Seaside is a planned, mixed generation community in Florida's Panhandle,midway between Fort Walton Beach and Panama City.  It is one of the first examples of the New Urbanism style of architecture, a retrospective treatment in which houses have front porches and people are encouraged to walk rather than drive their cars. Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk were the architects. Driveways…...

Yuma, Arizona, located in the southwest corner of the state, is considered to be the sunniest and driest spot in the U.S.  The sun shines 90% of the days each year, with just over 3 inches of rain annually, which makes it a popular winter destination for snowbirds.  Yuma’s population was 95,429 (2012 census), but that number swells during the…...

Weslaco is a rapidly growing town in extreme southern Texas west of Brownsville in the Rio Grande Valley.  The 2014 population was about 38,000, about 80% of which is Hispanic. The area is popular with retirees because of the warm winters and proximity to the Gulf of Mexico.  Weslaco is a college town with several schools of higher learning including…...

South Bend, Indiana, home to the world renowned University of Notre Dame and several other institutions of higher learning, is the county seat of St. Joseph County, with a population of 101,168 (2010 census).  The name is derived from the town’s location on the St. Joseph River as it sits on the southernmost bend.  This river has played an important…...