Housing
Teaching Architects to Succeed While Serving the Public Interest
The Public Interest Design Institute encourages architects to embrace participatory approaches in design that address complex social needs; demonstrating that it's possible to "make a career as an architect serving those who need the most help."
How TODs Fared Through the Housing Crash
Transit-oriented developments multiplied and held their values comparatively well in the housing crisis. In this article, Josh Stephens explores whether the trend will continue post-recession, or if sprawl is poised for a comeback.
After the Storm, Public Housing Still Needs a Boost
The New York City Housing Authority is facing scrutiny after residents went almost a month without power, Nicole Anderson reports.
Fighting Homelessness, or Fighting the Homeless?
Martha Bridegam investigates the aftermath of a forced eviction at a homeless encampment in San Francisco. Do the homeless deserve to be criminalized?
Friday Funny: "Our House, in the Middle of Our Street"
In China, the concerns of the few are unlikely to stand in the way of progress for the many. This has been made abundantly clear in Zhejiang province where a new motorway has been built around the home of a couple that has refused to move.
Rising to the Real Challenge of Sandy
Michael Kimmelman takes a hard look at the political and bureaucratic obstacles that stand in the way of a forward-thinking approach to rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.
Miami's Real Estate Heats Up, Could a Thunderstorm Be Far Off?
Despite all odds, “Miami’s roller coaster real estate market is booming again” reports Nadja Brandt. Is "the hottest [residential] real estate market in the U.S." primed to boil over?
The Secret Plans for Containing New York's Next Housing Emergency
Hurricane Sandy exposed the need for New York City to be able to house large numbers of residents following natural disasters. Matt Chaban examines the Bloomberg administration's "secret" plan to build modular apartments out of shipping containers.
Wendell's World: In Housing, Supply Equals Demand
Is it really 2012? Maybe so, but Bill Fulton says Wendell Cox isn't living there -- at least based on his latest "analysis" of Southern California's housing trends.
How Can Architects Help in Disaster Relief?
Using post-Sandy New York as a case study, C.J. Hughes looks at the extent to which architects can be helpful in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster.

Fatter Wallets Mean Skinnier Skyscrapers
Eliot Brown examines the global trend in skinny skyscrapers, as developers take advantage of technological advances and fatter wallets at the high end of the housing market to deliver stellar views.
Challenging the Rush to Rebuild
Justin Gillis outlines some harsh criticisms of disaster response efforts that rebuild without rethinking – and how much it's costing taxpayers across the country.
After Sandy, NYC Will Undertake Unprecedented Reshaping of Neighborhoods
Over the weekend it was announced that New York City will need to demolish hundreds of homes damaged during Superstorm Sandy. The complicated process for determining what will be rebuilt has yet to begin.
Excitement for Detroit Condo Project Hard to Contain
A Detroit developer is moving ahead with plans for an innovative condo project that will repurpose shipping containers for medium-density housing, reports John Gallagher.
New Apartments in Portland: No Parking = No Car? Not So
Turns out if you don't provide the parking, tenants still bring their cars - they just park on the street, according to a limited Portland survey. Neighbors asked city planners for a moratorium on 'parking-less' apartments and adding parking minimums
Higher Home Values Preserved in Mixed-Income, Medium-Density Suburbs
A new study of the Philadelphia area commissioned by the Congress for New Urbanism “finds new urban characteristics play a role” in how households and neighborhoods weathered the recent economic downtown.
Where are America's Most Diverse Neighborhoods?
Jed Kolko examines America's most diverse neighborhoods and finds that not only are they mostly located in the suburbs, but that they also have higher population growth and faster-rising home prices compared to less-diverse neighborhoods.
A Housing Plan to Keep Young Professionals in Massachusetts
Young professionals are choosing to live in "smaller, more transit-oriented developments." To keep them in-state, Gov. Deval Patrick plans to incentivize the building of 10,000 multifamily housing units each year through 2020 in Mass.
Low Cost Strategies for Reducing Urban Poverty
Eric Jaffe reports, “[a] recent field test in Mexico offers the first experimental evidence that basic infrastructure upgrades — in this case paving streets — have a measurable effect on reducing urban poverty.”
Happy Place of the Olden Days
Scott Bernstein joins in the Happiness Index conversation, starting with references to the Anatomy of Melancholy.
Pagination
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.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions