Policy – The Urbanist Dispatch

TREVOR LAUER AT THE EDISON PLAZA BUILDING AT DTE HEADQUARTERS - DOUG COOMBE

Powering the Mitten: Making southeast Michigan’s electricity grid more resilient

Nina Ignaczak

November 5, 2014

Royal Oak resident Jenny Buchman has learned to be prepared for those days when the electricity goes out. "We've lived here for 17 years and in the last few years, it's really gotten worse," she says. "We ex...

A night view of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Campus Martius. Circa 1910. Photo from the Library of Congress.

How the rise of electricity transformed urban life in Detroit

Amy Elliott Bragg

August 8, 2014

Culture, Policy

Here's a famous story: Alex Dow, manager of the Edison Illuminating Company of Detroit, saw promise in his young chief engineer, and in 1896, he invited the engineer to join him at a conference in New York. One...

The Myth of Policy Purity

Jordan Twardy

August 4, 2014

Culture, Featured, Policy

Ideological conflict is nothing new to American politics, but the severity of the gridlock it creates – 2013’s federal government shutdown, for instance – has become especially troubling. And while we gripe abo...

Rising to Downtown Views from the roof of Detroit's Michigan Central Station. Photo by Sean Döerr, snweb.org

Address Sprawl for a Stronger Metro Detroit

Chris Matus and Emily Thompson

May 28, 2014

Featured, Policy, The Burbs

1

Detroit’s ups and downs are well documented, but the conversation often fails to frame the city as anything more than the victim of post-industrial disinvestment, mismanagement, or contentious race relations. L...

Phoenix Arizona Skyline. Photo by @alanenglish on Flickr.

Transforming the World’s Least Sustainable City

Darek Gondor

May 26, 2014

Policy, Sustainability

Like it or not, the city is becoming the lifestyle model for most of humanity. And you may be forgiven if your first image is the condo-residing, transit-commuting fashionable type who is always two electronic ...

Outside the Bowery Ballroom in New York. Photo by roeyahram on Flickr.

Gentrification: Small business survival

John Cruz

May 20, 2014

Economic Development, Featured, Policy

Ever since gentrification has existed, there have been constant struggles between existing and the new residents, who bring with them cultures, preferences, lifestyles, and spending habits which greatly alter t...

Live poultry market, Shanghai, China. Photo by kdriese on Flickr.

Avian Flu and the true uses of Zoning

Ben Bissell

March 3, 2014

Featured, Policy

In early February of this year, The Lancet alerted the world to the latest strain of HXNX avian influenzas, commonly known as bird flu, currently circulating in China. The culprit this time: H10N8. In case you ...

Planning for Height while Maintaining the Public Good

Chris Matus

January 14, 2014

Featured, Policy

1

This is the final article in a three-part series on height restrictions and zoning designed to limit density. Click here to view part one and here for part two. The previous articles in this series looked a...

Downtown San Francisco From Flicker, Courtesy of MomentsForZen

The Trouble with Height Restrictions

Chris Matus

January 6, 2014

Policy

7

This is the second article in a three part series exploring issues around height restrictions and zoning initiatives designed to limit density. Click here to view Part 1 Lately, the Bay Area has become a fla...

Old and New Paris. Photo by _Vee_ on Flickr.

A Look at Height Restrictions

Chris Matus

December 18, 2013

Policy

1

This article is the first in a three part series exploring the debate on height limits and zoning designed to limit density in development. Manhattan Skyline viewed from Central Park Growing up, my brot...