Land Use

Research Finds Strong Links Between Urban Characteristics and Local Drug Trade
New research has found a link between drug dealing and certain urban environments, which researchers believe can lead to better policing strategies.

Calculating the Positive Externalities of Reduced Car Ownership
Car registration statistics from Multnomah County show passenger vehicle ownership is less popular among its growing number of residents. The residents forgoing cars have done themselves a favor in more ways than one.

Indianapolis Cooler than Brooklyn? Defining the Coolness Factor of Cities
How do you define a cool city? What makes a street or neighborhood hip? It's not too difficult to identify the right ingredients; it's putting them together that becomes the challenge.

A Bold High-Speed Rail Plan from Australia
Not only would a new $150.6 billion proposal build a high-speed rail project to connect Sydney and Melbourne, it would also build eight new cities along the way.

Atlanta Piloting a 'Transit Oriented Soccer' Idea
MARTA's Five Points station will be the first to test an idea of building small soccer fields at multiple transit stations in the system.

Airbnb's Listings Expanded in 2015, but Many Don't Last Long
A new statistical analysis of Airbnb listings shows the short-term-rental service is growing worldwide, but suggests that many hosts don't stick with it. Intermittent commercial uses of residences could be seen in the planning context of "mixed use."

100 Years Ago Today: The City of New York Adopts its First Zoning Code
On July 25, 1916, New York adopted its first Zoning Resolution, for the first time regulating the height, size and arrangement of buildings in the city.

A Map of All of Trump's New York Properties
Test your knowledge of the New York home base of Donald Trump's real estate business.
Architect Declares the End of Micro-Housing in Seattle
Though housing advocates consider micro-housing units a helpful tool in keeping housing affordable, the city of Seattle has nonetheless produced a series of regulations making such projects harder and harder to build.

New York, Dallas Lead Expanding Office Market
The market for office space has more and more companies looking to lease, according to an industry report.
Tax Increment Financing Key to Redevelopment of Former Chrysler Plant in St. Louis County
A logistics park in Fenton, expected to attract $382 million in investment, will move forward with $50 million in tax increment financing.
How Will L.A.'s New Inglewood Football Stadium Revitalize South Los Angeles?
The Los Angeles Rams COO details both the stadium's sustainable design and the positive impact the privately funded complex will have on Southern California.

Grants Awarded to Boost Agriculture Projects in Conservation Districts
Forty-two conservation districts in 25 state received grants totaling $2 million this week. The funding will create technical assistance opportunities for urban agriculture and conservation projects.

Friday Funny: Seattle Street to Pay Homage to Pac-Man
The people's choice: Pac-Man.

Study: Bureaucracy Restricts Housing Supply
A recent study by Trulia concentrates on elasticity (i.e., the rate at which housing stock grows, relative to demand), and arrives at the conclusion that bureaucracy, not regulation, is responsible for rising housing prices.

Study: Land Use Regulation Restricts Housing Supply
A new paper studies the impacts both of specific land use regulations and land use regulations in the aggregate.

A Case Study of Rural Gentrification
Concepts like erasure, greenfield development, and easements figure into this story about a rural community on the fringes of suburban development in Maryland's Montgomery County.
#TransitTrends Asks: 'Where Did City Planning Go Wrong?'
The transportation planning app moovel (formerly known as Ridescout) has created a YouTube series called Transit Trends that brings "explainer posts" to a new format.

Visualizing Hyperdensity
The most dense neighborhood in Manhattan is surprisingly low-key.

Reports See Continued Job Growth, Demand for Tech Office Space
A recent spate of reports has examined the up-and-down U.S. economy and predicted the need for more office space to fuel the growing workforce.
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.
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