Category Archives: Urban Planning

Meanwhile, U.S. Suburbs Are Still Fiscally Unsustainable

Posted on November 10, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

I’ve made this point before, but the financial crisis soon to hit U.S. suburbia is another critical issue that wasn’t discussed at all during the presidential campaign, yet affects about half of all U.S. households (boldface mine): With infrastructure crumbling, … Continue reading →

Posted in Funding, Urban Planning | 1 Comment

Omaha And Dirt Roads: The Unsustainability Of Suburban Infrastructure

Posted on August 19, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

I might have mentioned once or twice how the truly hard problem isn’t the urban housing cost crisis (there are way to fix this; we just don’t want to do it), but the fiscal unsustainability of the suburbs: While Paul … Continue reading →

Posted in Urban Planning | 1 Comment

Car Carnage

Posted on April 15, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Last week, New Yorker cartoonist William Hamilton died in a car crash. According to reports, he lost control of his car and killed himself*. As I noted when mathematician John Nash and his wife Alicia were killed, once you get … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles, Fucking Morons, Transportation, Urban Planning | 2 Comments

The Wicked Problem Is Suburban, Not Urban

Posted on April 7, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

One theme that flares up every so often is the problem of unaffordable housing in cities. While this is a challenge to fix, it’s not a ‘wicked problem.’ There two things we can do: building more housing, and reduce the … Continue reading →

Posted in Urban Planning | 1 Comment

On Welfare States and Towns

Posted on March 20, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

-why do areas so dependent on federal funding seem to despise the federal govt A bizarre reality of U.S. politics is that those areas that receive the most federal largesse are often those who despise the federal government the most. … Continue reading →

Posted in Urban Planning | 1 Comment

The Idiocy of Urban Tiny Houses

Posted on February 14, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

When we last visited D.C. Councilman and former Pepco executive (which should be a disqualification for high office), he was attempting to use zoning regulations to prevent young or poor people from moving into neighborhoods–because what cities need is unresponsive … Continue reading →

Posted in DC, Housing, Urban Planning | 3 Comments

D.C. Makes Some Good Parking Policy

Posted on January 22, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Since I highlight the myriad and diverse ways in which the local D.C. government screws things up, I should be fair and note when it does something right: Currently, developers constructing new residential buildings in DC must build a certain … Continue reading →

Posted in DC, Housing, Transportation, Urban Planning | 1 Comment

Suburban Sustainability: The Rockford Files Edition

Posted on January 13, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

And I mean Rockford, IL (boldface mine): Rockford is located about 85 miles west of Chicago, was chartered in 1852, and currently has a population of about 150,000. An industrial giant in its heyday, Rockford faces the challenge of reinventing … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Urban Planning | 1 Comment

What Is the Commons of the Suburb?

Posted on January 10, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

While topically, this article from December about the Black Lives Matter protests in Minneapolis is obviously dated, it indirectly raises an important point about public commons (boldface mine): Judge Karen Janisch granted the order as it pertained to three named … Continue reading →

Posted in Urban Planning | 3 Comments

Deferred in the ‘Burbs

Posted on December 31, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

There is a the long-term–and completely undiscussed–problem U.S. suburbs face: Something that’s lurking in the background of the U.S. economy, and which will erupt with a fury in ten years or so is the need to replace suburban infrastructure: underground … Continue reading →

Posted in Urban Planning | 8 Comments