Missing middle housing? Ending single-family zoning? How language impacts public opinion in the movement to increase housing density.

As cities and states around the country look to update their zoning codes to allow for more housing density, the language used around zoning reform can make a big difference in how initiatives are received.
As Teo Armus explains in the Washington Post, the framing of proposed zoning changes colors the way people view them, painting upzoning as either a threat to traditional neighborhoods or a boost to housing affordability.
Advocates say expanding housing supply would open expensive enclaves to more people, undoing policies once meant to keep out people of color. Opponents express concerns the changes would overwhelm local infrastructure and spoil what made these areas so attractive in the first place.
The phrase “ending single-family zoning,” which has been frequently used by media including Planetizen, “is an imprecise way of describing the change” because it “doesn’t tell you what it’s going to turn into,” says Jenny Schuetz, urban economist and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. For people who fear the single-family home next door will be torn down in favor of a high-rise tower, language that more clearly explains the type of new housing that could be built—such as the increasingly popular ‘missing middle housing’—could assuage some of their fears.
According to Jason Jordan, public affairs director at the American Planning Association, “We have to be sensitive and try to find a vocabulary … that avoids the technical jargon debate or this very polarized culture-war debate over whether the suburbs are good or bad.”
FULL STORY: The battle over single-family zoning is also a fight over what to call it

The Shifting Boomer Bulge: More Bad News for America’s Housing Crisis?
In the first of a two-part series, PlaceMakers’ Ben Brown interviews housing guru Arthur C. Nelson on the sweeping demographic changes complicating the housing market.

New York Governor Advances Housing Plan Amid Stiff Suburban Opposition
Governor Kathy Hochul’s ambitious proposal to create more housing has once again run into a brick wall of opposition in New York’s enormous suburbs, especially on Long Island. This year, however, the wall may have some cracks.

A Serious Critique of Congestion Costs and Induced Vehicle Travel Impacts
Some highway advocates continue to claim that roadway expansions are justified to reduce traffic congestion. That's not what the research shows. It's time to stop obsessing over congestion and instead strive for efficient accessibility.

Historically Redlined Neighborhoods Have Higher Rates of Pedestrian Deaths, Study Says
The consequences of historic redlining continue to have consequences in the present day United States. Add another example to the list.

Tolling All Lanes
Bay Area transportation planners are studying a radical idea to reduce traffic congestion and fund driving alternatives: tolling all lanes on a freeway. Even more radical, the plan considers tolling parallel roads.

Federal SMART Grants Awarded for Transportation Safety, Equity Projects
The grant program focuses on the use of technology to improve safety, accessibility, and efficiency in transportation.
City of Greenville
City of Greenville
Resource Assistance for Rural Environments (RARE) AmeriCorps Program
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact: Mobility, Community, Possibility
City of Spearfish
City of Lomita
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.