AltWeeklies Wire
Conservation May be the Key to Georgia's Water Warsnew
Environmentalists say Georgia is overlooking a low-cost and common-sense approach that could save money, help the environment, and show metro Atlanta's downstream neighbors that it understands the dire situation. That solution is conservation.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Thomas Wheatley |
08-25-2009 |
Environment
The Battle for an Anti-Growth Constitutional Amendment Heads to Federal Court.new
Florida Hometown Democracy was launched in 2003 to promote a state constitutional amendment that would restrict growth by forcing local comprehensive land-use changes to go to referenda. The group came close to getting on the ballot, but didn't quite make it. So they've sued.
Orlando Weekly |
Billy Manes |
06-26-2008 |
Politics
In Texas, A Storied Prison Farm Gives Way to Suburban Sprawlnew
Today it's almost impossible to tell where Houston ends and Sugar Land begins, and therein lies the story of how Sugar Land's historic prison, once considered the pride of the Texas penal system, came to find itself in the middle of one of the fastest-growing communities in the nation.
The Texas Observer |
Patsy Sims |
06-18-2008 |
Housing & Development
In Kansas City, Tax Breaks Don't Cure Blight -- They Create Sprawlnew
TIF is a tool that cities can use to spur development in distressed areas. But in Kansas City, TIF is often used to make sprawl.
The Pitch |
David Martin |
05-21-2008 |
Housing & Development
Oil Costs Reshaping the Suburbsnew
Current property values in the U.S., where the subprime-mortgage crisis has unleashed a sea of foreclosures, demonstrate how surging oil prices can affect the real-estate market. Cities with more suburban sprawl are suffering more in terms of depressed prices than denser areas that are less dependent on cars.
The Georgia Straight |
Carlito Pablo |
05-19-2008 |
Housing & Development
In Texas, Grassroots Homesteaders Tighten Ranks to Fight Urban Encroachmentnew
The mobilization of what may best be called the Hill Country Militia is an event with water at its heart -- but there are also prized historic roads and farmhouses and ranches threatened by development-driven eminent-domain seizures and an increasing awareness of the value of the region's ecosystem, cedars and all.
San Antonio Current |
Greg Harman |
05-14-2008 |
Housing & Development
Stefan Merrill Block Makes Peace with a Family Cursenew
In the tradition of James Joyce, who abandoned his native Ireland at a young age but could never stop writing about it, Block is a 26-year-old wunderkind who got to the brink of fame in his new residence of Brooklyn, New York, by ruminating on his Texas roots.
Dallas Observer |
Ben Westhoff |
05-05-2008 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Our Presidential Candidates Won't Talk About the Death of Cities -- Will Our Governors?new
Americans tend to believe that sprawl is a natural consequence of "free market" forces when, in fact, it is a consequence of governmental decision-making. Alas, the people who would lead our national government are not addressing sprawl. That means that the long-avoided discussions America ought to have on race, climate change, energy, highway construction, and agriculture will all continue to lack a certain element of reality.
Artvoice |
Bruce Fisher |
04-25-2008 |
Housing & Development
The Disappearing North Texas Cowboynew
There are still foremen and cowboys working long-term on the handful of big ranches still left in Tarrant and surrounding counties, or riding full time on their own smaller spreads, but their numbers are small and -- with the region's cities growing faster than most in the country -- getting smaller by the day.
Fort Worth Weekly |
Peter Gorman |
04-17-2008 |
Business & Labor
L.A.'s Transit Crisisnew
How hard should it be for politicians to ask Angelenos to pay for a world-class transportation system?
Los Angeles CityBeat |
Alan Mittelstaedt |
01-18-2008 |
Transportation
Water, Water ... Where?new
The hose might not reach far enough in North Texas.
Fort Worth Weekly |
Jeff Prince |
10-05-2006 |
Policy Issues
Wide Open Spacesnew
A New York State artist’s multimedia project links communities across the country that have sought creative ways to reuse abandoned big-box buildings.
