How one innovative economic development program is challenging stereotypes, and providing job training and housing rehab along the way.
The Women in Construction Company--a project of the Women's Transitional Housing Coalition (WTHC) in Duluth, MN, is an economic development program designed to offer construction skills training to low income women. Since its inception in 2001, the program has helped women obtain employment in the construction trade. They also encourage women to start their own contracting businesses. As other jobs, such as housekeeping, cooking and tourism generally do not pay a living wage, "the trades offer a good inside track for job stability and financial security, but there are gender barriers to consider." According to one of the program founders, shifting the focus of the WTHC to do housing development provided an opportunity to "realize one of the coalition's longstanding goals: to get women into the lucrative construction trades."
Thanks to Connie Chung
FULL STORY: Building a Home and a Future

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie