Most Popular

Crosscut articles of the past 10 days with the most clicks.

Our Members

Many thanks to

David Brown

and

Llewelyn Pritchard

some of our many supporters.

ALL MEMBERS »

Urban Affairs

Crosscut most recent

West Coasters: Call home!

Posted Tue, Feb 7, 11:45 a.m.

By Peter Miller

What if the hollowed-out cities of the East Coast set out to lure back their prodigal sons and daughters? What would it take?

The architectural pitfalls of refitting urban churches

Posted Fri, Feb 3, 2 a.m.

By Lawrence W. Cheek

Architects had some triumphs in converting the former First Church of Christ Scientist on Capitol Hill into townhomes, but the difficulties they encountered offer lessons about preservation in the city.

The fracking truth: Natural gas devastates communities

Posted Thu, Feb 2, 2 a.m.

By Roberta Brandes Gratz

The game's up. Natural gas development on the East Coast is causing environmental destruction of countrysides, farmland, and communities. And that's without even getting into fracking.

Developers to Legislature: Save us from runoff rules

Posted Wed, Feb 1, 2 a.m.

By Robert McClure/InvestigateWest

Environmentalists are appalled at a possible end run of long-awaited Department of Ecology rules. But cities and developers say it's too much, too soon.

The strange case of Washington's newest newspaper publisher

Posted Tue, Jan 31, 2 a.m.

By Floyd McKay

What do foreclosure notices and publishing community newspapers have to do with each other? Quite a bit, particularly for a publisher of three Washington papers.

Winners and losers: Gingrich stock going down; an unlikely lift for McGinn

Posted Mon, Jan 30, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

Space, is it the next frontier, or political dead end? Plus, the staying power of potholes.

Opponents of the Roosevelt Rezone, show your weapons

Posted Fri, Jan 27, 2 a.m.

By Roger Valdez

Community arguments in the wake of the Roosevelt neighborhood's rezoning process lay out a likely roadmap for Seattle's future urban planning debates.

Heritage Turkey Watch

Posted Fri, Jan 27, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

The Kalakala still floats, for now, plus Seattle's plywood "space shuttle," demolition fight in Spokane, and other preservation news.

The plan to preserve Seattle's beloved book sanctuaries

Posted Fri, Jan 27, 2 a.m.

By Robin Lindley

Marcellus Turner, Seattle's new City Librarian, talks about why Seattleites love their libraries and how he plans to keep things that way. Even in the midst of budget cuts.

Bellevue's rendezvous with an urban destiny

Posted Tue, Jan 24, 2 a.m.

By David Brewster

Updated: The 'Tateuchi Truce' over the Sound Transit wars on the Eastside made clear what a catalyst for an urbanized Eastside this long-aborning cultural center has become.

Are we the Barbarians we've been waiting for?

Posted Fri, Jan 20, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

The decline and fall of Seattle, the state, the empire.

Sh*t Kent Said

Posted Thu, Jan 12, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

Nuggets of wisdom from Seattle's mossback Yoda

Heritage Turkeys of the year

Posted Mon, Jan 9, 2 a.m.

By Knute Berger

Who did most to raze, wreck, uproot, neglect, and generally trash our historic treasures in 2011? The envelopes, please...

Moscow's new Chinese approach to urbanization

Posted Mon, Jan 2, 2 a.m.

By Edward J. Blakely

Under new leadership, Moscow is taking a decidly modern approach to urbanization. But can the city overcome its struggle with political fraud?

Best of 2011: How Seattle grew itself a new 'downtown'

Posted Sat, Dec 31, 2 a.m.

By David Brewster

Seattle's Central Business District(CBD) is increasingly spelled SLU. Here's an account of the remarkable, somewhat accidental rise of a hot commercial and residential zone called South Lake Union.

Let it rain! says a California transplant

Posted Fri, Dec 30, 2 a.m.

By Laura Kaufman

A refugee reports on her year-long effort to escape the relentless sunshine of South California, snuggling into our damp and bookish town.

Best of 2011: Can neighborhoods matter again in McGinn's Seattle?

Posted Thu, Dec 29, 2 a.m.

By Jordan Royer

The Seattle Model of involving neighborhoods is emulated in much of the world, but it fell from favor here over recent years. Even after making a smart hire for a Neighborhoods director, Mayor McGinn faces big decisions.

New Orleans is from Venus, Seattle is from....

Posted Wed, Dec 28, 2 a.m.

By Don Fels

This town couldn't be another NOLA and wouldn't want to, but maybe it can learn something about life and living from the battered Big Easy.

Belltown and Brooklyn: How Seattle misses having kids in an urban center

Posted Tue, Dec 27, 12:45 p.m.

By Bob Royer

Children change the character of a place for the better, but downtown Seattle lacks an essential ingredient for serving families with children: schools.

Best of 2011: Sick suburbs, expiring exurbs

Posted Tue, Dec 27, 2 a.m.

By Mark Hinshaw

Regions such as Snohomish County that fell hard for developers' dreams of remote housing projects are paying a severe price in foreclosures and short sales. The cruel market correction confirms the economic value of denser, closer-in residential patterns.

Urban Affairs Blog posts

Remembering Kent Kammerer

Posted Wed, Jan 4, 2 a.m.

by Knute Berger

A Jan. 6 memorial at MOHAI for writer, teacher, and neighborhood activist.

More than cost determines housing affordability

Posted Sat, Dec 24, 7:30 a.m. 2011

by Roger Valdez

A new way of looking at affordability might help Seattle City Council make smarter land-use decisions.

Lowe's welcomes Muslims in its stores, but not on reality TV

Posted Mon, Dec 19, 2 a.m. 2011

by Eric Scigliano

The home improvement chain flails around after falling for a Muslim-bashing boycott. Meanwhile, look who's shopping in its Rainier Valley store.

For new urbanites in hard times, small is beautiful

Posted Wed, Nov 23, 6 a.m. 2011

by Eric Scigliano

Seattle leads the way to a rooming-house renaissance. But what about the parking?

No Expo for Ecotopia

Posted Sat, Nov 5, 11:48 p.m. 2011

by Knute Berger

As Seattle prepares to celebrate 50 years as the little expo city that could, the chance for a future fair in the USA is a long way off.

Does SDOT have a 'safety culture'?

Posted Mon, Oct 31, 6 a.m. 2011

by Douglas B. MacDonald

Not by the evidence of a casual attention to safety at a repair project in Greenwood, with dozens of kids in the work zone.

Better health for all gets a digital assist

Posted Mon, Oct 24, 9:15 p.m. 2011

by Matt Rosenberg

A new effort, Mapping Our Voices for Equality, has grown out of federal efforts to involve more communities in promoting healthy foods and preventing the dangers associated with smoking.

Help from Yelp: Harvard study shows online reviews boost Seattle restaurants

Posted Thu, Oct 20, 2 a.m. 2011

by Eric Scigliano

The study also found that online reviews seem to help independent restaurants take a larger share of the overall market from chain operations.

Review: Leopold film revitalizes land ethics for a new generation

Posted Thu, Oct 6, 2 a.m. 2011

by Pamela Biery

A new Aldo Leopold documentary is set to premiere in Seattle's U-District, but can it bring the importance of land use and connectivity home to a new generation of conservationists?

Midday Scan: Friday's top stories around the region

Posted Fri, Sep 30, 10:25 a.m. 2011

by Pete Jackson

The political education of former U.S. Attorney John McKay; a tax break for Safeco Field; Patty Murray's partisan email to supporters; Amazon magoozling in California; and Seattle's burgeoning population of bikers.