Across the country, many urban neighborhoods are experiencing dramatic transformations. Parking lots, underused commercial properties, and former industrial sites are being replaced by condos, apartments, and townhouses. In spite of the many impressive projects, a central question remains: Do such examples add up to a fundamental shift in the geography of residential construction?To answer this question, EPA examined residential building permits in the 50 largest metropolitan regions in 2009. The original report, issued in Feb. 2009, examined building trends in the 50 largest metropolitan areas from 1990 to 2007. The results of this analysis can be found in the report Residential Construction Trends in America’s Metropolitan Regions 2009.
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http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/construction_trends.htm
