Urban Matters

cross the country, there is a shortage of mental health workers. Here in Central Illinois, it is no different. More

It pays to have friends in high places. That’s no secret. But a pair of groundbreaking studies published today in the peer-reviewed journal Nature substantiates this in a profound way, showing that cultivating these kinds of relationships is crucial for upward mobility... More

Advocates and researchers have never had stronger evidence about the best way to most effectively house people who need it: a model known as “housing first.” More

Frustration is surging among the low-wage workers who make up the backbone of the nursing home industry, as tens of thousands of their colleagues call out sick with covid-19, inflaming shortages that already were at crisis levels. Hailed as “heroes”... More

Tax Increment Financing. Local governments often hail this tool as a way to revitalize investment-deprived neighborhoods, fix dilapidated roads, clean up polluted waters, revamp blighted property, and foster commercial activity and job creation. It’s often poorly understood by city taxpayers, but it... More

What we have not figured out—and what we won’t figure out with another flood of federal infrastructure spending—is how to translate maintenance into growth. How do we go out and fill potholes and fix leaking pipes and have that result... More

This is the year we almost let public transportation die. The cuts that cash-strapped transit agencies proposed before being bailed out by Congress—eliminating 40 percent of New York City’s subway service, a fifth of the DC region’s Metro stations, two-thirds of Atlanta’s... More

The problem is not only an economic one, or one of food scarcity, but also of food accessibility. More

The eastern 20% of this country is filled with historic neighborhoods that have survived our post World War II development experiment. Many of these are thriving, but a high percent are struggling. These are mature places with three, four and greater... More

Among the most visible changes in the built environment from the pandemic are reimagined streets. During lockdowns, cities all over the world turned residential and commercial corridors into slow (or no) vehicle zones for pedestrians, cyclists, cafe seating, parklets and... More