Opinion Posts
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Which siding are you on? Through the historic district looking glass
Advocates for historic districts often claim that historic status does not meaningfully increase the costs and hassles of homeownership. Wood siding has entered the chat. Keep reading…
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Transit Diary: Brian Goggin, getting around SW DC and Arlington
As part of our new Transit Diaries series, we asked several people how they got around the region. Here’s what they had to say. Keep reading…
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Sarah Langenkamp loved biking. She shouldn’t have died because of it.
In August, Sarah Langenkamp lost her life to a transportation system that failed to protect her and 40,000 other road users this year. Authorities must open their eyes and hearts to what car-centric infrastructure costs families like the Langenkamps. Keep reading…
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In 1931, this parking lot in Cleveland Park changed how Washington shopped
Many people are perplexed as to why Sam’s Park & Shop in Cleveland Park is a historical landmark. While it may look like an ordinary strip mall, the Park & Shop was one of the first examples of retail architecture designed around the automobile. Keep reading…
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DDOT’s newest plan for this dangerous Eckington intersection is a dud
Eight years later, is DDOT moving backwards on safety on Lincoln Road NE? Keep reading…
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New UN climate report points to compact cities, moving people not just electric cars, to cut emissions
A recent United Nations Emissions Gap Report reveals what many advocates already know: We need walkable, compact, transit-oriented communities, shifting more travel to walking, biking, and transit, and a transition to electric vehicles in order to slash emissions to safe levels. Keep reading…
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A divisive Arlington housing proposal can help save the climate and our wallets
“Missing middle” housing will not only help save our climate, but it will aid in rectifying past housing discrimination and bias in Arlington. Keep reading…
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Will Richmond’s plan to remove mandatory parking minimums pass?
The City of Richmond could soon join a lengthening list of localities no longer telling business owners and developers how much parking their properties must provide. @yitgordon reports: Keep reading…
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Virginia’s new Office of Trails has $89 million to spend. So what projects will they prioritize?
Virginia’s General Assembly appropriated a historic $89 million for a new Office of Trails earlier this year, yet no spending decisions beyond a first $5 million round have been made. Advocates and local officials alike are now wondering which projects will win funding and how soon the money could start flowing. Keep reading…
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These three DC neighborhoods almost became freeway-oriented suburbia
Planners in the 1950s wanted to replace large swaths of central Washington with freeways. Canceling those plans saved the city not just from the freeways themselves, but also from an equally stunning plan to demolish thousands more blocks alongside said freeways and “renew” them with a suburban landscape of strip malls, office campuses, and apartment towers. Keep reading…