Archives
Welcome to the archives of Better Cities & Towns, a publication founded by Robert Steuteville as New Urban News in 1996. This archive holds two decades of the best news and analysis on compact, mixed-use growth and development, from 1996 to 2015.
Many of the most active development sites in metropolitan Washington owe part of their appeal to commuter rail stations within a few hundred feet. Here is what’s happening in the vicinity of a few Metro stations.
Tom Low and others at Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ) have created a matrix of more than 60 “Light Imprint New Urbanism” tools that can help new urbanists incorporate “sustainable” engineering methods into their designs. The “Light Imprint...
The EPA Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation, Division of Development, Community, and Environment — often known as the “smart growth office” — was facing potential severe budget cuts by the Bush Administration as of early summer. “The already...
A 59-year-old Biloxi woman, Katherine St. Amant, on June 21 received the keys to the first Katrina Cottage provided through the Mississippi Alternative Housing Program. The two-year pilot program operates with a $280 million federal grant. St. Amant...
Hamlets employing the latest energy-efficient technology, yet modeled after Old World villages, are expected to be built on 571 acres of the Florida Panhandle. The hamlets will be part of a new community called Sky, which is being developed with the...
The Congress for the New Urbanism continued to emphasize forward-looking leadership by naming four new members to its Board of Directors at the board’s May meeting in Philadelphia. The new appointments complete a transition in which all seven CNU...
After a clash over architectural styles, an eco-urban neighborhood is developing fast. Vancouver, British Columbia, is rushing to build an eight-block project on the edge of downtown that will serve both as housing for athletes in the 2010 Winter...
A $500 million town center may be built in North Haven, next to a proposed train station.
Connecticut, previously a laggard in smart-growth policymaking, has begun launching initiatives over the past year aimed at extending commuter rail service...
Salishan, one of the toughest neighborhoods in Tacoma, Washington, is being turned around by a 188-acre HOPE VI project, The New York Times reported June 24. The 90 market-rate houses in the project’s first phase, some of them priced between $202,...
The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has established a Terwilliger Center for Workforce Housing, which will work with other organizations on the design, development, and financing of mixed-income workforce housing in several urban areas. The Center,...
The Cottage Living Idea House was nearing completion in New Orleans in June and will open for tours July 12 through September 2, according to architect Eric Moser. It is scheduled to be published in the October issue of Cottage Living, Moser reports.
Lowe’s stores throughout Mississippi and Louisiana are selling Katrina cottages with four different floor plans. The Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, Louisiana, reports that prices start at $29,850 for a 544 sq. ft. unit. The three larger sizes are...