Posts tagged Cities
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Tell the DC Council: We need more public bathrooms downtown
Despite the fact that downtown DC receives more than 20 million visitors a year and hosts thousands of more residents every day, it currently only has five public restrooms available during the day off the Mall — all of the rest are privately operated. A bill before the DC Council this fall could change that, but it needs your help. Keep reading…
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Which jurisdiction in the Washington region has the most representation?
The Washington region is made up of a lot of different local governments, and every person who lives in the area has someone who represents them at a city, county, and/or state level. I calculated which Washington region voters get more representation for their vote, and which get less. Keep reading…
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DC has more historic buildings than Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia combined. Why?
As of 2016, DC had designated 26,749 properties as historic landmarks or historic districts. That’s 19.4 percent of all properties in the District — a proportion many times higher than in cities that are larger and/or older than Washington. Keep reading…
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Baltimore’s peers have lessons for Charm City’s $1 home program
As a followup to our initial post about Baltimore's potential $1 home program, we decided to take a look at how successful these initiatives have been in other cities. People line up for dollar homes, but in most cases the initial enthusiasm meets the tough realization that a $1 property would not be habitable from day one. Keep reading…
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London’s new plan shows what it’s like when a city takes a housing shortage seriously
London’s Plan is still in its early stages of public feedback and development, but while we wait for DC’s own amendment process to come to fruition, it’s worth looking to other big-city plans like this for inspiration and ideas. Keep reading…
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Here are the most popular forms of transit in different cities
DC uses buses less than many metropolitan areas, and could perhaps benefit from light rail. Here's what a look at the most popular forms of transit in cities across the US can tell us about the options in the Washington region. Keep reading…
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Accessory apartments are on the rise, but it’s been a long fight to get here
Cities in our region are just starting to unlock the potential of accessory dwellings. There is still more to be done, but let’s take a moment to look back on how hard it was to get to this point. Keep reading…
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Urbanists near you are organizing, are you? - GGWash housing digest
Here's what your urbanist neighbors across the Washington region have been up to these past few months: what we're writing, what we're reading, what we're working on, and ways you can take action. Keep reading…
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Why don’t we take a cue from Europe and Boston, and allow alcohol on the National Mall?
In DC, it’s an open secret that players in the social sports leagues on the National Mall are not carrying soda or water in their red solo cups. So why don't we just take a cue from Europe and allow alcohol in public parks already? Keep reading…
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DC’s height restrictions are contentious. Here’s what we could learn from cities around the world.
Height restrictions aren’t a black-and-white issue; cities around the world have balanced historical preservation and modern development in a variety of different ways. What could DC learn from Paris, Milan, London, and others? Keep reading…