A recent report by the DePaul University Institute for Housing Studies finds the number of two-flats, three-flats, and four-flats in quick decline among the residential building stock of Chicago.

Mary Schmich writes:
Over a meager span of years, from 2010 to 2016, the city lost 20,000 homes in two-flats, three-flats and four-flats, those classic buildings, typically brick, that have defined Chicago’s look and feel for more than a century.
According to Schmich, there are vital reasons to worry about the declining number of these class Chicago residential units.
The demolition of these old buildings, as noted in a recent report by DePaul University’s Institute for Housing Studies, is changing the city’s character. Affordable housing gets far harder to find. Middle-class and working-class people are priced out. Neighborhoods become less diverse.
After imparting those realities, the article addresses more of her personal attachment to these buildings, and some of the experiences that can only be earned by living in a walk up.
For more traditional news coverage of the decline of two-flats in Chicago, see an article by Tanveer Ali from April 2018, which reported on the details of the "2018 State of Rental Housing in Cook County" report by DePaul University’s Institute of Housing Studies (IHS), which lays outs the data at the center of this news. IHS was also tracking the issue in 2017.
FULL STORY: Chicago's two-flats and three-flats are vanishing — so is the art of living at the top of the stairs

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
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.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie