Community / Economic Development
Plan for Successor to L.A.'s Shuttered Redevelopment Agency Takes Shape
The state-ordered demise of the Community Redevelopment Agency has been a huge blow to redevelopment and affordable housing efforts in Los Angeles. A new plan being put forth by city leaders hopes to help fill that void, reports Ryan Vaillancourt.
The Future of Municipal Planning: Is John Nolen Rolling Over in his Grave?
Are today's city planners fulfilling the promise of John Nolen? Howard Blackson explores a profession losing its influence, and ponders how to get it back.
Economic Competitiveness of the Midwest Relies on Immigration Reform
Cities like St. Louis, where the 44,000 native-born Americans that left in the last decade have been replaced by 31,000 immigrants, offer a case study for why comprehensive immigration reform has a good chance of passing in divided Washington.
Placemaking Confronts Entertainment Initiative in a Downtown L.A. Alleyway
A quaint downtown L.A. alleyway celebrated for its Old World charm has been cleared of its outdoor dining facilities to ease access to a rehabilitated theater's loading dock. Can an equitable compromise be found?
The Next Step in Downtown Pittsburgh's Resurgence: Build More Parking?
With an approaching mayoral transition, Mark Belko looks at what Pittsburgh's next leader will need to focus on to keep downtown's rejuvenation rolling. Should building more parking be at the top of the list?
America's Top Small Town Art Scenes
ArtPlace, the creative placemaking collaboration, has announced its inaugural list of the top small town art scenes in the United States. The dozen communities selected for recognition include Crested Butte, CO, Vineyard Haven, MA, and Taos, NM.
Why Americans Are Moving from Blue to Red States
In this op-ed, Arthur B. Laffer and Stephen Moore analyze the recent Census findings showing renewed migration from the Northeast and Midwest to the South and Southwest. They note the movement is clearly from blue states to red, and explain why.
To Create a Great 'Third Place', Get Out of the Way
For far too long, the shaping of public spaces has been left to architects and urban planners, who plan from the top down. The most successful projects involve people directly in deciding how their public spaces will look, feel, and operate.
Embracing Placemaking's Freak Factor
Realizing that overly controlled environments rarely breed the kind of innovation and culture that make cities great, Scott Doyon gets down with the funky and unpredictable.
Inspiring Ideas for Solving L.A.'s Biggest Challenges
With 279 submissions received, the pubic voting period has begun for determining who will receive the $1,000,000 in grants being awarded to improve the quality of life in Los Angeles along eight key indicators.
Gilbert Doubles Down on Downtown Detroit With Ambitious Placemaking Plan
Rather than succumb to the negative news surrounding Detroit's dire financial situation, businessman and booster Dan Gilbert is doubling down on his extensive investment in the city with an ambitious effort to enliven downtown's public spaces.
A Cultural Mecca Grows in Brooklyn
With the Bloomberg administration's investments in transforming the area around the acclaimed Brooklyn Academy of Music finally bearing fruit, the emerging cultural district is earning comparisons to the city's premier arts hub - Lincoln Center.
Trend Towards Engagement Transforms America's Public Housing
Public housing models in the U.S. are becoming more community-oriented and taking varying demographics into account during the design process. Engagement with the street, the neighborhood, and social services are creating new design typologies.
With Boston Mayor's Departure, Evaluating His Imprint on the City
With longtime Boston mayor Thomas Menino's announcement that he will not seek re-election, Paul McMorrow assesses the five-term mayor's impact on the shape of the city.
The Power of Place: On Democracy and Public Participation in Planning
More thoughts on how public participation in the placemaking process can create better places and better functioning democracies.
Urban Renewal: What's Driving Downtown's Comeback?
Morgan Brennan looks at the demographic and cultural factors driving America's "most surprising real estate boom," and examines how some cities have targeted investments to attract young professionals.
Healthy, or Unhealthy, by Design
We've engineered physical activity out of our daily lives but it need not be a chronic condition. Hazel Borys points to recent suburban retrofits for ways to get moving again.
Kotkin and Florida Duke it Out Over 'Limits' of the Creative Class
After a decade of debate, Richard Florida's theories on the 'creative class' have been championed by many, and challenged by others (perhaps none more forcefully than author Joel Kotkin). In recent articles, the two are battling it out once again.
On-Site Parking Requirements Stifle D.C. Redevelopment
Business owners, city leaders, and community members would love to see the struggling Anacostia neighborhood transformed into a bustling retail zone. But onerous parking requirements in DC's outdated zoning code are stifling the city's own ambitions.
Build a Better Democracy Through Public Participation
In the first entry in a series exploring the connection between the processes and products of Placemaking and city governance, PPS explores how "Place Governance" can increase leadership, equity, and cohesion among citizens.
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
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
