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How to turn a struggling small town around

Jan Anderson

January 10, 2018 |

The Boulder Monitor |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Montana

Boulder, Montana struggled upon learning that a major local employer, the Montana Developmental Center, was going to close. However, the news pushed the town toward a path of redevelopment. The Boulder Transition Advisory Committee stepped up by launching the “Make Boulder’s Future Bright” campaign, which involved citizens in creating goals and strategies to achieve them. Since earning a major grant, the town has been working to revitalize the downtown area. This story is part 1 of a series about housing for rural Montanans.

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How Medellín went from murder capital to hipster holiday destination

Stanley Stewart

January 04, 2018 |

The Telegraph |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Colombia, Medellín

Medellín is a hub of growth and innovation, re-born after years of devastating violence. Building a metro system was an early step in the city’s transformation. “It was the first positive thing that had happened in this city for decades,” says Julian, a local guide. “With this metro, we suddenly realized things could be different, that progress and change were possible.”

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Murder in America: What Makes Cities Safer

Scott Calvert Zusha Elinson Max Rust

December 27, 2017 |

Wall Street Journal |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

Certain cities in the United States are facing startlingly high rates of homicide and violence that haven't been seen since the height of gang activity in the 1990s. But certain cities, including Los Angeles, have continued to see declines in or stable crime rates, thanks to a community-based policing approach that uses tactics such as working with former drug dealers, hosting neighborhood events, cleaning litter from the streets, and mediating sit-downs between formal gang rivals.

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How the Cuyahoga County Land Bank revitalizes homes

Ron Regan

December 27, 2017 |

WEWS-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

At the worst point in the 2008 housing crisis, up to 30,000 houses in Cuyahoga County were vacant. The Cuyahoga County Land Bank aims to fix this problem by acquiring houses, eliminating blight, and transforming the houses into more useful spaces. Already, the Land Bank has turned old, empty properties into a Children’s Museum and an Amazon Fulfillment Center, and it has decreased the number of empty homes to about 7,000.

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New, $1 billion program will bring rooftop solar to California renters

Katy Murphy

December 16, 2017 |

San Jose Mercury News |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Sacramento, California

Renewable energy has largely been associate with wealthier consumers, but that is changing with a new initiative that will install solar panels for apartment buildings with low-income residents. The hope is that the money saved from the solar energy panels will benefit the low income residents, while also being beneficial in fighting climate change.

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These Planners Stepped Away From the Spreadsheets and Into the Community

Oscar Perry Abello

December 06, 2017 |

Next City |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York

The Regional Plan Association is a research and urban planning organization. They are deeply influential in the urban planning in the New York, New Jersey, Connecticut metropolitan area. The regional planning process has historically represented the needs of mostly white, affluent people, so this time RPA partnered with eight grassroots organizations, and involved immigrants from Long Island to take part in the regional planning process through focus groups, surveys, and discussions. As many as 1,600 people were engaged.

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Tahoe's Hot Commodities: Unraveling Decades of Development to Protect the Future

Amy Westervelt

November 28, 2017 |

Mountain Independent |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tahoe City, California

Lake Tahoe has been revered by planners as an area whose poor development was successfully halted with the creation of the Tahoe Regional Planning Association (TRPA). Now the TRPA has brought together a development rights working group to update how the land is used in order to confront a housing shortage and rules that are not in line with how the lake is used.

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As hundreds of golf courses close, nature gets a chance to make a comeback

Travis Wood

November 08, 2017 |

Ensia |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Michigan

More golf courses are closing than are opening, allowing the rare opportunity to have open space in an urban environment. Restorations are becoming popular to allow wildlife and humans to make use of the natural space through the encouragement of different animals and plants to inhabit the same area as well as the development of parks and bike paths to foster human use.

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A Smarter Smart City

Roxanne Patel Shepelavy

November 07, 2017 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is one of the poorest cities. Its poverty is a huge concern and feeds into many of the negative aspects of the city. The city is now looking to Smart Cities technology such as smart streetlights, to provide information to various government sectors, which helps them implement new strategies to tackle this problem.

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From ‘hallway' to artery, a town rebuilds Main Street

John Miller

October 31, 2017 |

High Country News |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Farmington, New Mexico

Small towns like Farmington, New Mexico take advantage of federal funds from Main Street America and the Metropolitan Redevelopment Act in order to revitalize their town centers and boost their local economies. Farmington, which saw an economic decline surrounding the coal & mining industry, has been able to use money to repair store fronts, replace water systems, and more.

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