Despite the purported exodus of untethered Silicon Valley workers from the Bay Area, rents in the city are still the highest in the United States.

San Francisco's famously high rents have dropped by close to 25% during the COVID-19 pandemic, writes Gabrielle Canon in the Guardian, but the city still remains the nation's most expensive, with the average one-bedroom renting for $2,660 per month.
According to the California Housing Partnership Corporation (CHPC), California needs roughly 1.3 million additional affordable rental units to meet the state's housing needs.
The pandemic complicated a pre-existing housing crisis in a region with California's highest rate of income inequality. While "tech workers and other high earners who easily adapted to work-from-home policies early in the pandemic while retaining big salaries have been able to lower their rental rates or cash in on new opportunities to purchase homes with extremely low interest rates," half of the area's renters lost income, writes Canon. The pandemic's uneven economic effects have hit low-wage workers in the hospitality and retail industries hardest, with few prospects of returning to the job market "any time soon," according to Karen Chapple, faculty director and professor of city and regional planning at the University of California, Berkeley. Int he article, Chapple warns that rent moratoriums, if not accompanied by permanent rent relief, are only a temporary solution for those who face eviction and homelessness.
FULL STORY: San Francisco rents are plummeting – but its housing crisis could get worse

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

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

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations
Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.

Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean
Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?

Jacksonville Launches First Autonomous Transit Shuttle in US
A fleet of 14 fully autonomous vehicles will serve a 3.5-mile downtown Jacksonville route with 12 stops.
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.
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont