• Tools for Building Local Strength

    Earlier this year CNU released a report called Building Local Strength that focused on how to revitalize severely disinvested neighborhoods in ways that minimize displacement of, and maximize opportunity for, legacy residents. This is a complex problem that requires the creative thinking and...Read more

  • Savannah adopts two CNU Legacy projects and a downtown plan

    The city made progress with code reform and is moving forward with street improvements and new public spaces, including the possible transformation of a dead mall.
    A little over a year after CNU 26 in Savannah , Georgia, that city’s council formally supported two CNU “legacy projects” and adopted a new downtown plan. Legacy Projects are launched each year to leave an enduring mark on the host city and region of the annual CNU Congress—and the Savannah...Read more

  • Partnership in DC focuses on minimizing displacement ahead of bridge park

    An Equitable Development Plan offers wealth building opportunities—not just affordable rental housing—including homeownership, workforce development, financial counseling, and small business development.
    In Washington, DC, the decommissioning of the 11th Street Bridge offered an opportunity to create an elevated linear park over the Anacostia River using the piers of the old bridge. The proposed bridge park, expected to break ground in 2021, would connect to trails on both sides of the river and...Read more

  • The great suburban Ponzi infrastructure experiment

    Charles Marohn's new book presents a way out for American cities that are trapped in a vicious cycle: Build neighborhoods one small step at a time rather than going straight to utopia.
    Planner and engineer Charles Marohn has a knack for coining words and phrases that encapsulate big problems in the built environment. One is “stroad,” a thoroughfare that combines the characteristics of roads and streets and serves neither purpose well. Others include “the great suburban experiment...Read more