Useful Community Development: What's New

Here are the most recent important changes to our website, including new articles, visitor questions, and editors' answers. You'll also find links to significantly revised pages and time-sensitive or short items we want to bring to your attention. Sometimes we also add short items of interest, especially time-sensitive notes about conferences, webinars, or seasons.

Gentrification in City Neighborhoods, Its Causes and Effects

Gentrification is the process of neighborhoods becoming unaffordable to those who currently live there. This page shows strategies to prevent displacement.

Continue reading "Gentrification in City Neighborhoods, Its Causes and Effects "

Learn How Neighborhood Plans Lead to Clarity and Action

ngbd plans 2

Neighborhood plans work wonders if you need to solidify residents or your city around specific goals. Find out what it takes to prepare one.

Continue reading "Learn How Neighborhood Plans Lead to Clarity and Action"

How can we reduce minor traffic accidents in the neighborhood?

Visitor Question: The craziest thing is happening around here. In the last couple of years we are having way too many fender benders in our neighborhood.

Continue reading "How can we reduce minor traffic accidents in the neighborhood?"

Strip Mall Redevelopment: A Current and Future Land Use Challenge

strip mall

Strip mall redevelopment will increase in importance for residents and neighborhoods, as vacancy rates and suburban blight increase. Read what to do next.

Continue reading "Strip Mall Redevelopment: A Current and Future Land Use Challenge"

Code officer ignores my written complaints

Visitor Question: A wealthy and gregarious neighbor has SCHMOOZED the code officer into looking the other way on his development. I have filed several

Continue reading "Code officer ignores my written complaints"

Useful Community Development Newsletter Archive

abstract building graphic

The Useful Community Development Plus newsletter archive contains back issues featuring original articles and resources for neighborhood and city leaders.

Continue reading "Useful Community Development Newsletter Archive"

What are some transportation strategies for the disabled

Visitor Question: What are some of the best ways for communities to address the transportation needs of people who are disabled, or differently abled?

Continue reading "What are some transportation strategies for the disabled"

Spring Newsletter Ideas to Brighten Up Your Neighborhood Messaging

These spring newsletter ideas are clustered into eleven themes to make your neighborhood e-mail composition chores easier.

Continue reading "Spring Newsletter Ideas to Brighten Up Your Neighborhood Messaging"

High Cost of Flood Insurance Is Ruining Our Neighborhood

Visitor Question: The cost of flood insurance has just about tripled in the last year around where I live. We did have a destructive flash flood that was

Continue reading "High Cost of Flood Insurance Is Ruining Our Neighborhood"

What does blue infrastructure mean?

Visitor Question: At our town's zoning commission meeting, I heard some visiting big shot talk about how we need to preserve and enhance our blue infrastructure.

Continue reading "What does blue infrastructure mean?"

How Can We Get Young People Interested in Voting?

Visitor Question: Our little suburb has been plagued with some terrible elected city council people for several years now. Every time there is an election

Continue reading "How Can We Get Young People Interested in Voting?"

Higher Education and Economic Development Agencies Can Partner

A community can rev up the links between higher education and economic development. Here are some ideas about how.

Continue reading "Higher Education and Economic Development Agencies Can Partner "

Condo Conversion Zoning or Regulation Questions for Cities

Condo conversion zoning or alternate approval process should focus on both good development practice and preventing displacement to the extent possible.

Continue reading "Condo Conversion Zoning or Regulation Questions for Cities"

Zoning Ordinance Rewrite

Visitor Question: Our township in Pennsylvania just did a zoning ordinance rewrite. The township manager keeps saying it made just minor changes; yet they

Continue reading "Zoning Ordinance Rewrite"

Should only residents of the Village sign petition

Visitor Question: We live on a lake where about 50% of the houses around the lake are in one Village and the other 50% are in another Village. One of

Continue reading "Should only residents of the Village sign petition"

Join USEFUL COMMUNITY PLUS, which provides you monthly with short features or tips about timely topics for neighborhoods, towns and cities, community organizations, rural environments, and our international friends. Unsubscribe any time. Give it a try.