A Houston Perspective
From The Liberal Side of Urban Development Councillor Dick Quax last night posted on Facebook a link to a New Geography article on how Houston (known for its sprawl) is taking off as an “aspiration” city in the USA. I am going to link this New Geography post here at BR:AKL for several reasons: … Read more
The White House
If Only While away in Australia I managed to get a picture of me at The White House: You can see myself and The First Lady (that being Rebekka) at the Oval Office Desk with Obama to one side smiling. Don’t why he is smiling after I just handed the USA back to London … Read more
URBAN PLANNING EDUCATIONAL TOUR
A Council Sponsored Tour – with a difference TOTAL FOR URBAN PLANNING EDUCATIONAL TOUR $19,990 for five people – no discount – American Summer Peak Season $3,998 per person [$2,583 per person to Queenstown for Local Government NZ Conference] That is the price I go with no group discounts and only using Air New Zealand for … Read more
Coming Soon
How to Spend $93,000 and get a better Outcome Councillor Cameron Brewer, Whale Oil and myself have been working overtime in highlighting ratepayers disgust on Auckland Council spending $93,000 sending delegates down to Queenstown on a gold-plated conference about Local Government. Whatever outcomes of this conference will be, I am sure we could have … Read more
Cycling and the USA
New Geography on HOW TO BUILD A CULTURE OF BIKE SAFETY America, Land of [insert what ever here]. America and bikes – just as likely combo as Americans and them having anything smaller than a Chevy. However is it? Is America seriously looking at building a safe cycling culture to help wean itself from the … Read more
Round up of Commentary on Macro Business
The Half Weekly Round up from our Aussie Cousins – at Macro Business I am going to trial a twice weekly round-up of some tidbits from Macro Business Super Blog. The round-up would be posted every Wednesday and Sunday (time of day dependent on work and days off) here at VOAKL with the index … Read more
Small Cities Are Becoming a New Engine Of Economic Growth?
Small Cities Are Becoming a New Engine Of Economic Growth | Newgeography.com. From the Executive Editor of New Geography [dot-com], we get an interesting insight to the true engine room of economic growth in the USA – small cities. The conventional wisdom is that the world’s largest cities are going to be the primary … Read more
Lets Not Try and Give the Stalinist’s Ideas HERE Please
California Declares War on Suburbia II: The Cost of Radical Densification | Newgeography.com. Professor Wendell Cox gives yet another brilliant analysis of California (as the article says) declaring war on suburbia. Check this out for the opening paragraph of Professor Cox’s article: California’s determination to virtually outlaw new detached housing. The goal is clear: force … Read more
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY: ST. LOUIS’ COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Another great piece from Wendell Cox about housing affordability – this time in St Louis.
Auckland has a Housing Affordability Multiple of over 6.0 (extremely unaffordable) while St Louis is around the 2.6 mark (affordable as 3.0 is the threshold (a house should not cost more than three times the combined income of those living in the house)).
Maybe Professor Cox should do a comprehensive study on Auckland and Christchurch on their housing affordability with solutions put forward to the respective Councils. Whether Council follows through is another matter entirely.
But we can try 
