Housing

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2021
Planetizen's annual list of the top urban planning books of the year is here—maintaining a tradition that dates back to 2002.

Main Street Redevelopment Hopes To Lure NYC Commuters to Village of Brewster
Officials in the Village of Brewster, a community of just over 2,000 people in New York's Putnam County, hope a redesign of their downtown will attract new residents who want to escape the clamor of the city.

Report: How States Can Improve Housing Policy
While many policies that affect housing are decided on at the local level, there are several steps state officials can take to pave the way for healthier housing markets.

San Francisco Supes Reject Proposal To Turn Parking Lot Into Housing
State legislators are decrying the Board of Supervisors' decision to reject a proposal to build a 495-unit apartment building on a downtown San Francisco parking lot.

Baltimore Could Revive Dollar Homes Program
A 1970s program let Baltimore residents purchase city-owned homes for $1. Now, the city council president wants to bring it back.

A Battle Brews Over Housing Density In Seattle
The newly elected Seattle City Council will take up the debate over single-family zoning in the city.

Paper Series Sheds Light On Adaptive Reuse
A series of reports from Berkeley's Terner Center assess the potential of commercial-to-residential conversions to help ease the housing crisis.

Vancouver's New Housing Plan Takes Shape
If its proposals are effectively implemented, Vancouver's new housing plan would promote 'missing middle housing' and increase density near jobs and transit.

Report: San Diego Transportation Plan Won't Meet Climate Goals
A regional plan announced by the San Diego Association of Governments will fall short of the city's goals to increase alternate mode trips to 50 percent, report finds.

L.A. Shifts Homeless Policy to Clear Street Encampments
Advocates say L.A.'s new focus on clearing 'unsightly' homeless encampments is a political band-aid that won't help people find permanent housing.

St. Louis Could Fine Developers For Multi-Family Conversions
The city is considering implementing a fee for developers who reduce the number of units in a rehabbed building in a bid to discourage the loss of housing.

The Blue State Problem
The New York Times and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver have a message for progressives living in liberal cities in Blue States: you're part of the problem.

Could France's Approach to Combating NIMBYism Work in the United States?
France passed a law that required cities to have a certain percentage of social housing. Since then the country's most exclusionary cities and suburbs have seen a fivefold increase in the availability of social housing.

Opinion: To Meet Climate Goals, Bay Area Needs More Transit-Oriented Development
The region's transit-oriented development (TOD) plan requires a significant update to achieve the density and housing goals laid out in the MTC's 30-year vision.

Land Costs and Housing Costs
One common argument against upzoning is that it increases land costs—but land costs rose in the most restrictive markets as well as the least restrictive ones.

Which Cities Are Upzoning?
A recent study surveyed 800 jurisdictions in 50 U.S. metropolitan areas to quantify the amount of change in zoning regulations throughout the 21st century so far.

Minor Defendants: Kids Are Being Named in Evictions
Absurd as it may sound, minor children are sometimes named in eviction filings. If a child’s name makes in onto official court records—especially if those records are public and online—the damage can be irreversible.

Toronto Adopts Inclusionary Zoning to Spur Affordable Housing Development
Inclusionary zoning, a policy tool designed to ensure new developments include a required number of affordable housing units, will soon be the land of the land in Toronto, Ontario. Not everyone is a fan of the new policy.

Businesses Oppose Conversion of Parking Structure Into Affordable Housing
Business owners in downtown Santa Monica have filed a lawsuit opposing the city's planned replacement of a parking structure with housing, despite city studies showing that the city's downtown parking supply far exceeds demand.

Freeway Expansions Continue to Threaten Black and Brown Communities
Despite calls to center equity in infrastructure projects, highway construction and expansion still disproportionately impacts communities of color, according to a Los Angeles Times investigation.
Pagination
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Planning for Universal Design
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City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions