Land Use

Op-Ed: Austin a Shadow of its Former Self

An op-ed by David Heymann produces an elaborate, protracted metaphor of Austin as a former youthful "golden child" now showing the least attractive possible traits of middle age.

March 21, 2015 - Houston Chronicle

In Case You're Confused by the Two San Diego Climate Lawsuits

These are two similar lawsuits by environmental groups, one aimed at San Diego County, the other at the San Diego MPO, both based on CEQA and one also on SB 375. Enviros won both of them but only one will be heard by the California Supreme Court.

March 21, 2015 - U-T San Diego

Houston's downtown skyline

Houston May Decide to Fence Itself In

Houston isn't freezing over. But, after decades of unbridled, un-zoned development, a new mayor, new planning director, and a raft of civic activists are promoting a general plan for the famously laissez-faire city.

March 20, 2015 - The Architect's Newspaper

'Envision Utah' a National Model for Long-Range Planning

An article in Governing thoroughly examines the historic and contemporary efforts of planning in Utah—especially the success of the Envision Utah planning process.

March 20, 2015 - Governing

Study: South Los Angeles Fast Food Ban Didn't Cut the Fat

A fast food ban enacted in 2008 in an effort to curb obesity, diabetes, and other chronic health issues failed to achieve its well-intentioned goals, according to a new study by the RAND Corporation.

March 19, 2015 - RAND

Eastside Gold Line and Los Angeles skyline

Where Los Angeles Equals San Francisco's Density

Though the Los Angeles region is very dense, significant barriers to transit-oriented planning remain. Based on this analysis, the lack of a central urban core shouldn't be one of them.

March 19, 2015 - Medium

$6 Billion Master Planned Development Moving Forward in the East Bay

Concord, California is considering a trio of massive redevelopment proposals for the site of a former Navy weapons depot that could bring 12,000 homes and 6 million square feet of commercial development to the fringe of the East Bay Area.

March 19, 2015 - San Francisco Business Times

Surveying the Results of 150 Years of Persistent Growth in Atlanta

The American Institute of Architects will visit Atlanta this year, a month after the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War. What should we know about the city as it exists today?

March 18, 2015 - Architect

Seoul, Korea

Death and Life in Seoul

A new article in the Journal of Planning Education and Research tests whether Jacob’s ideas ring true for predicting pedestrian vitality in Seoul.

March 18, 2015 - JPER

Traffic Jam

The Challenge of Redesigning an Accident-Prone Street

Philadelphia's Washington Avenue experienced 915 car crashes between 2010 and 2013. The city wants to minimize risk in its redesign, but lacks the space to install every suggested improvement.

March 18, 2015 - PlanPhilly

Hudson Yards

What Density-Phobia Gets Wrong

In her article, "What Champions of Urban Density Get Wrong," the Philadelphia Inquirer's Inga Saffron critiques attempts to increase urban population. This post responds to her work.

March 17, 2015 - Michael Lewyn

Details of New Orleans' Online Property Auction

On March 6, 2015, New Orleans launched a new online auction system for tax-adjudicated properties. The Times-Picayune has been closely monitoring the system since it launched.

March 17, 2015 - The Times-Picayune

A New Toolkit for Developing Urban Agriculture Systems

As cities and towns offer more incentives and planning support for local agriculture, there is still plenty of education and learning to be done to create and sustain local food systems. Enter the Agricultural Urbanism Toolkit.

March 17, 2015 - Seedstock

Inside Flint's Innovative Blight Elimination Plan

A blight elimination plan for Flint, Michigan has take shape over the past year, revealing innovative, community-based strategies for improving vacant properties and stabilizing the city's population.

March 17, 2015 - Next City

Debating the Costs and Benefits of Airbnb's Short-Term Rentals

A labor group is taking on the impact of short-term rentals on the housing market in one of the most expensive cities in the country. The debate is contentious, with numbers flying both ways, and also critical for the economic health of cities.

March 16, 2015 - KPCC

Global Suburbanisms: Beyond the White Picket Fence

With more people gravitating toward cities than ever before, new urban morphologies are proliferating throughout the world. Arup Connect's Sarah Wesseler talks with Roger Keil of York University about challenges facing global suburban development.

March 16, 2015 - Arup Connect

Legal Ruling a Major Setback for Chicago's Lucas Museum Plans

Greg Hinz reports on a high profile ruling that throws up a major obstacle for the proposed development of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Chicago.

March 16, 2015 - Crain's Chicago Business

Dearborn Street Bike Lane

12 Studies that Make a Case for Converting Parking to Bike Lanes

CityLab has complied a thorough guide of economic impact studies of bike lanes that provides a clear, visual case for removing parking spaces.

March 16, 2015 - CityLab

Crowd

On the Limitations of Density

Writing for FastCo.Design, Architecture Critic Inga Saffron provides a cautionary tale about density done poorly.

March 16, 2015 - Fast Co. Design

Proposal Would Make an Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone for Santa Clara County

The county of Santa Clara is exploring the possibility of establishing an Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone—a relatively new land use incentive enabled by recent statewide legislation.

March 14, 2015 - Seedstock

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.