With the world’s population topping 8 billion people and decent, safe, affordable housing becoming increasingly hard to find urbanists and housing advocates are pushing hard for the development of more housing units, creating images of more dense neighborhoods in municipalities. At least on the coastal states of the USA where the pressure for housing is… Read More
Re-Building America Starting Now
From Helen Cox Richardson’s Nov. 5 dispatch: “At about 11:30 p.m., the House of Representatives passed the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684) by a vote of 228–206. Biden promised to pass a bipartisan measure and after nine months of hard work, he did it: thirteen Republicans voted in favor of the… Read More
Infrastructure Returns to USA ….But Not Maintenance
Maintaining our infrastructure is expensive. ITDP estimates the cost to maintain the public’s built infrastructure at 1.4% of the cost to build the infrastructure. What this $1 Trillion infrastructure bill is intended to cover are the one time renovations required in our most essential infrastructure systems. The money will address the renovations needed for roads, bridges, electric and water systems, etc. for the decades of neglect. The money does NOT address the cost of maintaining our infrastructure. Read More
Russia Revitalizes Urban Spaces
from Charlemagne: What a campaign to revive Russia’s urban spaces means for civil society, Economist, 8-11-18 SOVIET SQUARE in Voronezh no longer looks especially Soviet. Children dart through a dancing fountain. BMX bikers barrel across new tiles. Grassy groves play home to picnicking teens. “It’s practically Spain,” gushes a pensioner. The newly reconstructed square is one… Read More
Sachs Defines Essential Infrastructure “Long Game”
Jeffrey Sachs recommends: Rather than trying to deploy construction workers within the next 60 days, I propose that we envision the kind of built environment we want for the next 60 years. With a shared vision of America’s infrastructure goals, actually designing and building the new transport, energy, communications, and water systems will surely require… Read More
Flint Not Alone In “Municipal Trifecta of Doom”
Flint Michigan’s water problem will be repeated around the country. Race may be an issue. Low income residents are definitely an issue. But the cause is the “municipal trifecta of doom”: aging infrastructure, declining revenue base and higher costs for municipal bonds. “About two thirds of all infrastructure in the United States is financed by… Read More
Creating a Facilities Maintenance Department: Arlington Case Study
In Spring 2015, Arlington’s legislative body voted to approve the establishment of a new department to oversee Facilities Maintenance. Ruth Bennett, Architect, was hired in August, 2015 to head the new department. The process of establishing the department was the result of recommendations from the Capital Planning Committee to the Board of Selectman who established… Read More
Infrastructure: John Oliver Explains it All (HBO)
So you don’t think infrastructure can be fun? Watch comedian John Oliver explain its intricate, critically important, hilarious fascinations in this video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wpzvaqypav8 Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Infrastructure (HBO) Infrastructure investment will save lives. Also, from: CEO FORUM GROUP: “Infrastructure refers to the large-scale public systems, services, and facilities of a country… Read More
Fate of Boston’s Failed 2024 Olympics Bid – Determined in 1822
Boston is no longer in the running for the 2024 Summer Olympics. While the City convulses in streams of joy and sorry, the question “what went wrong” emerges. The answer to that question may go back to 1822 when the city was incorporated, over 200 years before the Olympics would have happened. Or maybe the… Read More
Olympics 2024 – Proxy for a Real Boston Master Plan Process
Don’t pick the fruit until it’s ripe. That was one of the more profound lessons learned from my favorite Capital Finance professor. The people of Boston, contemplating a decision about whether or not the city should host the Olympics in 2024 would be wise to take this lesson to heart. The City of Boston, with… Read More
Public Buildings & Services: How Much Does Municipality Need?
Article 8 in a series on the Arlington, MA Master Planning process. Prepared by Barbara Thornton Town buildings, both school and municipal, comprise 1.3 million square feet of building space. That is a lot of property to maintain. And it doesn’t include the Town’s open space, parks and fields. Some properties key to the town’s… Read More