low-density, unguided growth. Urban designer Kevin Abbott found the term in the 2013 edition of Virginia McAlester’s A Field Guide to American Houses . Some say this is another term for...Read more

  • How community design impacts social life

    The social aspect of community development is important. It’s been said before, but we are, at heart, social creatures. When technology drives us apart, as it has in many ways over the last 100 years, we suffer. Social scientists have consistently measured happiness in America since the 1970s, and...Read more