Urban Renewal

Free Cities

Watch the Free Cities Center tour of Roseville’s thriving downtown

Watch as Free Cities Center director Steven Greenhut takes a tour of the city of Roseville’s thriving downtown.  Learn what makes this downtown so vibrant and why it is so important for suburban communities to have downtowns.   We’ll also visit of one of the downtown Roseville’s successful businesses – ...
Blog

Getting it all wrong about the other city by the bay

To be charitable, miners brave enough to go digging can discover occasional nuggets of value in Madrigal’s ponderous, and entirely predictable, jeremiad. For example: Oakland had its own version of the urban-renewal thuggery that would eventually lead to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Kelo v. City of New London. In ...
Blog

Months after election, is crime still a potent urban issue?

Months after election, is crime still a potent urban issue? Passed by 68% of voters last November 5, Proposition 36 increased penalties for certain drug offenses and for thefts under $950. On the same day, Nathan Hochman defeated Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón, 65% to 35%. Gascón was a ...
Blog

Urbanists can slow but not stop our transportation progress

Urbanists can slow but not stop our transportation progress By Marc Joffe | May 1, 2025 California is the prime battleground between transportation innovation and legacy mass transit. While Silicon Valley is rolling out driverless taxis and testing flying cars, urbanists and transit unions are seeking more taxpayer funding to ...
California

Is There a War on Suburbia in California?

This week, we present a special panel discussion from PRI’s recent California Ideas in Action policy conference in Sacramento discussing whether there is a war on suburbia in California. Free Cities Center director Steven Greenhut moderates a lively discussion of policy experts exploring the themes of the latest Free Cities ...
Blog

Single-Family Homes Don’t Fulfill Everyone’s Dreams – Or Budgets

Single-Family Homes Don’t Fulfill Everyone’s Dreams – Or Budgets By Thomas Irwin | March 28, 2025 As the father of two young children, one of my primary roles is to be a sounding board for all kinds of desires from my children. These run the gambit from the ordinary and ...
Book

New Free Cities Book

New Book “The War on Suburbia” Challenges the Ideological Battle Against American Suburbs

SACRAMENTO – Acclaimed journalist and policy analyst Steven Greenhut released today his latest book, The War on Suburbia, a compelling examination of how urban planning, government policies, and ideological battles threaten the future of suburban living. Published by the Pacific Research Institute, this book offers a critical look at how policymakers, environmentalists, and urban ...
Basic Income

Compton: cities learn wrong lessons from ‘free money’ program

Compton: cities learn wrong lessons from ‘free money’ program By Matthew Fleming | February 21, 2025 The results of the largest city-based experiment with what happens when low-income families receive free money from the government were just published and apparently nothing was learned. And nothing was learned because lovers of ...
Blog

Congestion pricing: Bold experiment or a money grab?

Congestion pricing: Bold experiment or a money grab? By Sal Rodriguez | February 6, 2025 Is New York City’s congestion pricing plan a bold experiment or just a money grab? After many years of debate, many thousands of pages of reports and no shortage of lawsuits, New York City on ...
Free Cities

Watch the Free Cities Center documentary

Watch the Free Cities Center documentary, “Colorado Springs: Letting Freedom Lead the Way”

 Colorado Springs ranked #3 nationwide and #1 in the west in PRI’s “Free Cities Index,” a ranking of America’s 50 largest cities for their pro-growth policies. “Talking to business owners, civic leaders, community activists and journalists, we found Colorado Springs to be a booming, thriving city thanks to a ...
Free Cities

Watch the Free Cities Center tour of Roseville’s thriving downtown

Watch as Free Cities Center director Steven Greenhut takes a tour of the city of Roseville’s thriving downtown.  Learn what makes this downtown so vibrant and why it is so important for suburban communities to have downtowns.   We’ll also visit of one of the downtown Roseville’s successful businesses – ...
Blog

Getting it all wrong about the other city by the bay

To be charitable, miners brave enough to go digging can discover occasional nuggets of value in Madrigal’s ponderous, and entirely predictable, jeremiad. For example: Oakland had its own version of the urban-renewal thuggery that would eventually lead to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Kelo v. City of New London. In ...
Blog

Months after election, is crime still a potent urban issue?

Months after election, is crime still a potent urban issue? Passed by 68% of voters last November 5, Proposition 36 increased penalties for certain drug offenses and for thefts under $950. On the same day, Nathan Hochman defeated Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón, 65% to 35%. Gascón was a ...
Blog

Urbanists can slow but not stop our transportation progress

Urbanists can slow but not stop our transportation progress By Marc Joffe | May 1, 2025 California is the prime battleground between transportation innovation and legacy mass transit. While Silicon Valley is rolling out driverless taxis and testing flying cars, urbanists and transit unions are seeking more taxpayer funding to ...
California

Is There a War on Suburbia in California?

This week, we present a special panel discussion from PRI’s recent California Ideas in Action policy conference in Sacramento discussing whether there is a war on suburbia in California. Free Cities Center director Steven Greenhut moderates a lively discussion of policy experts exploring the themes of the latest Free Cities ...
Blog

Single-Family Homes Don’t Fulfill Everyone’s Dreams – Or Budgets

Single-Family Homes Don’t Fulfill Everyone’s Dreams – Or Budgets By Thomas Irwin | March 28, 2025 As the father of two young children, one of my primary roles is to be a sounding board for all kinds of desires from my children. These run the gambit from the ordinary and ...
Book

New Free Cities Book

New Book “The War on Suburbia” Challenges the Ideological Battle Against American Suburbs

SACRAMENTO – Acclaimed journalist and policy analyst Steven Greenhut released today his latest book, The War on Suburbia, a compelling examination of how urban planning, government policies, and ideological battles threaten the future of suburban living. Published by the Pacific Research Institute, this book offers a critical look at how policymakers, environmentalists, and urban ...
Basic Income

Compton: cities learn wrong lessons from ‘free money’ program

Compton: cities learn wrong lessons from ‘free money’ program By Matthew Fleming | February 21, 2025 The results of the largest city-based experiment with what happens when low-income families receive free money from the government were just published and apparently nothing was learned. And nothing was learned because lovers of ...
Blog

Congestion pricing: Bold experiment or a money grab?

Congestion pricing: Bold experiment or a money grab? By Sal Rodriguez | February 6, 2025 Is New York City’s congestion pricing plan a bold experiment or just a money grab? After many years of debate, many thousands of pages of reports and no shortage of lawsuits, New York City on ...
Free Cities

Watch the Free Cities Center documentary

Watch the Free Cities Center documentary, “Colorado Springs: Letting Freedom Lead the Way”

 Colorado Springs ranked #3 nationwide and #1 in the west in PRI’s “Free Cities Index,” a ranking of America’s 50 largest cities for their pro-growth policies. “Talking to business owners, civic leaders, community activists and journalists, we found Colorado Springs to be a booming, thriving city thanks to a ...
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