Rubén Casas
Rubén joined The Urbanist's board in 2022. He is a scholar and teacher of rhetoric and writing at the University of Washington Tacoma. He is also the faculty lead of the Urban Environmental Justice Initiative at Urban@UW. In his work and advocacy, Rubén examines how cities and the institutions that comprise them imagine, plan, and build in ways that promote and/or discourage community and a sense of place.
How a proposed (and now permitted) large industrial development intersects with plans to engage South Tacoma Way in community-led planning.
Residents of South Tacoma who...
Tacoma has the least tree canopy in the Puget Sound Region. Residents experience this reality in higher average temperatures and poor air quality.
On a...
Scuttling bus rapid transit plans, Pierce Transit is moving ahead with a scaled back express bus shadowing Route 1.
Bus rapid transit (BRT) along Pacific...
Sound Transit has announced a “celebration” marking the opening of the Tacoma Link Hilltop Extension for September 16th. The agency does not stipulate that...
Tollefson Plaza in downtown Tacoma confounds me. It’s an attractive space next to a bustling university campus and an art museum. It is adjacent...
Tacomans contend with their streets and roads
This is the last of three vignettes depicting possible conversations between imaginary people in Tacoma as the city...
This is the second of three vignettes depicting possible conversations between imaginary people in Tacoma as the city grapples with growth, densification, and other...
This is the first of three vignettes depicting possible conversations between imaginary people in Tacoma as the city grapples with growth, densification, and other...