. New York City does not lack visionaries or visionary plans with hindsight, foresight, and insight, but these visionaries lack power. Instead, “borderline criminals” continue to dim our future. America has spent trillions rebuilding Iraq and Afghanistan, but when it comes to maintaining the infrastructure of a region with a $1.4 trillion GDP, money can’t seem to […]
Tag Archives: New York
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 […]
Mr. TOD
The Tale of Mr. TOD Once upon a time, Mr. Tod arrived in New York. And the rest was not yet history. The tale is still, obviously, unfolding. Will Mr. Tod be able to create mobile, accessible, and affordable neighborhoods? Or will Mr. Tod only support luxury? Mr. Tod, of course, is Mr. Transit-Oriented Development. He’s more and more popular these […]
(In)formality (In)justice
As many New Yorkers know, the rent is too damn high. The neighborhoods of New York have always been dynamic and ever-changing, and today, this continues to be true, but perhaps, on a level unforeseen in recent memory. Many are being priced out of our neighborhoods that they’ve lived in, sometimes for generations. So I asked Jimmy […]
Transformation Hubs
Most Americans did not own cars in the early 20th century. There were no trucks, there were no planes. Instead of taking the highway or heading to the airport, people went to the train station. Indeed, railroad transportation was essentially the only convenient way to get around. Intercity passenger railroads were profitable. Commuter lines were […]
(Re)New Your City, New York City: European Best Practices for NYC
After waiting for three trains to enter and to leave Fulton Street before I could fit inside (there were delays), I had one more example to use when explaining why we need better public transportation. But what does better transportation mean? It depends on our geography, our culture, our economy, our politics, and our history. […]
Newburgh and New ‘Burbs: A 21st Century Plan for a 20th Century City
The Hudson River shines only a five minute walk away, and the mountains and forests surrounding the river are surreal. From the bustling and wide boulevards – some of the widest in the State – farmland can be seen in the distance. Old, colonial buildings dot the landscape, which served as the Headquarters of the […]
32 images that answer: “How Long is Long Island?”
Using a tool called MAPfrappe I’ve put together some images that compare the geographic scale of Long Island to other places in our region, and across the world. As I’ve mentioned before, even though I live in Brooklyn I consider myself a Long Islander. I am from a town on the north shore called Mt. […]
Are Mumbai’s floor area regulations restricting its development? Some lessons from New York City.
Mumbai is undergoing a crisis in optimal allocation of its restricted land resources to improve the health, safety, and quality of life of its 12 million residents. In a paper titled “Mumbai FAR/FSI Conundrum, The perfect storm: the four factors restricting the construction of new floor space in Mumbai”, Alain Bertaud examines the existing housing […]
Labor Day-Trips from New York City
Check out five staycations in Riverhead, Montauk, Sands Point Preserve, Robert Moses State Park, and Lambertville… Riverhead, Long Island Once synonymous with “Main Street Blight,” Riverhead’s downtown is undergoing a (tepid) resurgence.
