Land Use

Fort McMurray Fire

Thank Climate Change and Sprawl for Worsening Wildfires

Along with climate conditions, urban sprawl is intensifying wildfires and increasing the damage they do.

July 8, 2016 - Undark

Protesting racism

$10.6 Million Fine Proves Some Banks Are Still Redlining

A Mississippi-based bank will pay $10.6 million for discriminatory lending practices.

July 8, 2016 - Next City

New York City Zoning Map

Reexamining the Origins of Zoning

According to Seymour Toll's 1969 book, New York City's 1916 zoning code was less a civic-minded project than an attempt to protect elite retail districts from the riff-raff. The ramifications for American zoning at large are significant.

July 7, 2016 - PlanPhilly

Tukwila Intl Blvd Station Park and Ride

The Park-and-Ride Boondoggle

Streetsblog USA shares insights into a new study published by the Transportation Research Board finding that most park-and-ride facilities built by transit agencies waste money and land.

July 7, 2016 - Streetsblog USA

San Francisco Sprawl

The Real Reasons Affordable Housing Isn't Being Built in California

The policy tools used to address our nation's housing shortfall often seem to worsen the problem. But this is because they ignore the underlying infrastructure and financing to support growth.

July 7, 2016 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Criticism Over Special Parking Arrangements for New Atlanta Braves Stadium

Cobb County, Georgia recently approved the "Accessory Special Event Parking" ordinance to limit parking operations around the Atlanta Braves' new stadium.

July 7, 2016 - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Boulder Colorado

Zoning as a Tool of Social and Economic Inequality

The New York Times devotes significant ink to an argument against the use of zoning laws as tools of anti-growth politics.

July 6, 2016 - The New York Times

Metro Subway Los Angeles

The Vision for a $120 Billion Public Transportation Revolution in Los Angeles

Los Angeles Metro's new Chief of Planning Therese McMillan joins the agency at a pivotal moment, as county voters will decide in November whether to approve a new, evergreen sales tax to fund future Metro public transportation expansion.

July 6, 2016 - The Planning Report

Portland Oregon Bus

Riding the Bus in Portland: An Essay

Blogger and transit consultant Jarrett Walker paints a picture of Portland's Line 75, a workaday bus serving urban neighborhoods outside downtown. His reflections on radial and orbital journeys are worth a read.

July 5, 2016 - Bus75.org

Roman Aqueduct

The Place of Water in Urban Design: An International Perspective

How cities around the world have approached thinking about how water management fits in to urban planning.

July 5, 2016 - The Planning Report

Community Meeting

The 3 Most Common Community Engagement Mistakes

Planners, like any other professionals, live in a kind of bubble. Those charged with dealing with the public run the risk of expecting too much from residents as they design community engagement activities. Here are some of the most common mistakes.

July 5, 2016 - Dave Biggs

urban park

Is New York Distributing Its Public Plazas Equally?

An analysis of the geographic distribution of New York's new public plazas sought to determine if the program was meeting one of its stated goals: providing access to public plazas for low- and moderate-income households.

July 5, 2016 - Placemeter

Meter Maid

Pesky Parking Tickets? There's an App for That

An intrepid student has created a simple chatbot program that helps people get out of parking tickets.

July 4, 2016 - Ars Technica

Philadelphia Street

More Residents and Workers Using Fewer Parking Spaces in Philly's Center City

The findings of a report on changes occurring in Philadelphia Center City finds more residents and workers walking, biking, and taking transit. (Thankfully, they aren't all looking for parking every day.)

July 4, 2016 - PlanPhilly

Lunada Bay

'Surfer Gang' Beach Fort Causes Problems

A rowdy collection of Palos Verdes surfers, some of them middle-aged, will resort to criminal tactics to keep outsiders away from their favorite spot. They've even built a fort, and officials are having trouble getting rid of it.

July 2, 2016 - Los Angeles Times

aerial view of downtown detroit showing lots of parking lots

20-Minute Neighborhoods In Detroit

If Detroit needs to be "rebuilt" or "reimagined," why not do so around a walkable, convenient ideal? A compact Motor City where essential goods and services are available within a 20-minute walk?

July 2, 2016 - Detroit Free Press

Mexico City from the air

Mexico City Coalition Dreams of Restoring Rivers

A proposal to restore Mexico City's 45 rivers envisions a whole new model for the city.

July 1, 2016 - CityLab

memphis

Planetizen Week in Review: July 1, 2016

It will only take us two-and-a-half minutes to catch you up on the big planning news from the last week of June.

July 1, 2016 - Planetizen

Chattanooga

Chattanooga Approves New Form-Based Code for Downtown

Chattanooga is the latest city to apply the form-based code methodology to a specific area of the city, including downtown and adjacent neighborhoods.

June 30, 2016 - Times Free Press

Beale Street Memphis

Memphis Launches First Comprehensive Planning Effort Since 1981

Though it's been 35 years since its last comprehensive plan, the city of Memphis hopes to start updating its comprehensive plan every five to ten years.

June 30, 2016 - The Commercial Appeal

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.

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.