Do the Twin Cities really need this many luxury apartments?
Developers have built thousands of apartments in the metro area over the last four years. At what point does supply outstrip demand?
Marlys Harris
A Minnesota native, Marlys Harris has been an investigative reporter and editor with specialties in consumer protection and finance for Money Magazine and Consumer Reports. She covers urban affairs.
You can say this for ‘The Commons’ downtown park: It has a lot going on
The latest design is a perfect example of what happens when democracy reigns supreme.
Mall no more: examining the final design of the $50 million Nicollet revamp
City leaders hope the redo will make the street no less than a “centerpiece, a highlight in our country.”
What if we made transportation systems regulated public utilities?
U of M professor David Levinson says there’s no need for us to live with shabby transportation or for government to shell out bigger and bigger subsidies.
Driver-free cars: Possibilities — and realities — for Twin Cities’ motorists
How might the so-called autonomous car change our lives — and the shape of the metro area?
Riding the Green Line: Trains offer quiet, silky travel — at a leisurely pace
The trip through St. Paul’s compact downtown, past state buildings and the Capitol, and the portion that runs through the U of M and over the Mississippi offer pleasant vistas.
Troubled Southwest LRT line creates problems in Minnetonka, too
One issue: the train line will pass close by the Claremont Apartments, a five-building 318-unit “luxury” development on Smetana Road.
In defense of the Met Council’s plan for future development
Thrive MSP 2040 is being picked apart, but having a plan for water, parks and so on is way better than not having one.
New Urbanism offers communities hope — and a few dreams, too
The movement seeks to recapture communal life. Or rather a nostalgic vision of communal life.
Who will be newcomers to Minneapolis and St. Paul? Immigrants, young people and seniors
Preliminary figures show the Twin Cities outpacing the suburbs, but who is going where is complicated.
Add streetcars? Demolish decrepit buildings? Not too fast …
Two recent studies about our urban environment might open our minds to ideas that contradict conventional wisdom.
Tracking the Green Line: Will urban renewal by transit turn into poor-people removal?
The feared influx of so-called market-rate housing is occurring along the line, but so far rising costs aren’t displacing low-income residents.
Legislature on roads, transit: ‘You can’t even really call it a band-aid’
The Legislature this year appropriated a paltry $11.4 million to fix potholes in 87 counties and another $3.6 million for cities.
What to do with St. Paul’s Ford site: Lots of fuzzy ideas, but no plan
Time is running short, but a panel of urban notables failed to come up with more than abstract ideas to chew on.
Prospect Park: They have the vision, but what about the will?
The neighborhood’s vision is an “urban village” that would combine a research park; some industry; new multifamily housing, 20 percent of it low-income; plus park, retail and commercial space.
Met Council, Minneapolis turn to ‘facilitator’ for Southwest LRT solution
It’s not clear at this point what elbows the mediator could twist or carrots he could offer to bring the two sides together.
Why your brain keeps you off the train
Neuroscience may help explain why so many people remain illogically wedded to their cars.
Forum input: ‘Thrive 2040’ plan must specifically reduce poverty concentration
That was the repeated message conveyed by suburban officials, civil-rights and neighborhood activists about the Metropolitan Council’s housing plans.
Citizen participation: blessing turned curse?
The citizens who participate aren’t always representative, and they often don’t consider the greater good — or even what’s in their own long-term interests.
A plan to stitch Minneapolis together again: Cover a stretch of I-35W
The visionary plan would cover a portion of I-35W in Minneapolis with a park, apartment buildings and commercial space.
