• Introducing … The Freeway Fighters Network

    The CNU-supported network tracks more than 60 local freeway fighting efforts, coordinates collective action, and supports a shift toward multimodal transportation systems.
    Early in the Interstate era, an initial cadre of freeway fighters contested the misleading narrative of progress so often associated with highway building, especially in cities. Citizen-led groups like the Movement Against Destruction, the Emergency Committee on the Transportation Crisis, and...Read more

  • Periodic Table of Urbanism

    At CNU 30 in Oklahoma City planner Stephen Goldie presented an idea that has been in the works for several years, building on the rural-to-urban Transect. Goldie calls it the “Periodic Table of Urbanism,” see image at top, because it resembles the periodic table of chemistry. The idea is...Read more

  • A new era of downtown opportunity

    Despite the pandemic's devastating impact on the office market, downtowns and nearby walkable neighborhoods are looking forward to two decades of growth driven by demographic and economic change.
    Over the past two years I have heard colleagues express growing pessimism about the future of North America’s downtowns. And why not? In its April 2021 report, “To Recover From COVID-19, Downtowns Must Adapt”, Brookings noted “Across the U.S., the pandemic has left downtowns ‘ cratered ,’ ‘...Read more

  • A 15-minute city in rural America

    Laramie, Wyoming, is a case study showing that the 15-minute city is a viable concept far from major metro areas.
    Carlo Ratti and Richard Florida have argued that 15-minute neighborhoods and cities are only viable in highly urban areas. 1 In a prior publication, I have argued that 15 minute geographies—neighborhood and city—should be viewed as being composed of 1) a basic Core Area and 2) many larger...Read more