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Focus Archive - April 2005

Please note that Focus section links were valid at the time of their original posting. However, since Web sites and addresses change frequently, we cannot guarantee that all links will remain operative.

Trains and Parking: Time to Check True Costs? (April 25)
New and expanded train systems, or just more parking spaces? Which should Americans pay for? More from the Washington Post Writer's Group.

Municipal Web Site Tips (April 25)
The New Hampshire Municipal Association has assembled a collection of articles offering advice on developing and evaluating municipal Web sites.

Why Have Housing Prices Gone Up? (April 25)
A recent paper from the Harvard Institute of Economic Research, "Why Have Housing Prices Gone Up?" (Adobe Acrobat Document135kb) argues that regulatory obstacles are the primary reason housing prices have risen so much since the 1970s.

Federal Way Premieres New Economic Development Video (April 25)
As part of a commitment to attract new businesses, the City of Federal Way has produced a new tri-video entitled Federal Way – It’s All Within Reach, available in English, Korean, and Japanese.

Telecom Companies Oppose Local Franchising for Video Over Internet (April 25)
The two largest telephone companies in the United States told Congress that their plans to begin offering video services in competition with the cable industry cannot succeed if they must comply with existing local franchising rules. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Homeland Security - Inching Forward (April 25)
A few policy changes that should benefit locals have trickled out of the Department of Homeland Security. More from Government Technology.

Taking Back the Trash (April 25)
The reasons that caused some communities to contract out solid waste services may be the same reasons for bringing them back in. More from American City & County.

Unfunded Mandates - It Pays to Complain (April 25)
A decade after federal lawmakers passed the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) — legislation to curtail unfunded mandates — Congress is re-examining the law. More from American City & County.

VoIP - The Implications for Public Safety (April 25)
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a developing technology that has several ramifications for the law enforcement and public safety community. More from The Police Chief.

Pride of Place - What Makes Outdoor Spaces Successful? (April 19)
Fred Kent has spent three decades developing a common-sense approach to streets, buildings and human sociability. More from Governing.

Information for B&O Tax Cities (April 19)
Your taxpayers are probably in the midst of filling out their first returns for taxes levied under the model B&O tax ordinance and may have questions about the model or any deviations your city's ordinance might have from the "core" model ordinance. The model ordinance and related information can be found on our B&O Tax page.

Community Land Trusts: Leasing Land for Affordable Housing (April 19)
Community land trusts are nonprofit, community-based organizations whose mission is to provide affordable housing in perpetuity by owning land and leasing it to those who live in houses built on that land. More from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Downtown Revitalization Conference Just Around the Corner (April 19)
Learn about the latest downtown revitalization tools and techniques at the 19th Annual Downtown Revitalization Training Institute (Adobe Acrobat Document360kb) in Centralia, Washington, April 27-29, 2005.

Pave Paradise? No, Ditch the Parking Lot (April 19)
For years urbanists have tried a wide assortment of tactics to reduce the damage that parking inflicts on communities. Now comes UCLA urban planning professor Donald C. Shoup with a radical, yet carefully argued prescription: Governments should stop requiring off-street parking. More from New Urban News.

NLC Examples Database: Traffic Solutions for Cities (April 19)
The National League of Cities (NLC) has collected several examples that show how cities have used planning, technology, and creativity to keep traffic moving. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Schools & City Collaborate On New Joint-Use Primary Center (April 19)
School districts and cities too often operate independently, as within silos, when making capitol investment in public facilities. But, the city and school district of Pasadena are proving themselves exceptional as they collaboratively explore creating a new community-centered, mixed-use, family friendly school facility. More from New Schools Better Neighborhoods.

How (In)accurate Are Demand Forecasts in Public Works Projects? (April 19)
Despite the enormous sums of money being spent on transportation infrastructure, surprisingly little systematic knowledge exists about the costs, benefits, and risks involved. More from the Journal of the American Planning Association.

Finance - Making the Most of the New Blue Book (April 19)
The 2005 edition of Governmental Accounting, Auditing, and Financial Reporting marks the eighth substantial revision in a series that now extends almost 70 years. More from Government Finance Review (Adobe Acrobat Document168kb).

Tax Statistics 2004 Available on Department of Revenue Web Site (April 15)
Tax Statistics 2004 , a compilation of state tax collections, has been published online by the Department of Revenue (DOR). More from DOR.

The Mall Goes Undercover - It Now Looks Like a City Street (April 14)
The irony is almost too perfect: Malls (reincarted as "lifestyle centers") are now being designed to resemble the downtown commercial districts they replaced. More from Slate.

Farm Wars (April 14)
Can "right to farm" laws resolve growing land use conflicts? More from The Next American City.

EPA Empowering Communities to Reduce Risks from Toxic Exposure (April 14)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched a new grant and technical assistance program to help communities understand and reduce the risk of exposure to toxic chemicals. More from ICMA.

Public Golf Courses Undergo Renaissance (April 14)
As overall golf course construction settles after the ‘90s building boom, cities and counties continue to focus on the sport as a vehicle for revenue and community building. More from American City & County.

Reinventing Conservation Easements (April 14)
No recent happening in land conservation rivals the deployment from coast-to-coast of conservation easements. More from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Welcome to Our (Well-Protected) Building (April 14)
In an era of terror threats, workplace violence, mass shootings, and decreasing budgets, protecting staff at city and county government facilities is extremely difficult. More from Public Management.

The Designer Discount - Density Keeps Energy Costs Down (April 14)
Compact community design can save just as much gas as a well designed car engine. More from the Michigan Land Institute.

Which U.S. Cities Have the Longest Commutes? (April 06)
Americans spend more than 100 hours commuting to work each year, according to U.S. Census Bureau. For the nation as a whole, the average daily commute to work lasted about 24.3 minutes in 2003. More from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Northwest Income Indicators Project (April 06)
Washington State University's Northwest Income Indicators Project Web site offers graphic analysis and summary reports of local area growth focusing on population, personal income, per capita income, employment, industry earnings and average earnings per job.

Police Chiefs Urge Careful Approach When Using Stun Guns (April 06)
The International Association of Chiefs of Police recently released a report, Electro-Muscular Disruption Technology: A Nine Step Strategy For Effective Deployment, which urges law enforcement agencies to use caution when using electro-muscular disruption technology, commonly known as stun guns.

Web Sightings - Performance Measurement (April 06)
Between Tim Eyman's latest initiative filing and the state legislature's interest, the subject of performance measurement and auditing has been much in the news. You can learn more about measuring the performance of government programs and services at these Web sites:

National Performance Measurement Web Sites

Local Government Performance Measurement in Washington

Brave New Telecom World (April 06)
Even with fewer than 1 percent of all Americans using the technology, Internet calling — technically known as "voice over Internet protocol" or VoIP, is starting to turn state and local telecom regulation on its head. More from Governing.

Wi-Fi Networks Signal New Opportunities for Cities (April 06)
If Philadelphia leaders get their way, by late 2006 most of the city's residents will be able to surf the Internet from almost anywhere in the city. More from American City & County.

States Considering Anti-Municipal Broadband Bills (April 06)
Here is a listing and brief description of legislative efforts in several states to block municipalities from providing telecommunications services. Government Technology.

Municipal Broadband - MuniWireless.com (April 06)
Looking for more information concerning municipal broadband deployment, both urban and rural? Try MuniWireless.com. The site is devoted to municipal wireless broadband projects worldwide that are funded or supported by cities and towns.

Wellness Programs Lighten Health Costs (April 06)
The two biggest contributors that plague local government employee health care costs — obesity and smoking — are arguably the most preventable. More from American City & County.

Performance-Based Contracting (April 06)
The Promise and Pitfalls of Performance-Based Contracting (Adobe Acrobat Document329kb) focuses on contracting services out to non-governmental organizations and the use of outcome-based performance management techniques to improve the work of nonprofit service providers in New York City.

Developing Sustainable Transport Indicators (April 06)
A new paper from the Victoria Transport Institute, Well Measured - Developing Indicators for Comprehensive and Sustainable Transport Planning (Adobe Acrobat Document246kb), provides guidance on the selection of indicators for comprehensive and sustainable transport planning.

Cities and Counties in the News (April)
Here are the latest news clippings from around the state highlighting current events, trends and other news affecting Washington city and county governments: