Housing

Phoenix

Sun Belt Cities Need a New Approach to Urbanism

The unique growth and challenges facing large cities in the U.S. Sun Belt will require a break from the kinds of policies generated to serve Northeastern and Midwestern cities over the course of U.S. history.

June 18, 2020 - Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research: The Urban Edge

Tamir Rice

Planning Beyond Mass Incarceration

Sheryl-Ann Simpson from Carleton University, Justin Steil from MIT, and Aditi Mehta from the University of Toronto write about a recent article they co-authored in the Journal of Planning Education and Research.

June 18, 2020 - JPER

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

Federal Eviction and Foreclosure Moratorium Extended Until the End of August

Breaking news: a federal moratorium on evictions and foreclosures of single-family mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be extended until at least the end of August. The moratorium had been set to expire at the end of June.

June 17, 2020 - Federal Housing Finance Agency

Park Rendering

Community Park Addresses Open Space, Air Quality Disparities in L.A.

Lou Calanche and Esther Feldman discuss the Natural Park at Ramona Gardens, a green solution project to improve air quality and community health in one of the most polluted neighborhoods in Los Angeles.

June 17, 2020 - The Planning Report

Emergency Housing

Report: $15.5 Billion Per Month Needed for Housing Market Relief

A new report from researchers at the Urban Institute makes the case for federal and state relief for renters and property owners hurt by the economic realities of the coronavirus pandemic.

June 17, 2020 - Urban Institute

cafe

Demand for City Living Hasn't Declined Yet, According to Real Estate Searches

Media is full of stories about people fleeing the city for suburban or even rural climes during the pandemic. The data from real estate search sites tell a different story.

June 16, 2020 - CityLab

Rent Jubilee

Ithaca Approves Historic #CancelRent Legislation

Ithaca, New York is the first city in the nation to go through with a plan to cancel rent, giving three-quarters of the residents in the city a needed safety net as the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic crisis persists into the summer.

June 15, 2020 - FastCompany

Tysons Corner

The Great Retrofit: Transforming Tysons With Walkable Residential Development

A 2010 comprehensive plan set a goal to add 100,000 residential units with walkable access to public transit to this unincorporated corner of Fairfax County in Northern Virginia.

June 14, 2020 - Greater Greater Washington

Urban Tree Canopy

Another Way to Achieve Racial Justice: Zoning Reform

An opinion piece calls out suburban communities for perpetuating structural inequality and housing discrimination. Recently converted social justice advocates should focus their zeal on zoning reform, according to the argument that follows.

June 14, 2020 - Louisville Courier Journal

Jacksonville, Florida

Racial Disparity in Home Lending Is Today's Redlining

According to a new report detailing discriminatory lending in Chicago, people in majority-white neighborhoods continue to receive more loans, and in greater amounts, than people in majority-Black and majority-Latino areas.

June 11, 2020 - WBEZ 91.5

Twin Cities

Advocates Push for Policy Reform to Overcome History of Discriminatory Deed Covenants

The debate about police reform in Minneapolis is only one arena for the city's reckoning with systemic racism.

June 11, 2020 - Next City

Back Bay

Renters Falling Behind, Survey Says

New survey data from Massachusetts finds massive housing market stress as more and more renters falling behind on payments.

June 11, 2020 - The Boston Globe

Homelessness

Housing Programs on the Chopping Block in Philadelphia

The city of Philadelphia is facing a $649 million budget shortfall, and Mayor Jim Kenney is proposing to cut deeply from the city's housing budget to make up the difference.

June 11, 2020 - WHYY

Eichler

The Housing Market During COVID-19: Supply Dips, Prices Rise

While fewer houses are being bought and sold in the first months of the pandemic, prices are on the rise as buyers find less supply available on the market.

June 10, 2020 - CNBC

Wine Country Fires

Budget Crunch Threatens California's Climate Resilience Plans

Facing a massive budget due to the declining revenues created by the coronavirus pandemic, California will have to cut a program intended to retrofit homes and roofs as a protection against wildfire, among other climate resilience programs.

June 9, 2020 - North State Public Radio

Maryland

Silver Spring Downtown Plan Expanding to Make Room for the Missing Middle

Planners are hoping that by expanding the boundaries of the Silver Spring Downtown Plan in Montgomery County, Maryland, new opportunities for missing middle housing will create new opportunities for housing affordability.

June 9, 2020 - Greater Greater Washington

Southeast Asia

The Singapore Exception

Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong were credited early in the pandemic with having successfully contained the coronavirus without resorting to lockdowns. However, Singapore lost its standing in that elite group. Crowding vs. density may explain why.

June 9, 2020 - NPR - Goats and Soda

Social Justice

Connecting the Dots Between Planning and Policing

The newest issue the Journal of Planning and Education Research responds to a clear need of the time: the need to address social justice in the public realm while reforming planning practices in the United States.

June 4, 2020 - Journal of Planning and Education Research

Rent Jubilee

The Looming Eviction Crisis

Of all the nightmare scenarios that became possible when the coronavirus hit the shores of the United States, the possibility of massive evictions and a rental market failure seems to have averted the worst possible outcomes. That could still change.

June 3, 2020 - The New York Times

Columbus, Ohio

Laying the Groundwork for Cheaper Multi-Family Housing Construction

The processes of clearing land, building foundations, and making space for parking are three of the most expensive components of the construction process. Zoning can help reduce the costs to deliver more affordable housing supply.

June 3, 2020 - Brookings

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.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA

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.