Yesterday, in his State of the City address, Mayor Bloomberg said “keeping New York City and America at the front of the pack begins with an openness to new energy, meaning immigration, and new ideas, meaning innovation,” according to an article in today's NY Times. This points directly to… more

The emerging trend of young people choosing to raise their kids in cities and what urban leaders are doing to encourage it is the topic of a story in today’s USA Today. It features the findings of the recent CEOs for Cities study as well as comment from members… more

We've been warning of the impact of boomer retirements. Now that their impact is being felt, employers are developing a new approach -- getting them to stay.

The Wall Street Journal reports that companies should take the following steps to keep older workers:

+ Offer flexible schedules (with commensurate flexible… more

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's cabinet members are not satisfied to run the country. They want to run the cities, too. Two-thirds of the 33-member cabinet plan to run for mayor or deputy mayor. "It's a way for a minister to stay in contact with the soil," according to the labor… more

In Silicon Valley, you locate a company where the engineers are. Writing in The New York Times, Steve Lohr explored the geography of the Valley and found it to be a "collection of remarkably local clusters based on industry niches, skills, school ties, traffic patterns, ethnic groups and even… more

In an attempt to lure more tourists, Las Vegas is launching a new campaign tagged with this new line: "Your Vegas Is Showing." The effort, according to The Wall Street Journal, is "aimed at keeping the destination's winning naughtiness message intact, while creating a new message to highlight some of… more

Although the targets of his comments were nonprofit leaders, TechSoup co-chief executive Daniel Ben-Horin's warning apply to any leader.

He told The Chronicle of Philanthropy, "Successful nonprofit players in the new media space will be those who figure out how to interface with the broad platforms like YouTube and… more

Portland, where a higher percentage of people bike to work than in any other large American city, is installing bike boxes at key intersections. The box is a clearly designated place for cyclists in front of and in full view of drivers to wait for traffic lights to change. The… more

Substitute oversized picture frames for fake rock overhangs and you have the latest in climbing walls. Unfortunately, In the Jan/Feb issue Metropolitan Home there is a photo of the Illoiha fitness center in Omotesando, Tokoyo's stylish shopping district. The wall was created by the young design group Nendo.… more

That's the advice from Robin Chase, the amazing founder of ZipCar and GoLoco, on Tata Motors' announcement of the $2500 car. I couldn't agree more. That's the problem with better, cheaper technology -- induced demand. Read her blog entry here.

Reading this morning's news that Howard Schultz is returning as CEO of Starbucks, I started thinking about the close ties between Starbucks and the comeback of cities. No one can argue that Starbucks didn't lend cache to newly revitalizing city neighborhoods. As young adults returned to live in central cities… more

Kevin Fry, president of Scenic America, narrates a NYT slide show on the miserable suburban landscape found in so much of America.

"A thousand places look exactly the same, and that's the tragedy of it," he says. "There's nothing about this place that distinguishes it from any other… more

Here's an interesting slide show with audio on The New York Times web site today on shopdropping, an alternative to shoplifting that puts cans back on the store shelf with their labels altered by artists.

From Where blog comes a list of the best articles of 2007 from the urban blogosphere (his term not mine, since most are from mainstream publications -- but excellent still).

In The Economist's "The World in 2008," New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg argues that a new urban global community is emerging in which cities are collaborating with each other on common problems while simultaneously competing with each other in the global marketplace. "The days of sitting back and waiting for… more

It was bound to happen. Everywhere is a new travel magazine "created by the world's smartest travel experts -- our readers."

Instead of being cannibalized by the web, Everywhere is using the web to collect content from readers and then vet the content with "peer review" that has "the… more

Three items from Monocle's 25 Travel Wishes for 2008/9 caught my eye.

The first was this: "Suspension of the silly no-liquids rule."

The second was "Suspension of the sillier take-your-shoes-off x-ray procedures."

To both I say, Amen.

The third, though, is less obvious. "Ban further luxury hotel development until they can find… more

Monocle showcased 10 global policy initiatives worth adopting. Here they are:

(1) Senior Service - Fixer-Sven in Stockholm sends a "friendly chap who shuttles between houses fixing practical problems free of charge" for citizens over 75. "There are also moves to outsource care of the elderly to countries with sunny weather,… more

There is so much to love about the current (Dec-Jan) issue of Monocle. Here is an example:

If the U.S. can outsource a war to the private sector, why not its State Department and its Department of Education? Wise governments have always seen the benefits of outsourcing. And some governments are… more

If you have any doubt about the cities yours is competing with, read the latest issue of Price Tags about the work Larry Beasley, Vancouver's past co-Director of Planning, is doing in the Emerate of Abu Dhabi.

In Larry's words, "Vancouver is not nearly as far ahead as we… more