Land Use

The Most Sustainable Town in America

The story of Babcock Ranch, "a planned community that could become the most sustainable town in America," as told by Marlene Cimons for Nexus Media.

March 26, 2017 - Nexus Media

Pontiac, Michigan

Volkswagen Emissions Cheating Scandal Produces Land Use Lawsuit in Michigan

The city of Pontiac has filed a lawsuit over the illegal storage of hundreds of Volkswagen vehicles. The vehicles have mothballed at the Pontiac Silverdome as a result of the buy-back program necessitated by the 2016 emissions cheating scandal.

March 24, 2017 - Oakland Press

Baltimore

New Planning Initiatives Strive for Equity in Baltimore

The Planners Across America series visits Maryland for an interview with Baltimore Planning Director Tom Stosur.

March 23, 2017 - Josh Stephens

Streetscape

How to Get By-Right Zoning Right

By-right zoning is seen as a critical strategy to help solve the affordable housing crisis. Here's how to get the process correct.

March 23, 2017 - Modern Cities

Atlanta Suburb Bringing Its Zoning Code Up to Speed

Sandy Springs, Georgia is rewriting the nuts and bolts of its planning process. A first draft of the city's new zoning code has been released in the hopes of finalizing a new code later this year.

March 23, 2017 - Reporter Newspapers

Texas State Capital

Texas Bill to Slow Property Tax Increases Advances

The Texas Senate has approved Senate Bill 2, which would require a vote to raise property taxes beyond 5 percent—lowered from the current threshold of 8 percent.

March 23, 2017 - Dallas News

Old Timey Ticky Tacky

Could Algorithms Best Architects in Designing Variety for the Suburbs?

What if an algorithm could meet the needs of the economic system driving suburban housing development while also designing more diverse building types? One architect has already experimented with this provocative thought experiment.

March 23, 2017 - Co.Design

Shopping Mall

Are Malls and Streets Destined to Merge?

While much has been made of the suburban shopping mall's decline, successful urban retail spaces are taking their inspiration from the humble city street.

March 21, 2017 - The Guardian

Boston's New Master Plan—Not Like the Old Master Plan

A land use attorney and planning instructor at MIT and Harvard University takes to the pages of The Boston Globe to explain planning to the audience of a new era.

March 20, 2017 - The Boston Globe

D.C. Considering a 'Cash-Out' Program to Get Commuters Out of Cars

Washington, D.C. is looking to cut back on one of the incentives that inspire commuters to drive to and from work.

March 20, 2017 - The Washington Post

Skytrain Over Parking Lot, Surrey Central

Parking Madness 2017: Vote for the Worst 'Parking Craters' in the U.S.

Streetsblog is at it again with its annual "Parking Madness" tournament.

March 18, 2017 - Streetsblog USA

Border Wall

Trump Administration Lawyering Up for Eminent Domain at the U.S.-Mexico Border

One of the nuggets of significance in the Trump Administration's budget draft indicates the president's seriousness about building a wall on the border between the United States and Mexico.

March 17, 2017 - The Wall Street Journal

Tomatoes

Milwaukee's Victory Garden Initiative Turned a Big Idea Into 3,000 Gardens

An urban gardening and public health success story emerges from Milwaukee.

March 16, 2017 - Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service

Chicago Blue Line

Apartments Zoned Out of Near North Side Chicago Train Stations

Zoning around Chicago's public transit in relatively affluent areas won't allow for density or any kind of housing other than single family homes.

March 16, 2017 - Chicago Cityscape

American Dream Miami

$3 Billion Mall Proposal Still Facing Traffic Concerns in Florida

A massive mall, proposed for a 174-acre stretch of land that abuts the border between Miami-Dade and Broward counties, has so far breezed through approvals. "American Dream Miami" will still require political victories.

March 15, 2017 - Sun Sentinel

Queen-Spadina

The Wisdom of Engaging Nervous Cyclists

It was clear to the City of Toronto that engaging less confident cyclists that make up 60% of the population, yet seldom come to community meetings, might be the key to dramatic mode shifts in the city. Here's how it happened.

March 13, 2017 - Dave Biggs

Homes

In Appreciation of Gentle Density

How does one talk about density without frightening people? One term that's floating around is "gentle density," referring to the missing middle between mid-rise and detached homes.

March 12, 2017 - Metro Toronto

Manhattan

To Inspire New Development, New York Rethinking its Shadow-Predicting Formula

The New York Department of City Planning is considering changes to a formula used to model the shadows cast by potential developments as part of its Midtown East rezoning plan.

March 11, 2017 - Crain's New York Business

Detroit

On Detroit's Proposed Tallest Skyscraper

Slated for the site of the late Hudson's department store, Dan Gilbert's mixed-use mecca and its glassy 734-foot tower would symbolize Detroit's rebirth, in downtown at least.

March 11, 2017 - Detroit Free Press

Bunker Hill

Los Angeles' Iconic Angels Flight Railway To Utilize P3 Model

After appearing in the film La La Land, the world-renowned, iconic, 116-year-old Angels Flight will reopen to the public after a three-year modernization process.

March 10, 2017 - The Planning Report

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.

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.