Local Democrat Takes On Cobb. Life in a Mobile Nation - Room for Debate. The ‘Serial Move’ Is an Insidious Ideal Alan Ehrenhalt, author, "The Great Inversion and the Future of the American City" It’s tempting to envision a series of hometowns tailored to an affluent American’s life cycle. But one city really can work for every generation. Not Cutting Ties, but Adding Them Kevin Noble Maillard, law professor and author To judge families on a single detail of “stability” overlooks the diverse ways that kinfolk connect and survive. How Mobility Is Changing Europe Frances Coppola, financial writer Young and skilled workers leave struggling nations, which will eventually doom the welfare and pension systems.
The High Cost of Migration in China Gao Yu, Landesa Rural Development Institute More than 260 million migrants have relocated to cities, taking a toll on themselves, their children and their communities. Balancing growing up and growing out. Waterloo Region Record In January, the Ontario Municipal Board made a decision that is one of the biggest threats facing our community.
It ruled against the Region of Waterloo's official plan and in favour of a few land developers with financial interests in continuing the outdated urban sprawl of the 20th century. Fortunately, regional council is standing up for our community by appealing the decision to the Ontario Divisional Court. Peter Shawn Taylor's recent columns seem to suggest he believes that the region is simply being a poor sport in fighting this decision. It has been clear for some time that Taylor is out of touch with society's concerns about urban sprawl. In an alarming turn of events, our regional government has now said it has reason to believe inappropriate interaction may have occurred between the Ontario Municipal Board and the primary witness for the developers fighting the plan. There's a lot of support in our community for the region's official plan. Smart Growth: A Missing Metric | Jefferson Policy Journal.
In the lead article Peter Katz (profiled here) elaborates his thoughts on fiscal analytics and growth management. He starts with the argument, which I have embraced, that the fiscal impact of development projects is better understood by comparing revenues and costs per acre. He goes on to suggest that local governments adopt what he terms “the missing metric” — the number of years it takes property taxes to pay back a a municipality’s up-front investment to accommodate a new development project — as a tool for determining the kind of growth a community wants to encourage.
Citing examples from Sarasota, Fla., Katz contends that the taxes generated by a particular mixed-use tower downtown would pay back the public investment within three years. By comparison, a two- and three-story garden apartment complex near the Interstate would take 42 years to pay back. Fiscal impact is not the only factor municipalities consider when reviewing a development project. Email this author. Home. Www.ajpmonline.org/webfiles/images/journals/amepre/AMEPRE_3860-stamped-091013.pdf.
KUNSTLER. Jane Jacobs. Rational Urbanism - A site for people who love cities.