urban development

6 Stories

Black Caucus Openly Feuds With Obama

Members boycott a financial overhaul vote as a warning

(Newser) - Long frustrated by President Obama's inaction on urban issues, the Congressional Black Caucus threw up its hands yesterday and walked out on a vote on financial reform following a heated meeting between Maxine Waters and Rahm Emanuel. The measure passed easily, but Waters said the CBC could side with the...

Spooky Universal Pattern Captivates Math Experts

Academics ponder similarities between cities and organisms

(Newser) - A fascinating mathematical similarity between infrastructure requirements of cities and the nutritional needs of different-sized animals has energized a field of study that is enthralling academics. Researchers have discovered that any measure of a city's infrastructure—from number of gas stations to miles of roadway—grows only in proportion to...

McMansion Era May Be Over




 McMansion Era 
 May Be Over 
Jan 6, 2009 5:33 PM CST

McMansion Era May Be Over

Strapped Americans now prefer cozier homes

(Newser) - As strapped Americans develop a conscience and, er, sense of taste about living, the practice of razing existing homes to make way for super-size replacements is slowing, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Languid McMansion sales have brought quiet back to historic neighborhoods, drowned out for years by bulldozers and upset...

Rat's Nest of Urban Politics Behind Philly's 'Big Stall'

Many demolitions, huge budget, no benefits

(Newser) - Lamenting the lack of progress in another urban redevelopment project, Karen Heller takes aim at the Pennsylvania Convention Center expansion in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Center expansion has been in the works since 1993, spurring numerous building demolitions, but few new constructions: in short, North Broad Street, advertised as a...

Motown Crops Spring From Decay

Charity makes dent with farms in desolate Detroit neighborhoods

(Newser) - An ambitious charity thinks it can turn Detroit’s most desolate neighborhoods into bustling farming utopias. The group, dubbed Urban Farming, grows vegetables on vacant land throughout the city, then gives them out for free to local residents, the BBC reports. Parts of Motor City have been transformed by its...

Johnson Brings Magic to Urban Development

Basketball legend's fund has raised $1B, despite realty slump

(Newser) - Amid the subprime and recession chaos sits a gleaming urban development fund that has banked $1 billion with basketball legend Magic Johnson at the helm. The Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund has already completed major projects in Hollywood and Chicago, reports the LA Times, and, Johnson says, "The potential for revitalization...

6 Stories