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Reduce Speculation and Limit Gentrification: Penalize Absentee/Pied-à-Terre Owners

Friday, June 20th, 2014

While cities like Chicago, Austin, and Seattle can typically stave off drastic price increases by just building enough housing to meet demand, that’s not always possible for world cities because demand isn’t just local, or even national — it’s global, and in an era of growing inequality the demand for luxury investment properties and pieds-à-terre is vast. That demand is an obstacle to providing an adequate supply of affordable, middle-class housing, but it needn’t be. If harnessed appropriately, it could even be a strength.

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Tags: Gentrification, Housing, New York City, San Francisco, Vacation Homes
Posted in Global, Private Investment, Tax, The Infra Blog, Urban Planning

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Who Owns Your City?

Monday, June 16th, 2014

WhyDontWeOwnThis.com is an interactive map that shows you who owns the buildings in American cities. You won’t find small-town America’s ownership details online yet, but major cities from Los Angeles to Baltimore are represented, and more are on their way. Take a look at the map; you might be surprised to find out who really owns your city.

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Tags: Interactive, LOVELAND Technologies, WDWOT
Posted in National, Private Investment, The Infra Blog, Urban Planning

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Interactive Map: Roadwork in Massachusetts

Wednesday, June 11th, 2014

A new interactive map from massDOT pinpoints traffic incidents and scheduled road work throughout the state of Massachusetts. In addition to its useful information, another fascinating aspect of the roadwork map is the sheer volume of projects it shows taking place simultaneously. With everything from bridge inspection to highway paving on the daily docket, it’s clear why road maintenance is more than a full-time job.

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Tags: Interactive Map, MA, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Department of Transportation, MassDOT
Posted in Highway, Local, Roads, The Infra Blog

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States’ Fiscal Initiatives Offer a Solution to the Impending Trust Fund Shortfall

Friday, June 6th, 2014

Innovation Newsbriefs
Vol. 25, No. 8

While transportation stakeholders and the Washington press corps are agonizing about the impending Highway Trust Fund shortfall and its impact on the federal transportation program, they are ignoring developments outside the Beltway that go a long way toward mitigating the prospective funding shortage. For in fact, individual states, far from standing idly by, are responding to the fiscal uncertainties in Washington by stepping up and augmenting their transportation budgets.

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Tags: C. Kenneth Orski, fiscal independence, Highway Trust Fund, Innovation Newsbriefs, Ken Orski, States, TIFIA
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Funding, Guest Post, Highway, Innovation Newsbriefs, Local, National, Policy, Private Investment, Roads, Tax, The Infra Blog

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Interactive Map: Our Energy Democracy

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014

Center for Social Inclusion: Energy Democracy

A new interactive map from the Center for Social Inclusion illustrates projects across the country where local communities are taking a stand to improve their economic futures and fight climate change. The map, called Energy Democracy for All, highlights “over 100 projects that are rooted in communities, with a particular lens toward communities of color, who by 2042, will become the majority in our nation.”

From energy conservation in Dover to biofuel crops in Durham, these projects are a testament to the effectiveness of civic engagement across the USA. Visit energydemocracy.centerforinclusion.org to see what’s happening in your region!

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Tags: Center for Social Inclusion, Energy Democracy For All
Posted in Energy, Equity, Green, Land Use, National, Sustainability, The Infra Blog

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Hopes for a Long-Term Transportation Bill Are Fading

Tuesday, May 27th, 2014

Innovation Newsbriefs
Vol. 25, No. 7
With federal transportation spending outpacing tax receipts by some $1.25 billion/month, the cash balance of the Federal Highway Trust is drawing perilously close to the point where the U.S Department of Transportation will be obliged to institute cash management strategies—such as slowing down or delaying state reimbursements — to keep the Trust Fund account solvent. Based on current spending and revenue trends, this point —a cash balance of $4 billion in the Highway Account —will be reached in late July according to the latest U.S. DOT estimate However, CBO estimates that “both the highway account and the transit account will end the end of the fiscal year with a positive balance” according to an April 14 memo from the Congressional Budget Office (Subject: CBO’s Highway Trust Fund Runs, April Baseline)

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Tags: C. Kenneth Orski, Innovation Newsbriefs, Ken Orski, Reauthorization, Tolls
Posted in Funding, Guest Post, Highway, Innovation Newsbriefs, National, Policy, Roads, Tax, The Infra Blog

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Why Infrastructure Investment Needs to be a National Priority

Friday, May 23rd, 2014

The U.S. receives an enormous return on infrastructure investments. Maintaining the status quo is not acceptable. America’s infrastructure underpins the U.S. economy. It is the thread that knits our great nation together. To compete in the global economy and raise our standard of living, we must renew and update America’s aging public infrastructure. Time is running out.

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Tags: Council on Competitiveness, Deborah Wince-Smith, Infrastructure Week 2014
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Competitiveness, Global, Guest Post, Guests on The Infra Blog, National, Policy, The Infra Blog

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Guest on The Infra Blog: Paul Yarossi, Executive Vice President, HNTB

Wednesday, May 21st, 2014

Paul Yarossi is Executive Vice President of HNTB and President of HNTB Holdings, Ltd. As president of HNTB Holdings Ltd, Paul Yarossi serves on the company’s board of directors and is responsible for overseeing and directing the firm’s governance, capitalization strategy, compliance and audit functions, as well as its external and government relations. He also participates in a number of high-level roles on behalf of the industry, which gives him a broad perspective on current issues and trends. He previously served as chairman of the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, the U.S. transportation construction industry’s representative in Washington, D.C. ARTBA is bringing recommendations forward regarding the next federal highway funding bill. Yarossi has presented testimony to the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, and the U.S. House Oversight Committee.

“…We continue to look at infrastructure rehabilitation and expansion as a cost rather than an investment…I think we need to change how we talk about infrastructure and start telling people less about what they won’t have and more about what they’ll get in return for their money.”

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Tags: HNTB, HNTB Holdings Ltd., Infrastructure Week 2014, Paul Yarossi
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Funding, Guests on The Infra Blog, National, Policy, The Infra Blog

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Ten Years and $400 Billion in Federal Highway Spending Later, Are We Any Better Off?

Friday, May 16th, 2014

The federal government has spent $365 billion out of the Highway Trust Fund’s highway account since 2005, pouring money into new roads, capacity improvements, and system preservation. At the same time, fewer people are driving, and those that are are doing it less: total annual vehicle-miles traveled haven’t budged for almost a decade even as we’ve added 20 million new residents, and per-capita VMT has fallen significantly. The number of cars on the road has remained essentially unchanged, cars per 1,000 residents peaked in 2007, and young people are doing just fine without a driver’s license, thank you.

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Tags: Better Institutions, Shane Phillips
Posted in Funding, Guest Post, Highway, National, Policy, Roads, The Infra Blog

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Guest on The Infra Blog: Janet Kavinoky, Executive Director, Congressional & Public Affairs, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Wednesday, May 14th, 2014

Janet Kavinoky, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Janet F. Kavinoky is a nationally recognized expert in transportation policy, funding, and finance. As executive director in the Chamber’s Congressional and Public Affairs Division, Kavinoky leads all transportation strategy, policy, and lobbying efforts. She has expertise in developing consensus policy positions among diverse stakeholders and lobbying Congress and executive branch agencies on a wide range of legislative and regulatory matters relating to surface, air, and water transportation.

“We need to look at infrastructure going forward, in the same way, I think, that an entrepreneur does when they’re pitching a business plan to an investor. An entrepreneur helps the investor visualize what’s going to happen, lays out a strategy, and inspires confidence to execute on that strategy. “

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Tags: Americans for Transportation Mobility Coalition, ATM, Infrastructure Week 2014, Janet Kavinoky, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Funding, Guests on The Infra Blog, High Speed Rail, National, Policy, The Infra Blog

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The Infra Blog

Reduce Speculation and Limit Gentrification: Penalize Absentee/Pied-à-Terre Owners

Who Owns Your City?

Interactive Map: Roadwork in Massachusetts

States’ Fiscal Initiatives Offer a Solution to the Impending Trust Fund Shortfall

Hopes for a Long-Term Transportation Bill Are Fading

Why Infrastructure Investment Needs to be a National Priority

Guest on The Infra Blog: Paul Yarossi, Executive Vice President, HNTB

Ten Years and $400 Billion in Federal Highway Spending Later, Are We Any Better Off?

Guest on The Infra Blog: Janet Kavinoky, Executive Director, Congressional & Public Affairs, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

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