As businesses shortened their hours during the pandemic, Philadelphia residents found themselves with fewer options for places to spend their evenings.

“Third spaces,” public or quasi-public spaces where people spend time between home and work, are rapidly disappearing in Philadelphia, according to an article by Jake Blumgart in the Philadelphia Inquirer. As Blumgart explains,
Few coffee shops in Center City or South Philadelphia stay open past 5 p.m. The city’s all-night diners are dwindling away. The Barnes & Noble on Walnut Street is downsizing, causing an outcry over the loss of a public restroom and accommodating public spaces. Fast food restaurants have largely vanished from downtown.
Blumgart points out that areas around universities tend to cultivate semi-public spaces that provide a pleasant respite for people beyond the campus community. In Philadelphia, “University City is home to so many “third spaces” partly because Penn and Drexel see them as part of a larger strategy to improve relations with the surrounding neighborhoods.”
But as businesses slashed their hours during the pandemic to accommodate city restrictions, lower demand, and reduced staff, many people find themselves without anywhere outside of bars to spend time in the evenings.
FULL STORY: Why there’s nowhere to hang out at night in Philly anymore

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

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

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

New State Study Suggests Homelessness Far Undercounted in New Mexico
An analysis of hospital visit records provided a more accurate count than the annual point-in-time count used by most agencies.

Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
Proposed state legislation would close a ‘legal gap’ that lets drivers who kill get away with few repercussions.

Report: Bus Ridership Back to 86 Percent of Pre-Covid Levels
Transit ridership around the country was up by 85 percent in all modes in 2024.
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.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions