There’s been a lot of news on the local development land-use front lately so to kick off the week let’s look at a round-up of some of those major stories:

Prince George’s moving forward (with TOD): Although this WaPo article at first focuses on new PG Executive Baker’s push to free the county of corruption it also highlights his priority of increasing development around the county’s Metro stations noting its ability to maximize return on investment during times of limited economic resources

Height Act (re)interpreted: D.C. developed Ackridge is planning a major mixed-use development near Union Station however differing interpretations of the 1910 Act could impact the developer’s plans. What are the merits and drawbacks of height restrictions?

Crystal City unblocked: While much attention has been (rightfully) paid to the ongoing transformation of Tyson’s Corner from a sea of traffic and parking lots into an urban walkable center planners in Arlington are looking at how to redevelop Crystal City’s “superblocks” to make the area more pedestrian-friendly and aesthetically pleasing.

Lastly this one’s not local but it’s interesting nonetheless. Neal Pierce over at citiwire writes about the need to invest in infrastructure strategically. As he notes we spend about 2 percent of our GDP per year on infrastructure much less than the EU and China. Correctly noting that reliable infrastructure is key to building and maintaining a competitive economy Pierce also points out that simply throwing money at projects without evaluating their impact on the network around them is foolish.