Every day, The Overhead Wire collects national and international news about cities and sends the links to their email list. At the end of the week they post some of the most popular stories to Greater Greater Washington, a group blog similar to Streets.mn that focuses on urban issues in the D.C. region.
Wildfire smoke and urban violence: New research suggests that wildfire smoke is contributing to a rise in violence on the days that the air is full of particulates. Taking EPA data from Seattle which has had its fair share of wildfires and from Seattle Police Department, Lion Kircheis, from the University of Konstanz, found that an increase of 7 micrograms per cubic meter in particulates led to 3.6% more assaults. (Jheni Osman | BBC Science Focus)
Bay Area transit campaign moves forward: A campaign to collect signatures for a ballot measure that would fund bay area transit through a sales tax has turned in over 300,000, the largest effort in Bay Area history. The measure needed 186,000 to get on the ballot. The sales tax if passed by voters would enact a 14 year sales tax in bay area counties to fund transit service. (Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman | KQED)
Solving the problems of parking lots: Parking lots of concrete and asphalt cause a lot of environmental problems including adding to urban heat islands and generating excess stormwater. Some cities are looking into ways to mitigate these impacts including reduced parking requirements, pervious pavements, and lighter colored materials to reflect sunlight. (Aya Diab and Alexa St. John | Associated Press)
Courtyard blocks a way forward: Courtyard blocks are a lost architectural art in the United States but seen in most of Europe. The building design in which a continuous building wall encircles a whole block while containing interior green space could be a way to create more social connectedness and reduce growing loneliness in communities argue Alicia Pederson and Kat Vellos. Creating both strong public and private spaces make it a perfect design for fostering connection. (Alicia Pederson, Kat Vellos | Common Edge)
Rise of build-to-rent: Build to rent single family housing has been a growing market in the United States, making up just 2% of housing starts in the 1990s to more than 7% today in part because of the reordering of the housing market in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The business structure has been getting more attention after the Senate version of the ROAD to Housing Act required investors to sell seven years after construction. (Brian Potter | Construction Physics)
This week on the Talking Headways podcast, we’re joined by Cardozo Law professor Michael Pollack to talk about his new book Sidewalk Nation: The Life and Law of America’s Most Overlooked Resource.
Quote of the Week
“At the end of the day, the average, everyday person — they don’t care about what the board makeup is. All they care about is being able to get from Point A to Point B effectively and safely. I think this bill is a step in the right direction to doing that and being able to better serve our communities.”
—Colorado State Rep. Jamie Jackson in Colorado Newsline discussing a new law passed to restructure the board of the Denver region’s transit agency.