Urban heat project to assess impact of scaling up cool pavements

Following some cities' cool pavements pilots, a new research initiative in one LA neighborhood will aim to measure extreme heat's impacts and implement cooling tech in a 10-square-block area to see how benefits amplify.

By Maria Rachal • March 25, 2022

Bidding wars break out in NYC while San Francisco properties struggle

The major coastal metros, which were the poster children for urban pandemic flight in 2020, are following different paths to recovery.

By Leslie Shaver • March 23, 2022

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Top 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive

From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.

By Smart Cities Dive staff

Habitat for Humanity receives $436M donation to address global housing crisis

But housing experts say the large donation from billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott and new advancements in home construction technology will not alone make housing affordable to families in U.S. cities.

By Danielle McLean • March 23, 2022

How 'spongy' is your city? Report calls on cities to better assess how they absorb water

With digital mapping tools, cities can determine their baseline ability to manage rainfall, and in turn work to reduce their reliance on less climate-resilient infrastructure, according to engineering and consulting firm Arup.

By Maria Rachal • March 22, 2022

Could Zoom towns go bust?

Money is flowing into cities like Boise, Idaho, but some analysts wonder about the sustainability of their growth.

By Leslie Shaver • March 22, 2022

Toyota's Woven Planet, NYU create open-source dataset to improve VPR tech for accessibility, autonomy

To test how visual place recognition technology can help visually impaired pedestrians, autonomous vehicles and delivery robots better navigate cities, the project captured over 200,000 images of part of an NYC neighborhood.

By Cailin Crowe • March 21, 2022

6 cities set to add the highest percentage of new apartments in 2022

Nashville, Phoenix and Austin, Texas, will build 6% new inventory this year, as apartment construction is projected to hit a 30-year high.

By Leslie Shaver • March 8, 2022

Apartment sales jumped 128% last year, good luck finding one

The pandemic widened the gap between apartments and other sectors, as apartments were flooded with applications from people moving to new areas. But are the industry's high prices here to stay?

By Leslie Shaver • March 7, 2022

Buildings are a key climate solution: How the U.S. and Europe are cooperating to make progress

The U.S. and E.U. have committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. Building decarbonization is essential to achieving this goal.

By Oliver Rapf, executive director, BPIE (Building Performance Institute Europe), and Lotte Schlegel, executive director, IMT (Institute for Market Transformation) • Feb. 28, 2022

Revisiting California's natural gas hookup subsidies

California is one of the biggest consumers of natural gas in the U.S., and has been adding new gas customers faster than any other state. These trends are in direct conflict with its ambitious climate goals, the authors write.

By Clifford Rechtschaffen and Simi Rose George • Feb. 23, 2022

Orlando emphasizes 'wow factor' in digital twin project

Unlike many other cities' digital twins, the project will map the entire 40-square-mile metro region. It will be updated with real-time data to help inform infrastructure policies and act as a marketing tool for the metro region.

By Jason Plautz • Feb. 22, 2022

To decarbonize buildings, think like an entrepreneur

The most innovative ideas to slash emissions won’t have impact if they never reach the market, writes Reshma Singh, who focuses on building technologies at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

By Reshma Singh • Feb. 18, 2022

To prevent evictions, cities should take a multifaceted approach, NLC report says

A new National League of Cities report says cities can tailor eviction policies to meet the unique needs of their communities with interventions such as legal and financial assistance, hotlines, and resources.

By Jason Plautz • Feb. 7, 2022

Pittsburgh bridge collapse raises questions, infrastructure funding concerns

The span fell the day President Joe Biden was visiting to promote the IIJA, underscoring his push to improve the nation's dated infrastructure.

By Matthew Thibault • Feb. 1, 2022

DC joins growing list of cities requiring new buildings to include EV parking

A make-ready rule requires 20% of parking to be ready for EV charging in certain new and refurbished buildings. But a parking reform expert said the rules ignore a bigger climate question: Is new parking necessary at all?

By Jason Plautz • Jan. 27, 2022

8 trends shaping cities in 2022

Cities continue to confront challenges surrounding the pandemic, the climate crisis, rising inequality and public safety this year.

By Cailin Crowe, Danielle McLean, Maria Rachal, Dan Zukowski and Jason Plautz • Jan. 26, 2022

White House forms coalition with local governments to pursue building performance policies

In a federal show of support for locally led decarbonization and retrofitting efforts, the coalition will cover nearly 20% of the U.S. building footprint and aims to advance legislation or regulation over the next two years.

By Maria Rachal • Jan. 24, 2022

The pitfalls of place-based revitalization in Atlanta, San Diego: reports

Revitalization efforts in disinvested communities can result in two opposing results: They can contribute to gentrification or leave neighborhoods as impoverished as when the initiatives started, the Urban Institute reports.

By Cailin Crowe • Jan. 14, 2022

Cities are murky on how they define 'green infrastructure': analysis

The term is increasingly popping up in strategic plans and climate plans alike, but many U.S. cities that reference goals for green infrastructure don't explicitly define what it is, a recent study found.

By Maria Rachal • Jan. 13, 2022

12 predictions about the trends that will shape smart cities in 2022

As local leaders continue to adapt to the tremendous changes that the past year brought, industry players share how they anticipate cities will evolve.

By Cailin Crowe • Jan. 5, 2022

Q&A's from 2021 that spotlight 13 smart cities voices

Revisit the year's one-on-one conversations, including with tech and climate leaders in Honolulu, Phoenix and San Diego and with execs at Revel, Veo and Drop Mobility.

Dec. 23, 2021

How the pandemic has shaped driver and pedestrian behavior

The past year has seen drastic changes to driver behavior and commuting patterns, ushering in an era of high traffic and pedestrian deaths.

Dec. 22, 2021

NYC's new gas ban highlights market growth needs for building electrification

Outgoing Mayor Bill de Blasio signed the climate legislation in his final days in office, but work to expand awareness, market development and worker training remains.

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 22, 2021

Building electrification momentum grew in US cities in 2021

From Denver to Ithaca, New York, cities are charting new territory in their quest to slash built-environment emissions. Solutions include changing codes and adding performance standards, and even electrifying entire city building stocks.

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 8, 2021

Tesla solar roof fires subject of SEC, Consumer Product Safety Commission investigations

A former Tesla employee accused the company of failing to disclose safety risks from solar panels. 

By Jason Plautz • Dec. 8, 2021