The New Urbanism is a design movement toward complete, compact, connected communities—but it is also a generator of ideas that transform the landscape. Communities are shaped by the movement and flow of ideas, and the … [Read more...]
Great Idea: Context-based street design
For much of the last century, thoroughfares were designed for maximum motor-vehicle mobility, often making cities and towns dysfunctional for people outside of cars. In walkable neighborhoods and centers, streets are … [Read more...]
Great idea: The public realm
More and more people are appreciating that architecture and urban design of streets and public spaces have the power to connect, engage, and inspire all of us. Complete streets are more than bike … [Read more...]
Great idea: Rethinking parking
From coast to coast and in middle America, more sensible parking policies are taking hold and may be the quickest path to urban revitalization. Parking is one of the primary shapers of US … [Read more...]
Great idea: Form-based codes
New urban codes have allowed cities and towns to code for complete neighborhoods and public spaces as shared-use places. Since the middle of the 20th Century, zoning has been a force toward … [Read more...]
Great idea: Mixed-use urban centers
In the 20th Century, retail shifted from main streets and downtowns to strip shopping centers, enclosed malls, and big box stores. Building and revitalizing urban centers is one of the great tasks of the New Urbanism, … [Read more...]
Great idea: Incremental development
Great places are built in small increments, and urbanists are restoring America's know-how and capacity for small-scale development by many individuals in their own communities. Do you want to be a small … [Read more...]
Great idea: Missing middle housing
Increasingly in demand today, missing middle housing forms the backbone of the quintessential American neighborhood. In celebration of the upcoming CNU 25.Seattle, Public Square is running the … [Read more...]