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.
The Charter Awards Jury convened in Chicago, at the Blake Hotel, to privately deliberate and judge almost 100 Charter Awards submissions in 3 categories: Region, Neighborhood, and Block.
A new research paper determined that residential properties near transit stations in five major cities across the US maintained their values significantly better than properties outside of "transit sheds."
Some parts of the industry are very strong, and those include housing in cities with a highly educated workforce — the “creative class,” so-named by Richard Florida.
In the last couple of posts we looked at solutions for at-grade border vacuums, so now let's move on to sunken border vacuums, like highway and railroad ditches!
Even in San Francisco, gentrification is more tolerated now, according to this San Francisco Chronicle article. San Francisco has a low crime rate, and, like New York City, it has grown steadily in population since 1980. It is considered one of the...
A recent blog from Twin Cities Sidewalks highlights growing evidence that vehicle miles may have peaked. If the right policies are put in place, vehicle miles can go down even as the population and economy rises. The graph dramatically shows the...
This was the largest workshop of its kind with more than 80 participants in two days – including members of the Illinois Department of Transportation, county DOTs, municipal agencies and private firms.
Nore than 130 gathered to hear teardown advocate Peter Park speak on tools and opportunities for New Orleans citizens as the City continues to execute its Livable Claiborne Communities study.
The Congress for the New Urbanism in Chicago is looking for candidates for the Board of Directors. Three seats need to be filled. The call for applicants will close April 15. The current 21-member board includes architects and planners that make up...
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the DC region's transit agency, is looking to lease 11 prime spots in the District, Maryland, and Virginia, for transit-oriented development (TOD). The sites are mostly 4-6 acres, but two sites in...
LEED platinum apartment building brings seniors and children together in a downtown infill location.
There’s a flip side to the “creative class” trend — for every city at the top of the list there’s one at the bottom of the list for this demographic.