Urban Land looks at the reinvention of America's inner-ring suburbs. The authors explore the challenges of mixing uses, integrating cars and attaining authenticity as planners and developers seek the right recipe for the next big wave of development.
"As inner-ring suburbs in the United States become denser, demand for access to nearby walkable urban environments is rising," write D. Jamie Rusin, Ryan Call and Sean Slater. "Residents are looking for shorter driving distances to commercial, cultural, leisure, and work opportunities. Municipalities are also interested in promoting compact development near transit. As a result, the next big wave of development will focus on creating nodes of mixed-use infill projects in these suburbs."
"Whereas the revitalization of the core of cities was the siren call for previous generations of urban planners, the focus now should be on redeveloping the anonymous arterial roads, dispersed uses, and strip centers that dominate so much of the American landscape. It is possible to create vibrant, pedestrian-friendly environments that take cues from cities built before the age of the automobile, while also accommodating the automobile in ways that work for the 21st century."
FULL STORY: New Suburbanism: Reinventing Inner-Ring Suburbs
Vancouver Day Care Rejection Poses Larger Questions
What does it mean for cities and civic life when neighborhoods are viewed as products geared for individual consumption rather than ever-evolving communities?
The Common Traits of Successful Inner Ring Suburbs
Two suburbs of Cleveland provide a case study in how older, inner-ring suburbs can compete with the newer suburbs on the fringes of the region.
Inner Suburbs Face Identity Crisis
Places like Columbia Heights, an older suburb north of Minneapolis, lie at the focal point of conflict over development and gentrification. Can these places support a 21st-century urbanism?
Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?
Americans May Be Stuck — But Why?
Americans are moving a lot less than they once did, and that is a problem. While Yoni Applebaum, in his highly-publicized article Stuck, gets the reasons badly wrong, it's still important to ask: why are we moving so much less than before?
Using Old Oil and Gas Wells for Green Energy Storage
Penn State researchers have found that repurposing abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal-assisted compressed-air energy storage can boost efficiency, reduce environmental risks, and support clean energy and job transitions.
Updating LA’s Tree Rules Could Bring More Shade to Underserved Neighborhoods
A new USC study finds that relaxing Los Angeles’ outdated tree planting guidelines could significantly expand urban tree canopy and reduce shade disparities in lower-income neighborhoods, though infrastructure investments are also needed.
California's Canal Solar Projects Aim to Conserve Resources and Expand Clean Energy
California’s Project Nexus has begun generating electricity from solar panels installed over irrigation canals, with researchers and state agencies exploring statewide expansion to conserve water and boost clean energy production.
HHS Staff Cuts Gut Energy Assistance Program
The full staff of a federal program that distributes heating and cooling assistance for low-income families was laid off, jeopardizing the program’s operations.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
City of Moreno Valley
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland