Perceptions of Sustainability Sustainability is the paradigm of our age.i Architects, urban planners, real estate developers, technology companies, college campuses, food distributors, nearly everyone is doing it. Regrettably, conversation surrounding sustainability is commonly directed at one, shallow resolve: proclaiming whether something is or is not sustainable. Use these biodegradable sponges, they’re sustainable! Don’t buy a […]
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Reforming the MTA
Please feel free to view my Capstone: Bridging the Transportation Finance Gap: Planning Beyond Boundaries for a Connected 21st Century Please also feel free to view my Senior Honors Thesis: (Re)New Your City, New York City: Transporting Transformation Hubs New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is constantly running trains, but it is also constantly running […]
Enabling Communities to Build Their Own Plazas
All over the country more and more cities are catching on to the idea that public space can be created quickly and cheaply; expensive master plans are becoming a thing of the past. Typically a community partner—a business improvement district or non-profit community organization—can apply through the municipality to transform an excessive roadway into […]
Ameraissance of Transportation Finance
“New York never stops. From morning-rush commuters to late-night club-goers, from school children on subways to seniors on buses, millions of people rely on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to get them through their daily lives. Without a robust and well-maintained network of railroads, subways, bus routes, bridges, and tunnels, New York as we […]
Flemish Government Architect’s Office Abolished
As austerity measures sweep across the European continent, the freshly installed Flemish government abolished the position of Vlaams Bouwmeester, or Flemish Government Architect, last month. This news follows after the City of Antwerp had abolished the position of Stadsbouwmeester, or City Architect last year. Though it is difficult to translate this job title, the Vlaams […]
Is the Singapore Housing Model Right for New York City?
Singapore is often touted as being an exorbitantly expensive place to live. It’s so recognizably pricey in fact, that the small city-state recently snatched first place in 2014’s list of Most Expensive Cities in the world. But as the Singaporean newspaper The Straits Times points out, perhaps this global Cost of Living exercise is […]
Water in the City
In case anyone missed it, San Francisco banned water bottles smaller than 21 ounces from City-owned property in the spring, which is pretty amazing. New York City, in spite of the previous Mayor’s attacks on more sugary drinks, has not gone so far, but has been using more of a carrot approach to try to […]
Gentrification in the Plateau, Montreal’s most famous neighborhood
By Alyssa Campbell The Plateau-Mont-Royal is arguably Montreal’s most famous neighborhood. Ranked by many publications as one of North America’s “best neighborhoods,” the Plateau has built a reputation for being a hip area with trendy bars, shopping, restaurants and cafes. Yet four decades ago life in the neighborhood was quite the opposite, on the precipice of […]
Cities lose big in Obama’s 2015 US Budget
Looming medical costs, a retiring workforce, defense department spending, and immigration reform were some of the major discussion points of the 2015 U.S. Government Budget, released on March 4th. With what’s been touted as alarming deficit spending, the Obama Administration and Congress chose to make large cuts to domestic environmental and science programs, as well […]
Air Rights, Historic Preservation & the battle for NYC Real Estate
The Three-Headed Cerberus of NYC Air Rights article by guest writer Kamini Ramdeen New York City prides itself on being one of the most forward-thinking cities in the world. Situated on a small island filled with history, the city has an obligation to continue to push the boundaries in whichever form they may come. […]
