Sustainable Communities

• Small Farmers Creating a New Business Model as Agriculture Goes Local
• Source: New York Times   |   Seattle, Wash.   |   July 2, 2012
• The movement toward local food is creating a vibrant new economic laboratory for American agriculture. The result is a reworking of old models about how food gets sold and farms get financed, and who gets dirt under their fingernails doing the work.

• Rick Snyder Takes a Venture Capitalist’s Approach to Governing Michigan
• BY: William Fulton   |   July 2012
• The governor is redirecting economic development incentives. Will it work?
• 2 Comments

• More Trees Equals Less Crime
• BY: Zach Patton   |   July 2012
• In Baltimore, a new study showed that a 10 percent increase in tree cover yielded at least a 12 percent decrease in crime.

• Chatype: The Nation’s First Municipal Font
• BY: Zach Patton   |   July 2012
• Chattanooga, Tennessee raised more than $10,000 to support its efforts to become the first U.S. city with its own font.

• What Birds Indicate About Home Values
• BY: Elizabeth Daigneau   |   July 2012
• New research shows that lots of birds in an area can mean higher property values.

• Southern States Have Become Job-Training Leaders
• BY: Dylan Scott   |   July 2012
• Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and South Carolina have quietly positioned themselves as leaders in the job-training effort. Each state’s program is unique, but they share some commonalities.
• 4 Comments

• Panama Canal Expansion Has U.S. Ports Rushing
• BY: Ryan Holeywell   |   July 2012
• States are seeking to spend billions of dollars to build bigger ports to accommodate the massive ships that will soon be traveling through the canal. Can they move quickly enough?
• 3 Comments

• Population Growth Accelerates in Large Cities: Census
• BY: Mike Maciag   |   June 28, 2012
• New census estimates show population is increasing in large cities faster than the nation as a whole, and the growth appears to be accelerating. View an interactive map with updated figures for the 1,000 largest U.S. cities.
• 2 Comments

• Recovery Varies Greatly by Location, Reports Show
• Source: Reuters   |   Nation   |   June 28, 2012
• Three new reports show wide variations in the rebound from the 2007-09 economic recession, both at the state and local levels.

• LivingSocial Tax Breaks Get District of Columbia's Approval
• Source: Washington Post   |   District of Columbia   |   June 27, 2012
• In a unanimous vote, the deal will save the five-year-old company about $32.5 million in taxes in exchange for mentoring students interested in careers in science and technology, hiring city youths to internships and offering support to businesses affected by ongoing street construction projects.

• Dogtown and the Dirtiest City in America
• BY: Mark Funkhouser   |   June 25, 2012
• Santa Monica and Chattanooga were in trouble a few decades ago. They placed their bets on sustainability, and today it’s paying off.
• 6 Comments

• California County Suddenly Takes $30M from 49ers Stadium Fund
• Source: San Jose Mercury News   |   Santa Clara County, Calif.   |   June 25, 2012
• Out of nowhere, Santa Clara County officials have yanked $30 million in tax funds promised for the San Francisco 49ers' new Santa Clara stadium, saying they would rather spend the money on teachers than install "little televisions in the back of stadium seats."

• Towns Exempt Farmers from State, Federal Regulations
• Source: AP/Boston Globe   |   Nation   |   June 22, 2012
• Towns in several states are adopting local ordinances that exempt farmers from state and federal regulations if they sell their products directly to consumers, despite warnings that the ordinances are invalid.
• 1 Comments

• Illinois Town, Transformed by Immigration, Thrives
• Source: Reuters   |   Beardstown, Ill.   |   June 22, 2012
• The Cargill plant and the community that depends on it are emblematic of two changes in U.S. immigration. The first is the shift of job-seeking immigrants from big cities to rural and suburban areas. The second is the crackdown on illegal immigration.

• Connecticut Pilots Using Recycled Shingles to Pave Roads
• BY: Brian Peteritas   |   June 21, 2012
• Using residential roof shingles will save money and the environment simultaneously.