“[I]t is critical to learn from events such as Florence, to minimize the damages and streamline the response and recovery for the next storm…The growing economic and human costs of these events require that we not only change how we respond, but do so far more quickly than we have in the past.” This … Continued

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 … Continued

In April 2018, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) officially rebranded their Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program to Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD). Begun in 2009, the TIGER program has provided transportation improvement … Continued

Water and wastewater utilities have a wide range of capital project needs. Most utilities have existing assets (treatment plants, water storage tanks, underground lines) that have reached the end of their functional life and need significant rehabilitation and replacement investment. Some utilities … Continued

How much the last legislative session impacted environmental management in your community largely depends on where you live in the state. It was a “short” legislative session and relatively few bills were passed, but several of the bills that were passed contained significant provisions likely to im … Continued

In July 2013, I wrote a blog proposing a four-part framework for understanding if specific local organizations have the capacity to implement CED programs. How well does this framework hold up when actually used?  We answer this question using interviews with 31 local partners, over the past two yea … Continued

I often think about ways in which local government matters in the daily lives of citizens. This month, a major study was released showing how local conditions, and community and economic development, infrastructure, and planning in particular, may have a direct impact on the most basic quality of li … Continued

Although pedestrian tunnels are often a less visible and flashy form of crossings, they are still an important part of pedestrian safety. That said, tunnels can be exciting too! Tunnels are often out of the public’s eye and have the ability to exhibit creative freedom. Not only can a tunnel make an … Continued

It takes a multitude of resources, dedicated professionals, and committed organizations to promote economic development. Successfully realizing the economic potential of a place requires doing the hard work of leveraging all existing regional assets to build the environment, or ecosystem, where busi … Continued

Food is in the news, and CED professionals should look below the surface images and arguments to a fundamental question raised about local capacity issues important to the NC farm and food industry. In honor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Food for All all-university 2015-2017 aca … Continued