The American Dream Communicator
News & commentary about urban policy in America’s cities
Save the Date
June 10-12, 2010 – the 8th Annual Preserving the American Dream Conference, Orlando, Florida
Mobility & Transportation
Walkable Fantasy – Randal O’Toole, Big Sky Business Journal
GPS Users Reveal Which US Cities Are Truly The Most Congested – Fox Business
TomTom’s 20 Most Traffic Congested Cities – Jalopnik.com
Zipcar & Zimride expand car and ride sharing program to reduce congestion – PR Newswire
U.S. scrapped more cars than bought new ones – Reuters.com
The next ten years: Smart cars, smart roads, more transit – Deseret News, Utah
Web site aims to help riders share a cab from Sea-Tac – Seattle Times
Virginia DOT Defends Red Light Camera Study – theNewspaper.com
Billboard Big Brother? – Sam Staley, Reason.com
Freight trains make big comeback in nation’s transportation network – L.A. Times
Reducing Congestion & Improving Travel Options in Los Angeles – New Geography
FasTracks funding gap widens – Denver Post
Public transit funding favors white riders: Lawsuit – Breaking News Center, Chicago
SeaTac buys 4.2-acre site for $12.7M for light rail station – Puget Sound Business Journal
Buses are no longer free in downtown Portland – Oregon Live
Governor says Pennsylvania’s transit agencies will get toll revenues – Toll Road News
Lawsuit Alleges Racial Discrimination in Illinois Transit – Chicago Public Radio
Man falls in front of departing MAX train, survives – The Oregonian
Two injured after car and light rail train collision in Minnesota – JusticeNewsFlash.com
Girl hit by train, killed in Middle River – Baltimore Sun
Housing & Land Use
Housing: Density & Desire – Rick Harrison, New Geography
Why our bubble wasn’t bigger – John Hood, Daily Journal, North Carolina
Avoiding Housing Bubbles: Regulating the (Land Use) Regulators – Wendell Cox, New Geography
The affordable housing myth – Hollister Free Lance
Unraveling the Mystery of ‘Affordable’ Housing – New York Times
D.C. heat stagnates Baltimore’s air – Baltimore Sun
Retail space opens up as big chains shrink – L.A. Times
U.S. Loan Effort Is Seen as Adding to Housing Woes – New York Times
Why New York City Needs a New Economic Strategy – Joel Kotkin, New Geography
Texas Doesn’t Just Hold ‘Em; It Gains ‘Em – CoStar Groups
Migration Matters – Urbanophile
Collier suspends impact fee relief for affordable housing units – Naples News, Florida
State objects to development plan – FloridaToday.com
Effort to limit Valley sprawl hits crucial stage – Fresno Bee
Ambitious Downtown Transit Project Is at Hand – New York Times
Oregon’s Land Use Planners Face The New Year – OPB News, Washington
Portland’s counties argue over growth – Statesman Journal
County miffed over impact of TIFs – StJoesNews.net, Missouri
Year of the TIF – Chicago Journal
Columbia U Gets a Lesson in Property Rights – Wall Street Journal
Justice: Eagan took eminent domain authority too far – Minneapolis Star-Tribune
A blight grows in Brooklyn – George Will, Merced Star-Sun
Freedom & Grassroots/Three Cheers!
‘Command and control’ growth management won’t work – Ed Braddy, Gainesville Sun, Florida
Steven Greenhut launches the new Cal Watch Dog website – Orange Juice Blog
Affordable housing ruling a setback to cities – San Francisco Chronicle
Petitioning to start on eminent domain measure in Missouri – Joplin Globe
One Place, Two Cities
Incentive to kick driving habit in Austin – Statesman.com
Austin workers get access to cars for business or personal use – Chronicle
Not So Sustainable
Public Transit 2010: Higher Fares and Less Service – Eileen Norcross, Neighborhood Effects
US Public-Transit Passengers Face Rough Ride – Transport Workers Solidarity Committee
Washington Metro to cut call center hours to ease shortfall – Washington Post
Metro board asked to wield knife on service this week – Washington Examiner
High Speed Rail
High-speed rail should go underground in San Jose – Mercury News
Las Vegas Monorail Exhausting Ambac Surety for Debt – Bloomberg.com
Hawaii will probably hold public hearings on rail transit – Honolulu Advertiser
Train fares have gone off the rails – The Guardian, UK
Lobbying For Stops On High-Speed Rail Line – News-13, Florida
Bullet-train folly – Press-Enterprise, California
Growth Management Globally
Planned cities have all the answers – MumbaiMirror.com
For Some in Japan, Home Is a Tiny Plastic Bunk – New York Times
Across the Tracks
What we learned from the stimulus (PDF) – Smart Growth America
Rethinking Public Participation for Smart Growth – City Fix
Wheels come off an American romance – C-Questor Newsletter
Dodd and Dorgan Retiring: The Consequences for Transportation Policy – Streetsblog.org
Congress still can’t find Main Street – Charlotte Observer
Another year, another light rail plan – Prime Buzz, Kansas City
Backers say busway & rail plans more than just ways to connect cities – Hartford Courant
Is car-sharing environmentally counter-productive? – P2P Foundation
Transit Agencies Upset by Schwarzenegger’s Plan to Divert Funds – San Francisco Streetsblog
Planners getting ‘smart’ training – Cumberland Times-News, Maryland
Smart Growth Leader Tells Planning Commission: NYC Can Do Better – New York Streetsblog
Moving toward a sustainable economy – The Cap Times, Wisconsin
Two-Legged Creatures in a Four-Wheeled World – Biscayne Times, Florida
Two (very different) planned towns in Maryland – Discovering New Urbanism
Encouraging developers to take a “GreenTRIP” – Smart Growth America
Too True To Be Good
People stranded in train rescued after 25 hours in China – The International News
State Officials See 66-Point Plan As Guide To Prosperity – Hartford Courant
San Jose, home developers balk at proposed air pollution guidelines – Mercury News
Stop this train, I want to get (my pants) off – Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Metro train nearly hits independent safety inspectors – Washington Post
Quote of the Year Nominees*
“I can coexist with Columbia. Why can’t Columbia coexist with me?” Businessman Nick Sprayregen, who is fighting an eminent domain action by Columbia University.
“What we think this is, is a money grab by the local government.” Tom Lykos of the Collier Building Industry Association, on his county’s decision to re-impose impact fees.
“I’m a big fan of light rail,” said the Capitol Hill resident. “But people still take cabs. This is a little experiment to see if it works.” Ben Eidelson, co-proprietor of a website promoting cab-sharing at the Seattle airport.
* Comments? Please send me your feedback at ed@americandreamcoalition.org.
** Check out Interviews with the Experts for the latest commentary on trends taking place in cities all across America. **
*** This Communicator sponsored by Happy Smart Growth ***
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