• A checklist of local government reform

    Here's an outline of what municipalities can do to promote walkable urban development.
    As an incremental developer, principal in an urban design and architecture firm, and an urbanist, I constantly deal with institutional barriers to walkable urban places. Here is my list of pragmatic reforms that would greatly improve land-use planning and development in municipalities across the US...Read more

  • Atlanta zoning update addresses parking, ADUs, missing middle

    Atlanta is growing at an "unprecedented rate" and is trying to become more multimodal and less car-centric.
    The City of Atlanta recently adopted a zoning update designed to accommodate a growing population—including reductions in off-street parking requirements and more opportunities for “missing middle” housing types and accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in single-family neighborhoods. The update resulted...Read more

  • Embrace your local Opportunity Zones

    Even if you are cynical about about how big money will affect low-income communities, the smart move for municipalities and urbanists is to make the most of this big-impact program.
    Many urbanists have skepticism—even cynicism— about Opportunity Zones (OZs). This new federal initiative that was part of the 2017 tax law is still gearing up, but most agree that it will have a big impact on cities. “Given the significant interest among investors, it is possible that this new...Read more

  • How many Opportunity Zones have smart growth potential?

    Opportunity Zones offer significant smart growth potential if investors can find the opportunities, but a new report is of limited use, especially when it comes to smaller cities and incremental development.
    Only about two percent of Opportunity Zones (OZs) have high “smart growth potential,” according to a new report from LOCUS—a development coalition that is part of Smart Growth America. That sounds like bad news, but I am far less pessimistic than the National Opportunity Zones Ranking Report —I...Read more