Community / Economic Development
Could Detroit Rise Again?
Detroit has become our most notorious story of urban collapse. But reporter Matthew Power suggests that we consider the city's official motto: "It shall rise from the ashes."
The Best Cities for Making a Living
U.S. News and World Report recently evaluated the cities where real income (what your paycheck can buy, considering the cost of living) is the highest. Des Moines, Iowa takes the top slot.
The Social Life of Dallas City Hall Plaza
Filmmaker Aaron Garcia uses narration from William H. Whyte's classic The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces to highlight the failings of the I.M. Pei-designed Dallas City Hall Plaza.
Economic Development in Orlando Linked to Defense
A combination of favorable factors have made Orlando the site of a growing high-tech military research/simulation center. Pentagon spending already employs 9,000 more Floridians than the state's hallowed agriculture industry, writes Richard Reep.
The Food System's Negative Impact on Communities
In this food-focused installment of a series on "great places", Grist's Tom Philpott argues that food system as currently structured creates the opposite of great places.
Luring Luxury and Expelling the Lower Class
New York City's policy that incentivizes luxury development has had deleterious impacts on the city's lower and middle classes, according to the new documentary "The Vanishing City".
Artist Decorates Abandoned Bike, Gets Fined
Toronto artist Caroline Macfarlane found a rusted bicycle that had been locked to a bike rack for a very long time. She decided to make it into art, painting the whole bike neon pink and adding a basket of flowers. The city responded by fining her.
Companies Ditch Suburban Office Parks
Suburban areas were once strongholds of corporate campuses and office parks. But there's a shift underway that's drawing companies back to cities.
South Korea Rises
South Korea is emerging as a new center of Asian mega development. With a variety of large-scale and small-scale projects, the country is taking a specific interest in sustainable development.
New York City Brownfields Program Clean But Flawed
A citywide brownfields recovery program in New York City has been cleaning up polluted sites, allowing new developments to move in on formerly vacant areas. But some worry the program is fueling gentrification.
The Challenges of Legitimizing Informal Settlements
Informal settlements like slums and favelas have been perplexing governments in Latin America for decades. A new report looks at two of the ways governments are addressing these areas, and the challenges that remain.
The Secret City that Helped the U.S. Build the Bomb
A city built secretly by the U.S. government to be a center for the design and development of the atomic bomb still stands today as an interestingly urban piece of U.S. history.
Transit-Oriented Tax Credits Nudge Company to Relocate
By relocating to a transit-adjacent building in New Jersey, electronics maker Panasonic has qualified for more than $100 million in tax credits from the state.
The New Redevelopment
As redevelopment agencies face the chopping block in California, new legislation could allow tax increment financing districts to essentially replace them.
Density Can Drive Prosperity
David Roberts at Grist argues that density doesn't just have those hippie benefits like improving the environment or creating communities - it also can create engines of prosperity and economic growth.
Johannesburg's BRT System Makes Good with Minibus Drivers
Minibus drivers in Johannesburg, South Africa, were not happy about plans to build a city-wide bus rapid transit system, worrying it would take their business away. After sometimes violent debates, the drivers have compromised with the city.
Competition Rising Among Food Trucks
Is the food truck craze "over"? The instant urbanism of the street food phenomenon is still highly popular, despite the media coverage saying the trend is facing a bubble.
Revitalization Projects in South Central L.A.
Bank of America touts their lending programs that have funded redevelopment in South Central, particularly a mixed-use development at the corner of Adams and Central that includes a Fresh N' Easy market.
The Town That Hugged New Urbanism
Sharon McMillan explains how her town - Unionville, Ontario - gave New Urbanism "a great big hug" back in the 1970s, and has benefited ever since.
A Broader Look at Creativity in the World's Top Cities
Top livable cities may be be good for families or corporations, but they don't often fuel or enable creativity the way their listers think they do, according to this piece.
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
