Rapidly urbanizing Seattle: Census data indicates that Seattle has grown by 116,000 since 2010.
Overpromising benefits: Tax preferences in “Opportunity Zones” probably won’t have the desired social benefits they’re billed to provide.
Births rates decline: Birth rates continue to crater in America.
Grand bike plan: Portland has laid out a roadmap for 450 miles of bike lanes.
Backing housing: Massachusetts’ legislature has agreed on $1.8 billion for affordable housing bonds.
All for the cars: Tom at Seattle Bike Blog makes the blunt observation that bike lanes are largely for people driving cars, not for people on bikes.
SPD chief shortlist: Seattle’s police chief search has been narrowed, but Interim Chief Carmen Best was eliminated from the finalist shortlist.
No corporate handouts: King County Councilmember Dave Upthegrove is opposing $180 million in public subsidies to the highly profitable Mariners, which would be used for basic upkeep of Safeco Field.
Partying for death: Despite the immense harm that gasoline presents to the environmental and public health, Democrats are fighting hard to keep the life-killing fossil fuel cheap for Americans at the pump.
Tramway, best way: Take a gander of 44 different tram systems globally.
Save the fish: A stormwater and sewer capacity project in North Seattle is running significantly overbudget, but appears slated to continue.
One track mind: An artist has been chronicling the New York City subway art in amazing detail.
Solar cities: Solar energy continues to grow as a renewable energy source in America, but what does that mean for cities?
Grand connection: Crystal City in Fairfax County, Virginia could end up with a pedestrian grand connection to its nearby airport (DCA), but it would be more than just an airport connector.
Free the transit: The free transit movement is growing globally and locally, but who is afraid of it?
Conservation: King County Executive Dow Constantine wants to use conservation futures funds to save 65,000 acres of pristine land.
Defying urbanization: In America, many old-growth forests have stood the test of time in urbanized areas.
Billed bigger: Seattle built an inexpensive bike lane, but added lots of unrelated bells and whistles ($) making the budget appear vastly overbloated.
Banning plastic straws: New York City could ban plastic straws, making it by far the largest North American city to do so.
Booting metal boxes: Madrid is kicking cars out of the city center that are not owned by local residents to reduce emissions and provide many other complimentary benefits.
