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.
At the ULI/CNU meeting, opening statements were made by CNU Boardchairman and Seaside developer Robert Davis on the state of development patterns in the the U.S. Here are excerpts:
For five millennia, we have built towns and cities with strong...
Total infrastructure and development costs per unit and per capita are slightly lower for New Urbanism compared to conventional suburban development (CSD), according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The theoretical study was completed...
At the end of 1996, the fast-growing City of Genoa, Illinois, adopted a comprehensive plan calling for pedestrian-oriented, mixed-use hamlets and neighborhoods in most undeveloped areas. The first major development proposed under the new plan...
The vigor of the New Urbanism is reflected in the myriad subdisciplines within the movement. Three members of the Congress for the New Urbanism — Michael Garber, John Anderson and Thomas DiGiovanni — have created a well researched and superbly...
The Congress for the New Urbanism and the Local Government Commission jointly received a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in June for a two-year demonstration project in five older suburban cities near Los Angeles....
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced its second round of Homeownership Zone grants, awarding $18 million to five cities. After state, local and private funds are factored in, financing for these projects...
Projects will test whether environmentally sensitive building practices are compatible with pedestrian-oriented, human-scale design.
ustainable development” in the U.S. often focuses on reduced environmental impact of buildings by cutting energy...
Looney Ricks Kiss, a Memphis-based architecture firm, now has an office in Princeton, New Jersey, the result of a merger with Community Planning & Research. Looney Ricks Kiss, well-known for its neotraditional home designs in Harbor Town,...
Software from Criterion of Portland, Oregon, evaluates projects and neighborhoods for factors such as pedestrian orientation, transportation efficiency, affordability and resource efficiency. The New Urbanism inspired plan above scores better than...
St. Joe Corp., the largest landowner in Florida and headed by former Disney executive Peter Rummell, is gearing up to build traditional neighborhood developments (TNDs) on large tracts on the Florida Panhandle.
It seems that Rummell, who was in...
A 100-acre parcel that is the site of a planned neotraditional development called Spring Valley in Blacksburg, Virginia, is for sale at a price of $1.55 million, or $7,750 per lot. The project is reportedly approved and permitted, but Spring Valley...
Accessory apartments — i.e. units over garages, “granny flats,” carriage homes — represent a big question mark in traditional neighborhood developments (TNDs). Often they are permitted to accompany every single detached home, and so could raise...