Land Use

Emily Washington works for the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and blogs at MarketUrbanism.com. She has a master's degree in economics and focuses her attention on state and local policy issues. Before we get into the market forces, Emily gives an overview of her background to give some context about her educational and career...[read more]

San Jose

The big question is whether or how the City of San Jose can once again become the center of life and commerce it once was, many decades ago, when Santa Clara County was rather sleepy and agricultural.[read more]

Nottingham's forest plans

In the United Kingdom, Nottingham currently boasts the Kingdom’s top green space ranking. However, its lack of vision to make parks more attractive could be hurting the city financially in the long term.[read more]

incomplete streets?

A grassroots group called the Alton Road Reconstruction Coalition has produced a great campaign, which sets out the possibilities and the coalition’s position on more "complete" streets, in a stellar example of local advocacy.[read more]

Mexico City

One photo, every eight steps, the camera pointed straight ahead. The formula is simple, but the results reveal a lot about the way we perceive urban streetscapes.[read more]

green home building

Modern pioneers—from owner-builders in British Columbia to designers challenging the harsh conditions of the Aleutian Islands—are showing that green building on a budget is possible with enough creativity and planning.[read more]

Smart, but smart enough?

It’s time to get past advocating for the fact of smart growth – it’s already mainstream in nearly every planning office in the country – and start working on its quality.[read more]

East River Waterfront

This 4-mile-long project would reinvigorate one of Manhattan’s least accessible waterfronts. It would build wetlands that would not only improve aesthetics but also act as storm barriers against future superstorms like Sandy.[read more]

Leonard Zhukovsky / Shutterstock.com

Superstorm Sandy left New York, Atlantic City and other municipalities damaged but not dead. One of the interesting facets as these cities rebuild is the push to do it sustainably.[read more]

urban disorder?/shutterstock

Recent theories of landscape urbanism have posed the notion of letting change happen over time. It fosters the idea of rather than creating a definitive master-plan, it tenders a set of organizational principles.[read more]

onshore wind farm

Onshore wind energy is the most competitive form of renewable energy in Ireland, but its stochastic nature is a barrier to unlimited development. Should this form of renewable energy development be stifled to retain the landscape?[read more]

The structures that brought prominence to tactical urbanism—and that are in the city most receptive to the movement—are the “parklets” dotted throughout San Francisco.[read more]