Feature...
Sustainable Communities 2008Exploring the past and future of urbanism and ecology»»»
Highways to Boulevards
Reclaiming Urbanism and Revitalizing CitiesAmerica's twentieth century highway building era included elevated freeways which cut huge swaths across our cities, decimating neighborhoods and reducing quality of life for city residents. This massive concrete infrastructure had devastating effects on urban economies. It blighted adjacent property and pushed access to basic amenities further out. With the Federal and State Departments of Transportation confronting shrinking budgets and cities looking for ways to increase their revenues, it is an ideal time to offer less expensive, urban alternatives to the reconstruction of urban expressways. New York City, Portland, San Francisco, Milwaukee and Seoul, South Korea have confronted this problem by replacing elevated highways with boulevards, saving billions of dollars and increasing real estate values and economic development on adjacent land. The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) and the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) believe that teardowns offer an attractive option for cities struggling with aging highway infrastructure. The strategies are proving themselves in adding value and restoring urban neighborhoods decimated by highway construction.
|
Top Teardown Survey
Current Battles
|
Please complete this survey and contribute to CNU and CNT's list of top
highway to boulevard opportunities. We will use this list to bring attention
to the opportunities all over the nation to revitalize our cities with
urban forms of transportation. 
