The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "urban planning" ...
-
Master's Degree of a Mess; TCC's Money Machine; Illegal to Erase
These stories were part of a year-long investigation of the Tarrant County College District's four-year mismanaged project to build a long-awaited downtown campus in Fort Worth, Texas. In includes investigation into the roles of the chancellor and the board of trustees in the debacle.
Tags: Higher education; mismanagement of funds; Texas; construction projects; urban planning; sunshine laws
-
Dumping Grounds?; Just Moving On; Six More Years
"The Chicago Housing Authority will spend $1.6 billion on its 'Plan for Transformation'- a 10-year urban reform plan to destroy and tear-down more than 38,000 units of high-rise public housing and rebuild vibrant condo-style mixed-income housing in its place. Yet seven years into the plan, the authority has only built 1,600 replacement units of a promised 6,000 in mixed-income condos."
Tags: relocation; regulation; Harold Ickes Homes; Dearborn Homes
-
Rebel With a Plan: Welcome to Planning 101
"This story delves into the psyche of a Los Angeles city councilman who is trying to get his colleagues to adopt an affordable housing policy known as inclusionary zoning. It examines the roles the councilman's upbringing, professional experience and personal grudges play in promulgating a complex policy..."
Tags: real estate; development; urban planning; commuters; immigration; Latinos; racism; discrimination
-
"Yonkers Inside Out"
While examining the politics, economics and development efforts of Yonkers as it rebuilds downtown, the newspaper found a history of legal disputes and financial difficulties with a high-profile developer. The investigation raises questions about how Yonkers picks developers for large projects. A related story shows how state officials plan to sell an 84-acre office park for less than $9 million to a private corporation set up by city officials. The corporation, independent of the city and not subject to local oversight, might resell the property for more than 10 times the purchase price.
Tags: developers; development; city government; quasi-government; arson; Department of Housing and Urban Development; HUD; baseball stadium; Local Development Corporation; taxes; business incorporation records; OSHA; campaign finance
-
Broken Dreams on Florida Boulevard
An in-depth look at the failed attempt at rebuilding a shopping center at the urban center of Baton Rouge. Apparently, bright ideas and planning didn't pan out, and now the center is just a testament to grandiose dreams that never came to fruition.
Tags: property; commercial
-
A Flood of Problems
A Columbia Missourian investigation reveals the neglect of local city and county officials in planning and handling storm water floods amidst new development. Boone County and city of Columbia systems for handling planning subdivisions place "little emphasis on storm water's potential to cause flooding or damage water quality."
Tags: storm water; urban sprawl; subdivisions; planning and zoning; Columbia; Boone County; water quality; growth; urbanization; development
-
The First Signs of Rebirth
"Once a thriving, diverse neighborhood, Milo-Grogan fell victim to highway development and industrial decline. Today residents, who came together to fight a proposed homeless shelter, are finding their identity and pride once again." Columbus' Milo-Grogan neighborhood had a rich history that led back to the turn of the century, a history of immigration combined with industrial growth followed by urban growth. The area saw a decline beginning in the 1960s when the Ohio Department of Transportation constructed a highway that cut through the heart of the community. By the 1990s it population had dropped from nearly 5,000 in the 1960s to 2,500, 90 percent of which were black. Lyttle discovers a community movement that organized after the city planned to put a homeless shelter in the area, and has now dedicated itself to returning the area to its former livelihood.
Tags: Urban renewal; Columbus; Ohio
-
Greater Expectations
Education Week takes a look at the urban schools of New Orleans, specifically Booker T. Washington High School, focusing on remedial classes for students who score poorly on state exams. Students who fail a class may "advance to the next grade, but must take yearlong remedial classes-designated '4.5' or '8.5'- meaning they are classes taken by 5th or 9th graders, respectively, who are doing 4th and 8th grade-level coursework in the subjects they failed." Despite the efforts of teachers and officials to help students in this area, children continue to struggle due high crime rates and poor housing projects. However, people like the principle of Booker T. Washington, are thankful about the efforts New Orleans has made to improve their education system. He says without the remedial plan, many students "would have fallen through the cracks."
Tags: schools; children; achievement tests; remedial classes; poverty; crime
-
Census 2000: A Decade of Change
In a five-day series, the News Tribune explains the trends behind 2000 U.S. Census numbers for the South Puget Sound area and Washington State. The numbers revealed that "suburban cities in the South Sound were among the fastest-growing in the state." Reporters explain the effects of growth in the area and discuss efforts to rein it in through Washington State's Growth Management Act. Along with growth has come an influx of immigrants to the state. "Since 1990, the number of Hispanics statewide more than doubled, to 441,509." Other articles address: redistricting, Korean-Americans in South Sound, and confusion over the number of American Indians in the area.
Tags: census; race; development; urban sprawl; growth; Growth Management Act; planning; immigrants; immigration; open space; migration; diversity; Hispanics; Latinos; Korean Americans; Native Americans; American Indians; multiracial; CAR
-
The turf war over public housing
The Guardian exposes the power struggle and questions of accountability surrounding the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA) and it tenants. In 1990, Theresa Coleman created Ujamaa, a resident-run public housing collective in an attempt to improve San Francisco's Hunters Point neighborhood. After receiving funding from HUD, Coleman's group created a 10-year plan to transform the area into a "city within a city," complete with child care, a medical center, and general store. Development was cut short after a 1997 audit, SFHA decided to suspend Ujamaa's funds indefinitely. After an examination of SFHA records and discussions with tenants, Feldman discovers SFHA has a history of mismanagement and a pattern of suppressing resident activist groups.
Tags: HUD; Urban Development; Public Housing