• Lids, teardowns, and infrastructure burials

    There is an abundance of in-city highways in the US that need to be demolished, buried, or capped so that neighborhoods can be made whole again.
    This essay is written as a warning to city administrators and finance directors all over the world who are considering building highway projects within urban areas. Experts have erroneously led city officials to believe that these expensive capital projects will alleviate congestion and improve...Read more

  • CNU highlights for 2021

    In a challenging year, CNU hosted a second successful virtual Congress, brought on a new executive director, and made significant advances in programs.
    It has been an exciting year here at CNU. We hosted our second virtual Congress, Rick Cole joined as our new Executive Director, the passage of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act included $1B in funding for Reconnecting Communities, Project for Code Reform’s partnerships continued...Read more

  • Pre-approved accessory units streamline small-scale infill

    Seattle, which adopted one of the nation’s most progressive accessory dwelling unit (ADU) ordinances for cities, has taken this idea a step further by streamlining plans and designs that work. In late 2019, Seattle approved an ordinance that allows up to two ADUs on single-family lots, which make...Read more

  • Ford promotes street grids

    A town in Texas is on the leading edge of a trend to bring back the practical, efficient street networks for new development.
    What do huge metropolises and small towns have in common? Their downtowns are laid out on a grid of streets, according to a video called The City Grid Comeback, which has garnered more than 450,000 views on You Tube. The video focuses on Bastrop, Texas, a town that changed its land-use laws in 2019...Read more