Reference Page: October 2010

All Carrot, No Stick
The League of American Bicyclists called the Livable Communities Act “a big win for biking and walking.” Passed by the Senate Banking Committee in August, the bill would set aside $4 billion in grants favoring “transit-oriented development.” But the right-wing blogosphere is already filled with visions of elitist bureaucrats forcing Americans to live in urban squalor. Conservative activists are calling the bill a “socialist trap” and an assault on the American Dream, which they define as owning a suburban home and at least two SUVs.

X is for Xeriscaping
Although xeriscaping is inspired by Mediterranean flora, the exotic word was actually coined by the Denver Water Department in the 1980s. Thirty years later, the art of dry gardening is back in style, and several cities are giving cash incentives to homeowners interested in trying it. Peoria, Arizona, is offering as much as $715 to those willing to get rid of their lawns. But going grassless is not always popular. The neighbors of a xeriscaping couple in Hurst, Texas, have complained that their wild flower garden is “offensive to the neighborhood”.

The Bell Jar
The new Arena Stage theater, by Bing Thom Architects, is expected to jump-start the revitalization of Washington, D.C.’s, Southwest Waterfront neighborhood. A $1.5 billion residential-and-retail plan is on hold, and many recently completed condos remain empty. But developers are optimistic—or at least try to appear so. This fall they’re attempting to rebrand the neighborhood with attractions at the 7th Street Landing, a city-owned space now equipped with yellow lounge chairs and food trucks selling tacos and duck sausage. Of course, no gentrification would be complete without Starbucks and sushi, also available at the new local Safeway.