Upzoned

High-Income Earners Are Renting Instead of Buying Homes

High-earning Americans are renting instead of buying homes. Some even say they plan to rent indefinitely. Why is that? In this week’s Upzoned episode, join host Abby Kinney and guest Norm Van Eeden Petersman as they talk about this trend.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “Three Million U.S. Households Making Over $150,000 Are Still Renters,” by Will Parker, The Wall Street Journal (March 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Norm Van Eeden Petersman (Twitter).

When a Building Is Demolished, What Should Happen to the Materials?

“What happens when old buildings have reached the end of their life, either their useful life in terms of safety or their desirable life in terms of modern living?” a Next City article asks. The piece goes on to say that when buildings throughout the U.S. get demolished, the once useful construction materials often end up in landfills. But there’s a growing movement to try and disassemble buildings carefully, and rescue building materials to be used in other projects. In today’s Upzoned episode, host Abby Kinney and co-host Chuck Marohn talk about this growing movement.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “How A Deconstruction Company And Salvage Shop Are Keeping Building Materials Out Of Landfills,” by Cinnamon Janzer, Next City (March, 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

The 15 Minute City - A Good Life or an Infringement on Freedoms?

The 15 Minute City: a term to describe mixed use neighborhoods, has become a political concept where critics believe the idea could result in an infringement on personal freedoms. 

On this Upzoned podcast, host Abby Kinney and special guest Kevin Klinkenberg, talk about this contentious topic of the 15 Minute City and answer the question: Are the concerns people have (about 15 minute cities) warranted, or is this something that we should all be rolling our eyes at and moving on from? 

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

“The 15 Minute City - Where Urban Planning Meets Conspiracy Theories,” by Chris Standford, The New York Times (March, 2023)

“The Messy City Podcast” by Kevin Klinkenberg.

Abby Kinney (Twitter)

Kevin Klinkenberg (Twitter)

Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom

Whose Responsibility Is It To Ensure That Buildings Interact With the Public Realm in a Delightful Way?

It’s important to build safe and productive streets, but how do we ensure those streets are a place people want to be and live in? Whose responsibility is it to ensure that buildings interact with the public realm in a delightful way? Design is hugely impactful in our daily lives: it can determine if a place is somewhere for people, or if it’s unlivable and unusable. And design isn’t wholly up to the “eye of the beholder.” It’s possible to quantify beauty.

Today on the Upzoned podcast, join host Abby Kinney as she welcomes a special guest: Tristan Cleveland, Strong Towns member, urban planner at Happy City, and PhD candidate with Healthy Populations Institute. In this episode, Abby and Cleveland talk about his recent Planetizen article, “The Responsibility of the Building to the Street.”

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “The Responsibility of the Building to the Street,” by Tristan Cleveland, Planetizen (February 2023).

• Tristan Cleveland (Twitter).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

We’re Getting Worse at Construction Despite Technology Advances

Despite global advantages and new technologies, we are getting worse at construction. At least, that’s the case that Ezra Klein makes in his New York Times article, “The Story Construction Tells About America’s Economy Is Disturbing.”

Today on Upzoned, join host Abby Kinney and co-host Chuck Marohn as they talk about this idea and add on to the conversation with an explanation on the difference between “complicated” and “complex.” 

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “The Story Construction Tells About America’s Economy Is Disturbing,” by Ezra Klein, The New York Times (February 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

Portland’s Cully Neighborhood To Use “The One Ring” for Good

Portland’s Cully neighborhood is about to embark on a big urban renewal experiment with the intention of maintaining that area's current affordability. Yes, you heard that right.

In the past, the term “urban renewal” was mainly associated with mid-20th century schemes that displaced residents by seizing and demolishing large swaths of neighborhoods in order to modernize them with highways, roads, and other infrastructure elements. 

Now, Cully hopes to use similar tools for the better. Under what the city has labeled an “urban renewal” plan, it would borrow against future tax revenues to invest in programs and purchases that are intended to stabilize residents and businesses (versus tearing them down for pavement projects). 

In this Upzoned episode, host Abby Kinney and co-host Chuck Marohn talk about the reality of a top-down plan like this and how it can be dangerous for communities to think this way, even if they only intend to do good.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “NE Portland’s Cully neighborhood fights displacement, climate change with urban renewal. But will it work?” by Gosia Wozniacka, The Orgonian (January 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

The Governor of Missouri Wants to Spend $859 Million on Highway Expansion

The state of Missouri has a $6 billion budget surplus due to an increase in tax revenue and unspent federal aid. Governor Parson wants to use $859 million of it to expand I-70, the major transport route which connects Kansas City and St. Louis. This expansion would bulldoze through key areas in downtown St. Louis, areas west of downtown, and even the suburban areas of Columbia (which sits right near the middle of the interstate). Lots of people, even those unfamiliar with the Strong Towns perspective, think this expenditure proposal is a bad idea.

Today, join host Abby Kinney and co-host Chuck Marohn on the Upzoned podcast as they discuss this story and potential avenues for better spending.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “Missouri Gov. Parson Wants $859M to Expand I-70. Here Are His Other Budget Priorities,” by Kacen Bayless and Jonathan Shorman, The Kansas City Star (January 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

The U.S. Is Running Out of Skilled Labor. Is It Gen-Z’s Fault?

The U.S. is crying out, saying we NEED more carpenters, plumbers, and other people in skilled trades and technical industries—but the generation about to take over the workforce, Gen Z, doesn’t seem interested. As time presses forward, we’re continuing to see more open positions, and not enough people to fill them. This could impact not only agriculture, infrastructure, housing, and transportation, but everyone’s daily lives, in general.

The “shortage of workers” discourse tends to point a finger at Gen Z’s lack of work ethics, but in this episode of Upzoned, podcast host Abby Kiney and guest Daniel Herriges talk about variables that are often left out of the conversation.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “America needs carpenters and plumbers. Gen Z doesn't seem interested,” by Mary Yang, NPR (January 2023).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

People Move to Places with Zoning Laws, Ergo Zoning Is Good?

In a recent Planetizen article titled, “Is Exclusionary Zoning a Good Thing?” author Michael Lewyn examines a theoretical argument presented by Judge Glock in the American Affairs Journal: that because people move to places that have zoning laws, zoning must be good. In this Upzoned episode, host Abby Kinney and co-host Chuck Marohn unpack the zoning debate between these two authors and how zoning is truly impacting cities.

ADDITIONAL SHOW NOTES

• “Is Exclusionary Zoning a Good Thing?” by Michael Lewyn, Planetizen (January 2023).

• “Two Cheers for Zoning,” by Judge Glock, American Affairs (Winter 2022).

• “Small Developers and the Construction Labor Shortage—time to dig deep,” by R. John Anderson, R John the Bad (December 2021).

• Abby Kinney (Twitter).

• Chuck Marohn (Twitter).

• Theme Music by Kemet the Phantom.

Thanks for a Great Year

It's been a great year here on Upzoned; thanks for listening. We wanted to close out 2022 with one last message, and to wish you Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!