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Liberalizing cities | From the bottom up

“Market Urbanism” refers to the synthesis of classical liberal economics and ethics (market), with an appreciation of the urban way of life and its benefits to society (urbanism). We advocate for the emergence of bottom up solutions to urban issues, as opposed to ones imposed from the top down.

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Digging deeper on natalism and urbanism

April 7, 2025 By Michael Lewyn

In a recent blog post at Planetizen, I criticized the idea that higher birth rates can only be achieved in car-dominated suburbia. In this post, I pointed out that a) not all walkable places have as little floor space as my Manhattan apartment, b) that some (admittedly unusual) urban places have … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Development, MUsings, Places & Spaces, planning, Policy, sprawl, Urban[ism] Legends Tagged With: birth rates, children, natalism

Morton’s Fork and urbanism

February 14, 2025 By Michael Lewyn

I recently read about an interesting logical fallacy: the Morton's fork fallacy, in which a conclusion "is drawn in several different ways that contradict each other." The original "Morton" was a medieval tax collector who, according to legend, believed that someone who spent lavishly you were … [Read more...]

Filed Under: corruption, Economics, Free-market impostors, housing, NIMBYism, planning, Urban[ism] Legends, Zoning Tagged With: fallacy, housing affordability, hypocrisy

Review: Key to the City, by Sara Bronin

January 26, 2025 By Michael Lewyn

In Key to the City, Sara Bronin both critiques and defends zoning.  Like numerous other commentators (including myself) Bronin points out that anti-density regulations such as minimum lot size and minimum parking requirements artificially increase housing costs.  Her critique of the latter … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Book Review, Economics, housing, Law, parking, planning, Policy, Uncategorized, Zoning Tagged With: book review, bronin

Let’s Talk About Soundview

January 6, 2025 By Michael Lewyn

In New York City, one common argument against congestion pricing (or in fact, against any policy designed to further the interests of anyone outside an automobile) is that because outer borough residents are all car-dependent suburbanites, only Manhattanites would benefit. For example, film … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Culture of Congestion, MUsings, planning, Policy, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, Urban[ism] Legends

A Case for Urban Renewal

October 28, 2024 By Salim Furth

Is it even possible today to write a vigorous argument in favor of the urban renewal policies of the 1950s? I doubt it. So I was glad to stumble upon a copy of Jeanne Lowe's 1967 book, Cities in a Race with Time. Lowe is a sympathetic - but not sycophantic - observer of the urban renewal era, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Book Review, Culture & Books, history, planning Tagged With: book review, New York City, Philadelphia, planning, robert moses, Urban Planning, urban renewal

Urban Planners Overregulate Private Lots but Neglect the Design and Regulation of Public Spaces

August 13, 2024 By Alain Bertaud

Because there are no market signals that could identify the best and highest use of street space, it is the role of urban planners to allocate the use of street space between different users and to design boundaries between them where needed. This article appeared originally in Caos … [Read more...]

Filed Under: infrastructure, Places & Spaces, planning, Transportation Tagged With: development, streets

The 15-Minute City Is a Distracting Utopia

August 6, 2024 By Alain Bertaud

As proposed, Moreno's 15-minute city has no chance of implementation, because economic and financial realities constrain the location of jobs, commerce, and community facilities. No planner can redesign a city by locating shops and jobs according to their own whims. This article appeared … [Read more...]

Filed Under: planning, Urban[ism] Legends Tagged With: 15 minute city, Paris

The Master Plan: An Obsolete Urban Management Tool

July 29, 2024 By Alain Bertaud

Most master plans are a costly effort by a team of temporary consultants, spread over two to three years, to prepare a blueprint that is usually obsolete as soon as it is completed. This article appeared originally in Caos Planejadoand is reprinted here with the publisher's … [Read more...]

Filed Under: history, planning, World Tagged With: Brazil, Urban Planning

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