Housing and Urban Issues
Stresses on urban communities continue to affect housing, food security, child services, homelessness, business development and crime. Coverage includes stories about new solutions to how cities are run, how they develop as urban centers and about the people who live there.
The state is issuing leases for unbuilt homes to shrink the Hawaiian Home Lands backlog.
Funding for public colleges peaked in 2000 at $9,443 per student. In 2018, funding was $4,552 per student, placing Pennsylvania among the bottom of states for percentage of tax revenues allocated to higher education.
Colorado and California are already using technology that converts renewable energy into storable gas, and Maine hopes to be next. The technology could save Maine 75,000 megawatt hours of renewable power each year.
Denver, Colo., has a complicated transit system troubled by the national decline in public ridership. But officials are hopeful that they will find a new GM: “I think there are some excellent people out there.”
A study found that 9 percent of Ohio residents don’t have access to broadband, which could be an expensive problem for census takers, considering that the 2020 Census will be mostly digital.
The Southern California startup FLOAT (Fly Over All Traffic) will begin flying passengers in January 2020. Flights will cost $60 a day and are targeted at super commuters who travel more than 90 minutes each way.
The Louisiana Department of Health has partnered with vendor MAXIMUS to streamline Medicaid enrollment, creating the Healthy Louisiana app. Eligible residents can use the app to compare health-care plans and find doctors.
PG&E is under severe criticism about its power outages and wildfire-sparking equipment. The utility is now testing a proactive technology that would “identify potential equipment failures” and avoid starting fires.
Legislation legalizing scooters in the state is simply waiting for a signature from Gov. Cuomo, who is hesitating as the small vehicles have raised concerns with sidewalk and road safety across the country.
University of Michigan faculty are pushing back with concerns about the center’s funding, location and the “conflicts created by capitalism’s dependency on racial and economic oppression and inequity.”
The first autonomous freight vehicle will drive alone but guided by a behind-the-wheel driver, just in case. The self-driving semi could revolutionize trucking, alleviating the deficit of drivers.
North Carolina officials are hoping that Pokket will help prisoners set up appointments, download documents and communicate clearly with probation officers. There’s one problem: Prisoners must have a phone or tablet before and after release.
As an increasing number of cities nationwide work to foster equitable outcomes for residents, Albuquerque has created a new case study for how data can be used in various ways to lift populations up.
Constructing buildings out of wood is the latest in San Francisco’s aim to be eco-friendly, fire-resistant and aesthetically pleasing. The 60-foot-high building is projected to open in 2022.
The state Legislature rejected AEP Ohio’s plan to have solar-power projects in southwest Ohio funded by customer dollars. The utility now must look to other funding sources for the 300-megawatt and 100-megawatt plans.
Launching in D.C., the “Helmet Selfie” initiative will encourage riders to wear helmets in exchange for credits towards their next ride, which will, hopefully, prevent injuries. Austin wants to join in on the campaign.
When Switch first moved to Michigan four years ago, it promised the area jobs, growth, and a big future. Many exemptions and not many jobs later, officials are growing weary of giving more breaks.
The Los Angeles City Controller, Ron Galperin, reported that the Department of Water and Power has 49,000 power poles in high fire risk locations. The LADWP says they’ve done a lot to reduce risk, but Galperin suggests more.
The state’s new voting system encountered 45 issues in six counties during the November election. But officials are optimistic as “problems are mainly human-based” and can be trained away before March’s presidential election.
A once-desolate stretch of waterfront has become home to DC Water, a futuristic hub for managing water treatment in the nation’s capital and an architectural symbol of environmental sustainability.
The three-year agreement will help Charlotte incorporate technology into everyday city life to benefit the community. This is Microsoft’s second smart city deal — the first was the May partnership with Houston, Texas.
The referendum passed with 68 percent of the vote, allowing for $3.5 billion in borrowing by Houston’s Metro, based on future transit agency revenues from the 1 percent sales tax it controls.
