Local Business

The Embarcadero

Corporate Cafeterias Survive Proposed Legislation to Zone Them Out of Existence

San Francisco's Planning Commission rejected a bill that would have made it illegal to open new office cafeterias, recommending that legislation be crafted to allow these eateries to be open to the public instead.

November 1, 2018 - San Francisco Chronicle

Twitter Headquarters

San Francisco Could Zone Out Workplace Cafeterias

Large corporations providing on-site cafeterias are considered a threat to local restaurant business.

July 31, 2018 - San Francisco Examiner

Corner Store

Corner Store as Gathering Place

Chicago-based Foxtrot looks to expand their new convenience store concept with a nationwide roll-out.

March 23, 2018 - Modern Cities

Brewery

Which U.S. Cities Have the Highest Density of Microbreweries?

Mapping the complete transformation of the beer business in the United States.

January 3, 2017 - City Observatory

Brewery

Op-Ed: Don't Ditch Those Industrial Land Uses

An op-ed describes the choice by many cities to prioritize residential projects in old industrial spaces as short-sighted and potentially unjust.

June 6, 2016 - Next City

California's Ambitious Transportation Projects Designed to Include Communities

Unprecedented transit build-out in California could transform the state. Now leaders are working to ensure the infrastructure connecting major cities also benefits the communities it touches along the way.

March 4, 2016 - The Planning Report

'Rust Belt Riders' Grow New Composting Service in Cleveland

Waste management and composting take an entrepreneurial twist through Cleveland millennials' burgeoning home-grown business.

February 23, 2016 - CEOs for Cities Blog

New Studies Reveal 5 Reasons Policymakers Should Prioritize Local Business in 2016

A raft of recent research finds that small, local businesses are critical to overcoming many of our biggest challenges. This article rounds up the new studies and what they say about why local business should be a focus of planning in 2016.

January 22, 2016 - Institute for Local Self-Reliance

MacArthur Park

Why Some BIDs Succeed Where Others Fail

An in-depth study of business improvement districts (BIDs) in two Los Angeles neighborhoods examines the factors behind their success or failure.

October 23, 2015 - Next City

Proactive Approach to Displacement Included With 11th Street Bridge Park Plans

A proposal to design a park at the 11th Street Bridge between Capitol Hill and Historic Anacostia includes a through study of how the new park can connect two neighborhoods without leaving anyone behind.

September 23, 2015 - Greater Greater Washington

Philadelphia Jewelers' Row

Luxury Condos Versus Philadelphia's Jewelers' Row

Downtown gentrification threatens to displace skilled artisans in a district where workshops go back five generations. Some of the jewelers own their premises, but the rewards for building pricey condos are tempting.

April 14, 2015 - Philadelphia Inquirer

WalMart/Big Box Subsidies Don't Work, Says New Study

When governments use public money to woo national chains, economic growth and job creation aren't worth the cost, says Stacy Mitchell of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. Independent retailers also suffer.

September 12, 2011 - Business Week

Going Local in Buffalo

Part of Buffalo, New York's decline, writes Amy Kedron, involved a shift from local to non-local ownership of businesses. A movement is afoot to encourage businesses to "Think Local First."

September 5, 2011 - Next American City

Boosting the Local Economy Through Local Food

Cities across the country are making efforts to encourage people to buy locally and support the local economy. Food is the main target for local boosters.

August 25, 2011 - Citiwire

Fusion Businesses as Indicators of Urban Change

Chuck Wolfe explains how the fusion of laundromats and dining are evidence of the evolving city and the ongoing need for regulatory reform.

July 17, 2011 - Sustainable Cities Collective

Are Local Businesses Making a Comeback?

Styled after Harper's Index, this "Localism Index" suggests that local economies and independent businesses might just be making a comeback.

April 19, 2011 - The Nation

Manufacturing is Alive and Well

Manufacturing in the U.S. hasn't gone away, it's just gone local, writes Allison Arieff.

March 30, 2011 - The New York Times

Building Business By Building Bike Lanes

Cycling activists in Vancouver are trying to tout the economic benefits of bike lanes to help build the case for a proposed separated bike lane.

September 4, 2010 - Straight.com

Bringing Bookshops Back to the Latin Quarter

Seeing a marked decline in the amount of bookstores in the traditional cultural center of Paris, the city began a program to actively lure them back.

June 8, 2010 - Guardian

Worker Bees

Michael S. Thompson of the Chicago Honey Co-op discusses his urban beekeeping operation and how it provides jobs to otherwise hard-to-employ people.

October 3, 2009 - Orion Magazine

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

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The best of the Internet—since 2002.

Top Apps

Planning apps for a brave new world.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

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.