What We're Reading: Upsizing, Elite Access Only, and Highway Revolt

Collaborative development: South Lake Union parking lots owned by Recovery Café, Cornish College of the Arts, and Bellwether Housing are being sold for redevelopment as a 44-story residential tower; some of them will also be located in the new building. Tabled: With the Broadway streetcar extension apparently suspended, bike and street improvements appear to be tabled. #1: Washington is still number one in the nation for biking. Upsizing: Car2Go is ditching Smartcars ($) in favor of Mercedes-Benz cars in Seattle. Capitol Hill booming: A Capitol Hill dive known as “Redwood” is finally coming to an end due to planned apartments. On another site in the neighborhood with an existing apartment, a garage building will be redeveloped as a six-story, 19-unit apartment building. Capping cars: Singapore is planning to cap the number of cars allowed on the city-state’s streets. On romanticizing cities: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warns against romanticizing cities, particularly in respect to racial equity and cohesion. Tacoma revitalization: 100 apartments will replace a historic-but-burnt-down Masonic Temple in Tacoma. Economic segregation: Richard Florida explains how high-tech innovation can lead to economic segregation. Elite access only: Access fees for local national parks could rise significantly next summer. Free transit: In Dunkirk, France, a mayor made the choice to fund free bus service over a stadium and saw a positive response in ridership. Economic decline: In many cities, highways have increasing squeezed out taxable land from the roll books. Belltown tower: Skanska is planning to build a new residential tower in Belltown with 346 units. Fascist behavior: A group of residents in Burien are trying to expose undocumented residents for deportation. Landmark worthy?: A former funeral home in Capitol Hill is planned for redevelopment, but the original building could be designated as a historic structure. Highway revolt: Montlake neighbors are trying to save a beloved grocery store from the wrecking ball; the state transportation department wants the property for its SR-520 expansion project.