One of the chief arguments in favor of the suburbs is simply that that is where millions and millions of people actually live. If so many Americans live in suburbs, this must be proof that they actually prefer suburban locations to urban ones. The counterargument, of course, is that people can only choose from among […]
How do we know zoning really constrains development? Read More »
City Observatory believes in using data to understand problems and fashion solutions. But sometimes the quantitative data that’s available is too limited to enable us to see what’s really going on. And incomplete data can lead us to the wrong conclusions. Our use of data is subject to what we call the “drunk under the
The limits of data-driven approaches to planning Read More »
Cheaper gas comes at a high price: More driving, more dying, more pollution. We’re at the peak of the summer driving season, and millions of Americans will be on the road. While gas prices are down from the highs of just a few years ago, there’s still a significant price to be paid. As the
The Summer Driving Season & The High Price of Cheap Gas Read More »
What City Observatory did this week 1. The national party platforms on transit. In November, most Americans will be choosing between a party whose platform offers the barest details and seemingly little understanding of urban transportation and a party whose platform is “more or less openly hostile” to it. 2. Marietta’s victory over affordable housing. Last year we
The Week Observed: Aug. 12, 2016 Read More »
Last week, the Washington Post reported that the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., has ordered new ridership projections for the proposed Purple Line light rail line, which will connect a series of Maryland suburbs. Like any multi-billion dollar project that serves a densely settled metropolitan area—and this one connects some of its wealthiest suburbs—there’s
Court: Don’t spend billions on outdated travel forecasts Read More »
Readers of the Aug. 19 Week Observed: here’s the piece you’re looking for. Here’s a puzzle: If 89 percent of Apple’s ideas are invented in the U.S., why is 92 percent of its profit overseas? The link between local economies and tax bases has long been obvious and physical. Companies paid property taxes on their
Patents, place, and profit Read More »
Last summer, we told here the story of Marietta, Georgia, where local officials used $65 million in taxpayer funds to buy up and begin demolishing some 1,300 apartments along Franklin Road. This is a striking case where the displacement of low income families was an explicit objective of public policy, rather than the side-effect of
A postcard from Marietta Read More »
In the first installment of this two-part series, we investigated what each of the major party platforms had to say about a crucial urban policy issue: housing. This time, we’re taking a look at another major concern for American cities: transportation. (It’s also definitely worthwhile to read what other people have written on the subject,
The party platforms on transit Read More »
What City Observatory did this week 1. The case for more Ubers. From mobile phones to microchips, it’s clear that even mega-companies must act in consumer interest when competition forces them to. When Uber and Lyft can pull out of Austin in response to new regulations, that’s a sign that they’re not facing enough healthy
The Week Observed: Aug. 5, 2016 Read More »
Back in 2009, in the darkest days of the Great Recession, Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke attempted to reverse the economic pessimism that gripped the nation. He pointed to what he called “green shoots,” small bits of good news around the country. To him, the green shoots showed that the economy was turning around, the
Five consecutive years of job growth: a clear cause for optimism in Detroit Read More »
