Using the arts as a community economic development (CED) strategy usually brings to mind urban settings.  Recent examples include Cary, NC’s shimmer field featured this past winter and magical stick sculptures opened this spring.  But over two million people currently live in rural North Carolina.  … Read more

Investing in green space and park creation has enormous benefits, from bolstering community wellness, to reversing historic disinvestment, and in raising surrounding property values. While care should be taken to avoid the park-driven gentrification that has accompanied many of the recent high-profi … Read more

While COVID-19 is changing many facets of our world, one thing that seems unlikely to change is the proliferation of short-term rentals (e.g. Airbnb, VRBO, etc). With current interest in local travel outstripping 2019, pre-existing questions around if and how to regulate these businesses are only go … Read more

Throughout the United States, transportation infrastructure is dominated by automobile-oriented streets. They connect our neighborhoods and our communities, our urban centers and our rural peripheries, our regions and our states. They facilitate not only commerce and economic development but also th … Read more

Tourism is a big business. It makes up 5% of the world’s GDP and employs 1 out of every 12 people around the world. Within the United States, it employs 1 out of 8 people. It can also be a driver for community revitalization – in particular, cultural heritage tourism shares a lot in common with comm … Read more

North Carolina Department of Transportation’s (NCDOT) Bicycle and Pedestrian Planning Grant Initiative is accepting applications through November 2nd. The Bicycle and Pedestrian Planning Grant Initiative was established by the Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Division of NCDOT in 2004. Amid des … Read more

As of now, the fires that burned in Northern California’s wine region earlier this month are nearly 100% contained. It has been a dramatic, devastating scene in perhaps the most iconic region for grape-growing and wine-drinking outside of Tuscany or Bordeaux, and the impacts are, and will continue t … Read more

When you think of highest and best use for real estate, public parks are often overlooked.  Even if a park is functioning as intended, it still might have potential to serve the community in a greater capacity while adding benefit to the surrounding area. If the purpose of a park is to offer a recre … Read more

In an increasingly digital world, the economic fortunes of a community can be dependent on a quality of life it provides to residents. Investments in greenway systems — trails lined with trees, vegetation, or other natural features — are a way that some local governments choose to enhance quality … Read more

Alleys, in the American context, are cramped spaces tucked behind commercial buildings that house the ancillary services businesses and households require such as trash removal, utility access, and deliveries. Glimpsed only momentarily by passing pedestrians, these spaces are often perceived as dirt … Read more