Lindsay Loves Cities

Let's get these guys / gals in the same room as builders in LA, NYC, SF, & Boston. Policymakers need a breakdown of the factors driving cost divergence. Which reforms are highest leverage?

A Charlotte builder stunned us, quoting new IRC townhouses (where zoning allows small lots) @ $95/sqft Near the light rail, 5-7 story IBC midrises are penciling at ~$2/sqft monthly Innovation would be great! But zoning & permitting reform can already end the housing crisis

This whole conversation is asinine. "Private equity" is basically a bunch of pension funds standing on each others' shoulders, wearing a trench-coat

These images show 2 High Speed Rail systems. Guess wich costed more to build? 😶

Lawyers are rent seeking on every single transaction to the point t we can’t have anything nice. AI is going to make this worse as it makes paper wars easier and more complex while building real things have fixed and escalating costs.

Assisted living costs $5,400 to $6,300 Cost to build assisted living is $475k-$530k a unit You need $11k-$13k rates to justify putting shovels in the ground Construction starts are at record lows because nothing pencils

My neighborhood in LA - Larchmont - has a wonderful bi-weekly farmers market in a parking lot that also hosts things like Comedy Nights -- it is the neighborhood meeting ground. A real life made-for-tv villain claimed he was owed the parking lot based on an agreement from the 1980s (it actually said the opposite) and he almost managed to trick the city into ceding it to him. The neighborhood spontaneously rallied like nothing I have seen -- 1000s of letters + calls, 80 people showed up at a hearing -- and when you asked people why they cared so much -- the answer was always the same: community. It was our 'Town Square.' The parking lot was where we all could be together. Town Squares are such an essential part of cities -- it is as important as friendship and an antidote to lonliness.

This simple, low-cost parking solution was the cornerstone of a 9-block revitalization that led to an economic boom in Lancaster, CA: Cost $11.5 million Economic Benefit: $273 million Tax revenue up 96% The genius of the 'Parking Ramblas' is it does 3 things at once: 1. Adds parking for residents/visitors/shoppers 2. Adds trees and green 3. Slows cars Design by Sargent Town Planning