Organization News

n The Design Center for American Urban Landscape at the University of Minnesota hosted a conference from January 21-23 on “Reframing the 1945-1965 Suburb.” Many CNU members participated in the discussions which examined the social, physical, economic, and political dynamics shaping these postwar communities which were once on the urban edge but now find themselves in the metropolitan middle. Breakout group session topics included the role of the New Urbanism in redefining metropolitan competitiveness, sociopolitical impediments to restructuring older suburbia, and rehabbing and infilling the stock of inner ring suburbs. n CNU has signed a contract with the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania to conduct a study on finance reform as it might affect new urbanist development. Research for the study, entitled “Obstacles and Solutions to Financing the New Urbanism,” is already underway. Researchers from the Samuel Zell and Robert Lurie Real Estate Center at Wharton, hired for the project, are currently conducting interviews with developers, lenders, and investors. Findings will be presented at CNU VII. n CNU membership has reached 1,330! We signed up over 250 new members in the past four months. Our current membership breakdown, by professional affiliation is: 636 (48%) architect/planner/engineer/consultant; 197 (15%) developer/broker/banking/finance; 216 (16%) government/public agency/institution; 103 (8%) citizen activist/student; 24 (2%) journalist/researcher; 54 (4%) other; 101 (8%) did not specify. u