Smart Growth opponent Wendell Cox clamors that land use regulations imposed by Smart Growth exacerbate the ongoing housing woes.
Matthew Strozier of the Wall Street Journal covers a report by Cox for the National Center for Policy Analysis, in which Cox argues that "[t]he housing price bubble was concentrated in areas with restrictive land use policies."
Strozier summarizes the report: "Mr. Cox argues that the housing bust was concentrated in 'prescriptively regulated' areas, or those with extensive barriers to development. These differ from 'responsively regulated' metro areas, which allow development to meet demand."
Patrick Phillips of the Urban Land Institute is brought in to represent the pro-smart growth side. He says, "...it's specious to pin the housing bubble on smart growth."
Read the full story: Did Smart Growth Fuel the Property-Price Boom?
The Housing Affordability Recipe
Smart policies can ensure that low- and moderate-income households can find suitable housing in good neighborhoods where transportation costs are low. The research is clear: upzoning works.
Distinguishing the Housing Shortage from Gentrification
Gentrification "mutates particular neighborhoods" while scarce housing "squeezes entire regions," Devin Michelle Bunten writes. Conflating the two can lead to inaccuracies in understanding.
Vancouver's New 10-Year Housing Strategy Focuses on Rentals
Vancouver is famous for high-rises and a decidedly urban quality of life, but housing prices are still skyrocketing. A new ten-year housing strategy proposes a few drastic measures to rebalance the market's scales.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
US buildings threatened, destroyed by fires set to triple by 2060
Researchers found a high fire risk for socioeconomically vulnerable neighborhoods in the American West.
LA residents may be allowed to paint their own crosswalks
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky put out a motion instructing the Los Angeles Department of Public Transportation to study the feasibility of allowing volunteers to paint crosswalks.
Dallas moves to overhaul its zoning code
The city's zoning reform will allow more multi-family and mixed-use developments.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority