north carolina posts, articles, and infographics

Raleigh: The City as an Oak Tree

January 5, 2012 by Kristen Jeffers
with 130 views

I spent my New Years weekend in my adopted hometown of Raleigh. I watched as they dropped an acorn to ring in the New Year, a nod to the city’s designation of the “City of Oaks”. I hung around for a couple of extra days as well to chill out. As part of my vacation, I was banned from using my computer or tablet and ordered to go window-shop and relax.While on that 24 hour sabbatical from my most trusted device, I begin to think about how Raleigh itself has the planning structure of a tree. [read more]

Imagining Cities As A Kid Growing Up In The Bible Belt

September 30, 2011 by Kaid Benfield
with 110 views

My friend Chuck Wolfe has written a terrific essay called “Rediscovering the Urban Eye of a Child,” on his blog myurbanist. An astute observer of cities and a gifted photographer, Chuck traces his roots for both, recalling trips as a child to cities abroad with his father, an urban planning professor. He... [read more]

Green is Gold: States Invest In Avenues For Scaling Solar

September 27, 2011 by Sheila Oliva
with 133 views

Last week’s Solar Exchange East was hosted in the heart of the Southeast U.S.A. – North Carolina. The state’s own Governor Bev Purdue is fond of saying “Green is Gold” in regards to her stance on renewable energy sources in the state. And the event, taking place at North Carolina State University in the capitol of Raleigh, focused... [read more]

The North Carolina Senate's Big Brother Zoning Act

June 22, 2011 by Ben Schulman
with 368 views

Although Governor Bev Perdue - a Democrat - now heads North Carolina, one would hardly equate the Tar Heel State as a capital of big government. In the land of states' rights, logic would seemingly dictate that the North Carolina state legislature would allow for local municipalities to operate free from interference. Yet in a bill... [read more]

Lessons from the Sun Belt: replacing sprawl with smart growth requires sustained commitment

March 4, 2010 by Kaid Benfield
with 289 views

For smart urbanism to be more than a boutique product, it must become not an experiment but standard practice in jurisdictions across the county. When Parris Glendening was governor in the late 1990s and early 2000s, for example, the state of Maryland had real leadership on progressive land use; it was just beginning to make... [read more]

Bold, smart, green vision proposed for Raleigh

October 13, 2009 by Kaid Benfield
with 111 views

Dan Douglas was, until recently, chief downtown planner and director of the Urban Design Council in Raleigh, the state capital of North Carolina. He is now in private architectural practice, but his passion for the city remains, apparently. In particular, he is now proposing that a public/private corporation be formed to undertake a... [read more]

Collective Cul-de-sac Action

March 2, 2009 by Ryan Avent
with 475 views

In a generally interesting post, Mary Newsom includes a fascinating piece of information:An intriguing study from Charlotte’s city staff illustrates another of sprawl’s hidden costs, with city taxpayers in this instance footing the bill: Fire station costs are sharply lower in older parts of town where streets connect. The study... [read more]