Land Use
California's Partisan Divide Flows From Land Use
California's changing political make-up can be traced to its growth patterns: the fastest growth in the Inland Empire and Central Valley has made those areas more Republican, while the slower growing coastal, urban centers remain Democratic.
How High Gas Prices Will Affect Suburbia
Irvine Senior Fellow Joel Kotkin theorizes on the changes that higher energy costs will make to suburban development -- including more telecommuting, more job diversity and cultural attractions, but it will not halt the outmigration from cities.
The Unveiling Of Miami 21
The City of Miami is set to change its antiquated zoning laws, hoping for a "grandly ambitious zoning overhaul".
Kunstler Responds To Ouroussoff's Article On Jane Jacobs
Commentator James Howard Kunstler responds to New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff's front page article, "Outgrowing Jane Jacobs," calling it "a load of vicious and stupid fashionista crap."
Communities Uncomfortable With Smart Growth, Higher Density
Planners find it difficult to convince Southern California communities that the region needs higher density and transit oriented development.
Do Urban Planners Still Misunderstand Jane Jacobs' Lessons?
The Reason Foundation's Leonard Gilroy charges in a WSJ opinion that despite planners' respect of Jacobs, they continue to "largely ignore or misinterpret the central lesson" of Jacob's most famous book.
India's Widening Infrastructure Deficit
Private developers in India have recently done very well, but has the government kept pace? The Narmada Dam dispute highlights the enduring shortcomings in the government's ability to facilitate fair and sustainable development.
Bangalore To Add Suburban Centers To Ease Growing Pains
Tired of congestion and looming water shortages in the central city, the government has approved plans to develop two new ring roads around Bangalore. The roads are intended to trigger growth of five new satellite towns, all in the next three years.
Can Cities Be 'Natural'?
Most people think of nature and cities as separate. According to a new Urban and natural environments are not necessarily conflicting notions but must be integrated at many different scales, for sustainable, healthy settlements to occur.
Evaluating Urban Sprawl From Space
A team of researchers use satellite data to create a grid of 8.7 billion data cells tracking the evolution of land use in the continental United States. The findings are surprising
Big Play At Playa Vista
A hotly-disputed, prime piece of land at Playa Vista brings a prime price.
Has Maryland's Growth Management Law Exacerbated Sprawl?
Researchers study the effectiveness of growth management laws in the Smart Growth pioneer state.
Who Pays the Property Tax?
A critical aspect of the property tax, but one that is rarely addressed in public debate, is its 'economic incidence,' or who actually bears the burden of the tax, as opposed to its statutory incidence, or who literally pays the tax.
Critics Warn Federal Plan Endangers National Monuments Land
Bureau of Land Management plan would permit more mining, grazin, and recreation use in the Arizona Strip -- home of two national monuments.
Mega-Churches Expand Into Former Retail Spaces
With growth of so-called "mega-churches" continuing unabated, congregations are outgrowing their current environs and are getting creative about new buildings in which to worship. But the trend is not without controversy.
Transit Funding Option Needed In Idaho
The Idaho Statesman presents an editorial outlining a four step roadmap to obtain necessary public transit funding from a reluctant legislature.
Ground Zero Intolerance?
The government's plans to move Ground Zero forward are a big step back in time, writes Peter Slatin.
Worried About Sprawl, Michigan Town Considers 'Form-Based' Development Rules
New zoning ordinances would focus more on how buildings look and fit into their surroundings, and far less on what goes on inside of them.
What Is The New Suburbanism?
Joel Kotkin, author of the November 2005 report "The New Suburbanism", introduces the new planning theory, clarifies what it means, and describes how it remains very much a work in progress.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
