I often hear from people who are defending Washington, D.C.’s height limit argue that the restriction gives the city a “European” feel. I disagree with this for a number of reasons – the city has much fewer historic downtown buildings, and the ones it does have are much younger … [Read more...]
From Towers-in-a-Park, to Rowhomes-in-a-Parking Lot?
When the Drunk Engineer posted about a parking-packed Oakland project winning a smart growth award, I figured it was an anomaly. And hey, it’s the West Coast – what did you expect? My rendering rule-of-thumb: The more they emphasize the green, the worse it's gonna turn out... … [Read more...]
The War on Drugs Is a War on Cities
Ken Burns’ new documentary Prohibition is excellent and highly recommended on its own merits, but urbanists should take special note of its urban themes. Cities have always been caricatured as centers of licentiousness, and the booming cities of turn-of-the-century America, teeming with poor … [Read more...]
Affordable Housing vs. Density: The Unintended Consequences of Zoning Bonuses
California Assembly Bill 710 was introduced to earlier this year to tackle the problem of municipalities requiring onerous amounts of parking for new development, widely recognized as one of the main impediments to transit-oriented development and infill growth. The bill would have capped city and … [Read more...]
Preservationists Accuse NYC Landmarks Commission of Favoritism
A scandal may be brewing at New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission. The LPC has never had a reputation for being very objective or easy to work with, but now its integrity is being called into question as preservationists are accusing both a current and former official of colluding … [Read more...]
Car Sharing as a Public Utility – What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Over at Washington City Paper‘s Housing Complex blog, Lydia DePillis takes issue with DC’s car sharing policy – and namely, the decision to auction off on-street spaces to the highest (car-sharing) bidder, “rather than allow the market’s first mover—Zipcar—[to] have them all … [Read more...]
Real CEQA Reform, or Just Another Special Interest Handout?
California has, since the ’70s, had some of the strictest environmental laws in the country, but urbanists have recently been frustrated by what are known as CEQA lawsuits, named after the 1970 California Environmental Quality Act that serves as the basis of the challenges. CEQA battles have … [Read more...]
Good Transit Is Ugly Transit
Shinjuku Station, Tokyo Train stations in Japan are a lot of things. They are busy – Tokyo’s Shinjuku Station sees two-thirds as many passengers as the entire NYC Subway. They are complex – the big ones are shared by multiple railway companies, from public to private and everything in between. … [Read more...]
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