Suburbs
The Changing Shape of American Suburbs
Housing costs and availability are pushing more American households, including young families, to suburbs and exurbs — and they’re demanding changes.
Revitalizing Suburban Office Space
Suburban office buildings are also losing tenants, but face some unique challenges compared to their urban counterparts.
‘Luxury Beliefs’ and Urban Planning
Conservative pundits are using the term “luxury beliefs” as a means of criticizing progressives. But can the concept be applied to urban planning? And can it be applied in a nonpartisan way?
Vancouver Day Care Rejection Poses Larger Questions
What does it mean for cities and civic life when neighborhoods are viewed as products geared for individual consumption rather than ever-evolving communities?
Rent Costs Rising Faster in Suburbs Than Urban Cores
In a majority of U.S. metro areas, suburban rent hikes are outpacing urban rent increases.
New Research Blames Affluent Suburbs for Housing Crisis
Small, often wealthy enclaves build far less multifamily housing than their larger counterparts, exacerbating the dearth of affordable housing near big cities and job centers.
A ‘New Urbanism’ Travelogue
I visited three New Urbanist developments in North Carolina. Here's what I liked, what I didn't like, and what I learned.
Mitigating the Environmental Footprint of Sprawl
There is still time to reverse the environmental outcomes of American suburbs. Researchers in Los Angeles, considered by many to be the poster child for U.S. sprawl, have been at work on the problem for years.
Remote Work and the Shift to Suburbia
Is the growth of working from home turning America into a ‘suburban nation?’
Cities Need More Family-Oriented Housing
For many young families, it’s simply impossible to find affordable housing in cities, leading them to the suburbs not by choice, but by necessity.
A Rapidly Urbanizing Texas County Gets in Touch With its Agricultural Roots
Developers in Fort Bend County are drawing inspiration from ‘agrihoods’ to build car-light communities in one of the nation’s fastest-growing areas.
New York Governor Advances Housing Plan Amid Stiff Suburban Opposition
Governor Kathy Hochul’s ambitious proposal to create more housing has once again run into a brick wall of opposition in New York’s enormous suburbs, especially on Long Island. This year, however, the wall may have some cracks.
New Exhibition Examines Democracy and Land Use in Connecticut
"The Practice of Democracy: A View from Connecticut" is a new exhibition on display from January to June in Bridgeport, New Haven, and Norwalk which unpacks the relationship of land use and development to democracy.
Is Exclusionary Zoning a Good Thing?
Some commentators defend exclusionary suburban zoning on the ground that it makes affluent suburbanites more willing to pay for public services. But does exclusion create losers?
From Garden Cemeteries to Levittown
Tracing the story of the American suburban form.
The Crucial Role of Suburban Voters in the Midterms
Suburban voters were instrumental in preventing a 'red wave' on Election Day and on December 6 in the Georgia U.S. Senate runoff election, enabling the Democrats to win a 51st Senate seat.
Is Sprawl the Only Answer to High Housing Costs?
A recent article argues that sprawl is the solution to high housing costs, pointing out that low-density Sunbelt cities are more affordable than some more compact metro areas. What's wrong with this argument?
Utah’s Daybreak Shows a Way Forward for American Suburbs
Suburban dwellers are increasingly calling for more mixed-use development, walkability, and access to transit.
Urbanist TikTok Takes Aim at the Suburbs
Planners are using the popular video platform to explain how car dependence and single-family zoning deepen suburban isolation and affect affordability and sustainability.
Reimagining the Suburbs
With more people moving away from central cities, we have the chance to avoid past mistakes and redesign the American suburb to be less car-centric and more diverse.
Pagination
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
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.