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.
A group of developers — several of whom are leading members of the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) — agreed May 20 to incorporate a new trade group for new urbanist developers. The National Town Builders Association (NTBA) will serve a purpose...
Jefferson County, Kentucky, approved a Planned Village Development (PVD) District ordinance in late April, 1998, which applies to unincorporated areas surrounding the City of Louisville. The PVD is similar to many traditional neighborhood...
Construction began in May on 1,500-acre Austin Ranch, the latest in a series of projects in or near Dallas, Texas, using new urbanist principles. The master plan for the 5,000 home project was designed by RTKL and the first neighborhood, called...
After probably the most extensive public process ever to initiate a new urbanist development, the City of Orlando selected Orlando Partners to redevelop the 1,100-acre Orlando Naval Training Center (ONTC).
Orlando Partners, led by Mesirow Stein...
The costs of the New Urbanism still are a subject of intense debate, as indicated by an analysis by the Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition (REBIC), based in Charlotte, North Carolina. REBIC has an ax to grind — the group objects to zoning...
At more than 19 square miles, the Mesa del Sol property in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the largest undeveloped parcel of urban land under single ownership near a central business district in North America, according to the New Mexico Land Office,...
An abundance of books have come out of interest to new urbanists. These include: The Wealth of Cities: Revitalizing the Centers of American Life, by Mayor John Norquist of Milwaukee, a dedicated new urbanist; Architecture: Choice or Fate, by Leon...
The National Building Museum is seeking to raise $50,000 to $100,000 from foundations, businesses and other groups to mount an exhibit, The New Urbanism and the Future of Community. It would be presented in a 3,000 square foot gallery in the former...
Sales have picked up in traditional neighborhood developments (TNDs) in the last two years, according to an analysis by John Schleimer of Market Perspectives in Roseville, California. A survey of sales in selected projects was conducted in April,...
The Town of Seaside, Florida, received tremendous visibility through The Truman Show, a Paramount movie directed by Peter Weir and starring Jim Carrey. Filmed in 1997 on location at Seaside, the movie opened to great reviews at the end of May, 1998...
More than 800 designers, planners, developers, activists, environmentalists and politicians participated in CNU VI in Denver. This represented a 180 percent increase in attendance from CNU V in Toronto. Approximately one-third of the attendees were...
Total infrastructure and development costs per unit and per capita are slightly lower for New Urbanism compared to conventional suburban development (CSD), according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The theoretical study was completed...