Newsroom

Nov 23, 2010

An interesting piece today over at Next American City discusses how the proliferation of “hyperlocal” blogs and web sites is impacting urban planning. Highlighting a number of sites focused on the metro Washington region the piece argues that urban planning a field sometimes perceived as unapproachable by the general public (either by design or by the wonkish nature of the discipline) is becoming more connected to the people it affects – a positive development.

Nov 22, 2010

Leaders in the metropolitan Washington region have embarked on an unprecedented regional effort to develop the most competitive workforce in the country.

Nov 22, 2010

As the transformative nature of the technological revolution of the past few decades became obvious to folks around the world much of the conventional wisdom argued that location would become an obsolete factor in our daily lives. If we can tweet and meet online from practically anywhere in the world why does it matter if you’re in San Francisco or South Dakota?

Nov 18, 2010

The facts on the table are as such: most scientists believe that the earth’s climate is changing and that humanity’s actions are the cause of this change. Even accepting that at least for this post there are still difficult hurdles to cross before effective policies can be put in place to prevent (or at least reduce) the consequences of climate change.

Nov 17, 2010

Urges stronger role for MD and VA Governors, DC Mayor to ensure accountability, restore confidence

Nov 16, 2010

When reading Lydia DePillis’ post from a few days ago on whether NoMa will turn out to be simply L’Enfant Plaza with snazzier design we here at The Yardstick began to wonder what really makes neighborhoods or business districts work? And since RF is all about measurable targets we’re not interested merely in what conventional wisdom says but rather what leads to tangible results.

Nov 15, 2010

Peggy Sand Director of the Capital Area Foreclosure Network

Nov 15, 2010

The United States has long been a country that values home ownership. It is often argued that home ownership fosters the development of a citizenry that places more emphasis on community involvement and betterment. This widespread belief has produced relatively high rates of home ownership (65% of Americans own their homes). Despite these benefits the current system of subsidies and tax deductions that encourage home ownership have the unfortunate consequence of also promoting suburban sprawl​

Nov 12, 2010

Stopping and reversing urban sprawl is seen as essential for bringing the Potomac River back to good health according to a recent report by the Potomac Conservancy. The report cites three land use scenarios for metro Washington from the present until 2030. The “Current Growth” (business-as-usual) scenario shows the amount of agricultural land and forests/wetlands dropping substantially while the amount of developed land skyrockets.

Nov 12, 2010

A recent article in The Washington Post presents a startling picture of the divergence in well-being between white and black residents of the metro Washington region. Although the region ranked at the top of the list for overall well-being – measured by health education and income) – there are a number of areas where the divide between white and black residents is significant; life expectancy being perhaps the starkest example: “White D.C. residents have the longest life expectancy of whi