• Getting sh*t done: Lady developers edition

    Three women developers from across the US are helping to bring back their home cities.
    I am not a developer and I have never been a developer, however, the beauty of CNU is that it provides a well-rounded liberal arts education on urbanism—you can still take a class in a subject even if you’re not going to major in it. At CNU 26 in Savannah,I dipped a toe into the development pond...Read more

  • Problems and solutions for main street retail

    Shopability studies for two Florida cities illustrate the potential and hurdles for many American small-to-midsize downtowns.
    Note: This is one of a series of ongoing Public Square articles on the market, technological, and cultural transformation of the $5 trillion retail industry—and how it relates to a continued shift toward walkable, urban living. People love a main street, but the tired, dated look and incomplete...Read more

  • Conventional suburban versus hamlet design

    The conventional suburban site plan above left was drawn for a hilltop site in a large development project. Charlotte architect and urban planner Tom Low, director of Civic By Design , created the alternative New Urbanism plan of a hamlet. The idea is to develop a series of interconnected hilltop...Read more

  • Citizen revolt preserves 2,000-year-old waterway

    Score one for historic preservation when a canal in use for two millennia was saved from being filled in to create a road and instead planned as a unique public space.
    The 7.4-mile-long Canal Nacional served as the main transportation waterway during the construction of Mexico City more than 2,000 years ago, and since then has been a conduit of vital supplies, from food to construction materials. It is the oldest linear park in the city—a rich ecosystem that is...Read more