ARTICLES
The Original Articles archives of CharacterTowns.org presents papers that discuss practical and conceptual ideas for designing, building and managing character towns and small cities that are interesting, pleasant and prosperous places for residents, businesses and visitors.
The Olmsted Conference
Beginning on American History TV, C-SPAN, aired a conference on the 200th anniversary of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted, […]
Vision-Driven Strategy
The Idea of Vision-Driven Strategy. A strategy is the general idea one has about how to implement a vision. Essentially, […]
Walmart Billionaire Marc Lore Is Planning a $500 Billion “City of the Future”
Called “Telosa,” the urban center could potentially house up to five million residents somewhere in the American Southwest While other […]
Washington’s Oil Lobby Pivoted on Climate Change and Made No One Happy.
WASHINGTON—The American Petroleum Institute, Washington’s biggest lobby for the oil-and-gas industry, spent decades leveraging its financial muscle to fight almost […]
NOAA’s Arctic Program.
The 2020 Report Card: “The sustained transformation to a warmer, less frozen and biologically changed Arctic remains clear.” “Extreme warm […]
Wells Fargo to Donate $1 Billion for Affordable Housing
Three unnamed cities are on a shortlist to score a philanthropic windfall from the Wells Fargo Foundation, the scandal-plagued megabank’s […]
What is a Makerspace?
A makerspace is a collaborative work space inside a school, library or separate public/private facility for making, learning, exploring and […]
What is an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) – and Tips for Building One
From Zillow Accessory dwelling units or ADUs — those separate living units tucked inside a single family home or sharing […]
What is an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) – and Tips for Building One
Accessory dwelling units or ADUs — those separate living units tucked inside a single family home or sharing land with […]
What is Ocean Acidification?
From…Yale Center for Environmental Communication https://yaleclimateconnections.org/ What is ocean acidification? It’s a problem that threatens entire ecosystems. “In 2007, baby oysters […]
What is the future of urban life in the post-pandemic city?
“As an update to our previous Gensler City Pulse, we conducted a survey of 10 cities in February 2021 to […]
What Makes a Good Main Street Work?
“Shortly before this essay’s original posting, I participated in a terrific conference called From Main Street to Eco-Districts: Greening Our […]
Where Are the Safest Neighborhoods in Boston? by Raleigh Werner
West Roxbury, Allston/ Brighton and Dorchester top the list for “safest” neighborhoods in Boston. “Safe” is always a murky term […]
Where Will 2.5 Million New Floridians Go?
A Strategy: There are only three places to put a growing population. Florida Trend’s March 2022 Article is entitled – […]
Whitewater Parks
The Hypothetical. Communities are generally looking for ways to distinguish themselves for the benefit of their residents and businesses. Historic […]
Who Benefits in a Tech Hub?
Who Benefits in a Tech Hub? is another product from Richard Florida who continues to provide useful thoughts for how […]
Why Are Remote Corporate Workers Having More Fun? Co-Working Spaces.
For many, shared offices have become an escape from often chaotic homes — and a chance to join a community. […]
Why Co-Working Spaces Are Betting on the Suburbs
From the New York Times Start-ups are betting that the pandemic has spawned a new kind of worker who wants […]
Why the U.S. Electric Grid Isn’t Ready for the Energy Transition
From the New York Times The U.S. electric grid is often described as a vast, synchronized machine — a network […]
Wicked Problems
Wicked problems is a term of art from the high tech world. Wicked problems are ones where the nature of […]