Land Use
Ranch vs. McMansion
Wayne Senville is on a trip across the U.S. on Route 50. He reports on how Creve Coeur, Missouri, is a well-kept suburb west of the city of St. Louis, is handling the trend of ranch homes are being torn down and replaced with McMansions.
Oregon's Measure 37 Heading Back To The Ballot
In Oregon, the controversial land use law Measure 37 is on its way back to the ballot this November, as lawmakers look to limit the development rights granted by the measure in 2004.
A Walkable Downtown Los Angeles?
As part of a new set of guiding principles that call on city planners to 'demand a walkable city', Los Angeles may adopt new standards requiring developers to widen sidewalks, not streets.
TODs Prove To Be A Boon For Urban Regions
In this special report, the WSJ examines the growing popularity of rail-based TODs, examining their effect on land values as well as the challenges they may face in obtaining approval.
Book That Examines Suburban Lifestyle Inspires Life Changes
The book, "Death by Suburb: How to Keep the Suburbs from Killing Your Soul" is making the rounds among church congregations who find meaning in its message.
California Sues Municipalities for Bad Urban Planning
Using a technique typically used by advocates, California's Attorney General is trying to use lawsuits to persuade local governments to curb sprawl and prevent global warming.
A Browner Shade of Green: The New Water Rules and the Next Chapter of Sprawl
Stormwater mitigation rules are supposed to help protect the environment, but the current regulations also end up encouraging sprawl over urban redevelopment.
Los Angeles' Smart Growth Saga
The city is working hard to increase density, but with Angelenos firmly attached to their cars and the region's transit moving at a snail's pace, can smart growth really work in L.A.?
Smart Growth Leaders Still Living Low Density American Dream
While encouraging the city's residents to embrace higher densities and public transit, many of Los Angeles's smart growth advocates live in single family homes and commute long distances in cars.
Sprawling? See You in Court!
Citing the threat posed by climate change, the State Attorney General of California Jerry Brown has filed suit against a community for failing to rein in sprawl.
Oregon's Land Use Laws Haven't Depressed Land Prices
Research by economists at Oregon State University shows that the state's land prices have not been impacted by its strong planning system and land-use regulations.
Integrating The Farm With The City
The idea of linking agriculture and smart growth is gaining ground in California's booming rural areas.
Turning Shuttered School Sites Into New Homes
Forced to close schools due to shrinking enrollment, a Detroit suburb is selling its surplus schools to housing developers in hopes that children from new families will prop up remaining schools in the community.
Sydney's Mayor: 'Environmental Crisis Looms Large'
The Lord Mayor of Sydney has used very blunt language to characterize the city's future, yet planning to counter anticipated problems is still in the early stages.
California Needs To Follow Sacramento's Regional Planning Model
A recent editorial argues that the successful model of regional planning in the Sacramento region known as the "Blueprint" provides an alternative to sprawl that needs to be applied statewide, and identifies current state legislation to do just that.
Transportation Expert Urges Napa To Support Higher Densities To Reduce Global Warming
Transportation expert Reid Ewing appeared in Napa to tout higher densities and mixed-use development. The county is updating it transportation plan and considering a second attempt to pass a transportation sales tax measure.
Easing Development Approval By Changing Zoning
Revised zoning laws in the town of Amesbury, Massachusetts, look to finally get some development on long-ignored land by making it easier for developers to gain approval from planners.
Study: New Jersey Could Reach 'Build-Out' In 50 Years Or Less
New report shows about 15,000 acres are lost to development each year in the Garden State. Much of the development has occurred within the coastal counties.
Planning For The Afterlife
Most cities and planners seem unprepared to deal with the land use issues surrounding the nation's burgeoning cemeteries.
Rezoning For An Aging Suburban Population
The first issue of a new journal on aging features a discussion on planning and rezoning of a suburb in response to the desires of an aging suburban population for a walkable community with mixed use and better transit services.
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.
Greater Baltimore Committee
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
