Community / Economic Development

Rendering of aerial view of Telosa city

Why Tech-Utopian City Plans Fail

Like others before him, e-commerce billionaire Marc Lore wants to build the ideal city from scratch. Urban experts don't have much faith in his chances.

September 9, 2021 - Bloomberg BusinessWeek

Public Meeting Speaker

The Consequences of Community Engagement

Long, onerous environmental review processes focused on public input can cause major delays and cost increases for infrastructure and transportation projects.

September 9, 2021 - Governing

For Rent

The Pandemic Effect: Landlord Edition

A new survey highlights the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on small landlords, who provide much of the nation's low-cost rental housing.

September 9, 2021 - Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

Marijuana

Zoning Change to Create More Marijuana Business Opportunities in Chicago

By opening more of downtown Chicago to pot shops, the city hopes that more minority businesses owners can get in on the lucrative business of marijuana.

September 9, 2021 - The Chicago Tribune

Trailer Parks

Mobile Home Parks Becoming Unaffordable as Investors Buy Up Properties

Longtime residents of mobile home parks are seeing their land rents go up as corporate investors seek to increase profits, aided in part by federally-backed loans.

September 8, 2021 - NPR

Downtown Anchorage with the snow covered Chugach Mountains in the background.

An Ambitious Revitalization Agenda for Downtown Anchorage

A new mayoral administration in Anchorage has its sights set on a revitalized urban core, but one local researcher has suggestions for how to expand that vision.

September 8, 2021 - Sightline Institute

Amersfoort, Netherlands cityscape in the Vathorst district at twilight.

The Dutch to Crack Down on Large Investors in the Housing Market

Several Dutch cities are planning to limit the reach of large investors in the housing market by limiting the resale of cheap or mid-priced homes.

September 8, 2021 - DutchNews.nl

New Orleans

Post-Katrina Programs a Blueprint for Housing the Working Class

The housing initiatives developed after Hurricane Katrina teach valuable lessons for post-pandemic affordable housing production.

September 7, 2021 - NOLA.com

LaGuardia Airport

Delta Variant Slowing the Construction Industry

The spike in Covid-19 caused by the highly contagious Delta Variant is slowing the economic recovery in numerous sectors of the economy—case in point the construction industry.

September 7, 2021 - Construction Dive

People in front of Texas African American History Memorial, Texas State Capitol Grounds

Boosting the Signal on East Austin's African American Cultural Heritage District

The city of Austin formally designated the African American Cultural Heritage District in 2007, but recently decided to focus new planning and economic development energy to reaffirm the district's significance in the community.

September 7, 2021 - Community Impact Newspaper

Coronavirus

750,000 Evictions Predicted as Moratoria End

Analysts from Goldman Sachs predict a wave of evictions as eviction moratoriums end with millions of households still behind on rent.

September 6, 2021 - Bloomberg CityLab

City Kids

Seattle Accepting Proposals for Neighborhood Recovery Fund Projects

The fund will invest $6 million in community-led projects aimed at public space activation, digital equity, and other recovery strategies.

September 3, 2021 - The Urbanist

Map showing I-270 Corridor Improvements Study Area

Colorado DOT To Study Air Quality Near I-270 Project—Residents Are Skeptical

The Colorado Department of Transportation has pledged to evaluate direct mitigation measures to reduce the impact of construction projects on nearby communities.

September 3, 2021 - Colorado Public Radio

Coronavirus Social Distancing

Homeownership an Uphill Battle for Black New Yorkers

Black home buyers face an array of challenges when trying to buy homes, leading to a widening gap between Black and white homeowners.

September 2, 2021 - New York Times

The backboar of a basketball hoop is painted orange with the words "orange Mound"--the name of a historically black neighborhood in Memphis, Tennessee.

Memphis Targets Adaptive Reuse of Historic School for Neighborhood Benefits

A plan to rehabilitate the vacant former location of Melrose High School in Memphis' Orange Mound neighborhood "recalls many other recent initiatives aimed at elevating and investing in Black urban history."

September 1, 2021 - Bloomberg CityLab

Hot air balloons rise over Downtown Boise with the State Capitol building visible amidst the high rises.

The 'Mountain Lion' Cities Rising in the U.S. West

An economist identifies the growth in nine U.S. cities—scattered from Utah to Texas, Arizona, Washington, and Idaho—as similar to the economic power generated in parts of Asia.

August 31, 2021 - Full Stack Economics

A group of socially distanced tents for the homeless are set up on a parking lot in San Francisco's Civic Center.

Cities Need More Public Bathrooms–Well Beyond the Pandemic

COVID-19 laid bare the dismal state of public bathrooms in America, and some cities stepped up to add more facilities. But why remove them while the need remains?

August 30, 2021 - Diana Ionescu

Supreme Court of the United States

Supreme Court Strikes Down Federal Eviction Moratorium

The majority opinion claims the CDC overstepped its authority and calls for congressional approval of any further eviction moratoriums.

August 29, 2021 - New York Times

A group of protestors support Black Lives Matter and call for police reforms while gathered on top of a bus stop in Los Angeles.

Reparative Planning as Movement Building

The "Metro as Sanctuary" campaign provides an example of movement-based planning. This kind of planning is relational and solidaristic, with an emphasis on collective decision-making, complementary divisions of labor, and mutual learning.

August 25, 2021 - Lily Song

Inside Washington DC Union Station

D.C. Transit Implementing Major Changes, Hopes to Boost Ridership

Flat fares, reduced wait times, and extended late-night service are all part of a package of changes meant to bring riders back and adjust to post-pandemic travel patterns.

August 25, 2021 - Governing

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.