Monday, Y-Combinator, an early-stage technology startup incubator, announced it will “study building new, better cities.” Some existing cities will get bigger and there's important work being done by smart people to improve them. We also think it’s possible to do amazing things given a blank slate. … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2016
ReasonTV on SF’s YIMBY Movement
Last week, Reason.tv (the multimedia outlet of Reason Magazine) published a video about San Francisco's YIMBY movement. The video describes the decades of underdevelopment in San Francisco as the result of community activism intended to limit the supply of new construction. As a result, San … [Read more...]
Do The Rich Cause High Rents?
One common argument against building new housing is that new construction will never reduce housing costs, because the influx of ultra-rich people into high-cost cities creates an insatiable level of demand.I recently found a source of information that may be relevant to this argument: the … [Read more...]
Market Urbanism MUsings June 24, 2016
1. This week at Market Urbanism Brent Gaisford contributed Lack of New Housing On The Westside Is Causing Gentrification Of East And South LAThere are a lot of reasons for gentrification, but the lack of new housing on the Westside deserves a lot of the blame in recent years. As … [Read more...]
Lack of New Housing On The Westside Is Causing Gentrification Of East And South LA
[Research help for this article was provided by UCLA student Mitchell Boswell]The past 15 years have seen a hell of a lot of gentrification in LA. 15% of our poor neighborhoods have undergone gentrification since the year 2000, and it feels like things have only accelerated since the end of the … [Read more...]
Market Urbanism MUsings June 17, 2016
1. This week at Market Urbanism Matt Robare summarizes Massachusetts' zoning reform: Massachusetts Senate Passes Zoning Reformthe bill directs municipalities to allow accessory dwelling units as-of-right in single-family residential districts; permits more as-of-right multifamily housing; … [Read more...]
Three Lessons Public Transit Can Learn From Uber
Every form of transportation has some unique considerations. Car drivers worry a great deal about parking near their destination–a consideration bus riders don’t need to think about. But, as transit consultant Jarrett Walker has written about, some considerations are universal. As Uber and Lyft have … [Read more...]
Are High-Rises More Expensive?
One common argument against allowing the construction of taller apartment buildings is that tall buildings cost more to build, and thus are "overwhelmingly occupied by the wealthy." For example, tall buildings, unlike houses and walk-up buildings, require elevators.But in fact, fairly tall … [Read more...]