Housing
Suburban Boston Lashes Out Against McMansions
Residents and planners are just about fed up with McMansions in the Bsoton suburb of Wellesley, and they are looking to impose strict regulations on housing size and give a residential board oversight on proposed houses.
Sacramento's Core Fills In
After years of trying to get more properties built for sale downtown, new urban infill projects are springing up in Sacramento's core.
Cheaper To House The Homeless In B.C.
Government research form British Columbia has shown that it costs cities more than $12,000 per homeless person per year. Some are saying it would be cheaper for the city to give them housing than to keep them on the streets.
Abandoned Luxury Condos Morph Into Affordable Housing
With the downturn in the housing market, a planned luxury condo tower in Downtown San Diego has been reworked into an affordable housing development.
Affordable Housing Bill Gathers Momentum
A bill originally introduced in 1987 that would create a trust fund to support the creation of affordable housing may be on its way to congressional approval this fall.
Residents And Housing Associations Grapple Over Clotheslines
Across the country, communities and housing associations are finding themselves in heated debates over what would otherwise be a rather banal subject: drying clothes. Some want to use clotheslines, but others worry about plummeting property values.
Buffalo - Where Progress May Be Marked More By Demolition Than Construction
Buffalo is grappling with a blight of abandoned homes - which are directly correlated to crime rates in neighborhoods. It shares much in common with other cities well past their heyday, such as St. Louis, Detroit, and Youngstown.
Housing Slump Forces Developers To Un-Supersize McMansions
The nationwide slump in the housing market is manifesting itself in the shrinking square footage of new McMansions.
Low-Income Artist Housing
Washington D.C.'s Cultural Development Corporation is pushing condo conversions to create affordable housing for low-income artists.
Late-Session Bill May Make L.A. Entertainment Complex Eligible For Housing Funds
A controversial bill approved at the end of the California State Senate's regular session may allow developers of a massive entertainment development in downtown Los Angeles to compete for millions of dollars in affordable housing funds.
Cox Says Smart Growth Limits Homeownership
Wendell Cox argues that smart growth development plans are bad policy for African Americans because they elevate home prices out of reach.
McMansions Equivalent To 'SUVs That Run for 100 Years'
The ever-growing size of American homes means that, regardless of how "green" the construction techniques, they will be rapacious users of energy for decades to come.
Going Green In Miami-Dade County
Despite minor speedbumps in the permitting process, an explicitly green home is now being built in Kendall, a suburb to the south of Miami. The owners expect it to be the greenest home in the region.
How the Federal Reserve Burst the Bubble
By denying that the American housing market was artificially inflated, and by keeping interest rates low and encouraging risky mortgage lending, the Federal Reserve contributed significantly to the inevitable bursting of the housing bubble.
Unwanted McMansions Become Unwanted McBoarding Houses
Suburban Washington D.C. residents are upset over a rash of new buildings in their neighborhoods that they say don't fit in with the character of their communities. It's not just that the houses are too big, but that they are housing too many people.
The Rise Of The Katrina Cottage
The Katrina Cottage, designed as an alternative to the ubiquitous post-Katrina FEMA trailer, is now gaining popularity nationwide as both an affordable housing solution and a quaint vacation cottage."
Affordable Housing Mistakenly Renting At Market Rates
Complaints over parking have led the city of Martinez, California, to realize an affordable housing complex built for seniors has been renting at market rates for years.
Many Fear UK Housing Plan Will Create Sprawl
A severe housing shortage is facing England, but some fear sprawl will result from a government plan to build 3 million homes by 2020.
Foreclosures Bring The Spectre Of Blight
As thousands of houses continue to foreclose, many homeowners and real estate experts are predicting that abandoned homes will blight neighborhoods across the country and send property values plummeting.
The Most Expensive Homes In The World
Five mansions on the U.S. housing market are looking to become the most expensive homes ever sold in the country, and maybe the world.
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
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
