The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Exurban Construction

How Minimum Size Requirements Hamper Housing Production

Minimum square footage requirements are preventing many property owners from building on their lots, despite no evidence that they bring any safety benefits or maintain high property values.

May 19 - Forbes

Sunset view of Sarasota, Florida skyline

Sarasota To Reveal ‘Complete Streets’ Plan

The Florida city will make improvements on two downtown streets to make them safer and more pedestrian-friendly.

May 19 - Sarasota Magazine

A group of socially distanced tents for the homeless are set up on a parking lot in San Francisco's Civic Center.

Number of Unhoused People Lower in San Francisco, but Growing Across the Bay Area

While the city saw fewer people experiencing homelessness for the first time in years, homelessness across six Bay Area counties grew by 8 percent.

May 18 - San Francisco Chronicle

Parent and child walking, holding hands on mixed-use trail with trees

BLOG POST

What Role Does Health Care Play in Community Development?

Cities are economically diverse and require accessible health care systems, but this can be challenging to implement. Urban developers are working alongside health professionals to create affordable care for city residents.

May 18 - Devin Partida

An image of St. Paul, Minnesota and the Mississippi River at nightfall.

Minneapolis Housing Activists Hope To Revive 2014 Federal Complaint

A 2014 complaint about segregated housing lodged with the Department of Housing and Urban Development could revive integrationist housing policies to improve opportunities for all residents.

May 18 - Governing


San Salvador, El Salvador - September 15th, 2021: Protesters walk in the streets of the city against the bitcoin policies of current president Nayib Bukele.

El Salvador President Envisions Retro-Futurist ‘Bitcoin City’

In the same week that the cryptocurrency’s value took a nosedive, the president of El Salvador unveiled a model for a volcano-powered ‘smart city.’

May 18 - Los Angeles Times

Single-Family Housing Development

Report: How Housing Inequity Shrinks Economic Opportunities

Increasingly unaffordable housing in most U.S. metropolitan areas is pushing low-income workers farther away, decreasing their access to economic opportunities.

May 18 - National Equity Atlas


Amtrak Connects US

Political Support for Amtrak’s All Aboard Ohio Plans Follows Federal Infrastructure Funding

Gov. Mike DeWine’s sudden interest in working with Amtrak might have something to do with $66 billion in Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funding recently announced by the Federal Railroad Administration.

May 18 - Cleveland.com

A house has been swept into the Atlantic Ocean by high tides, leaving ruins in onshore as the house appears half submerged by water,

Homes Swept Into the Ocean in North Carolina—the Latest Reminder of Climate Change’s Arrival

A viral video is drawing attention to sea-level rise in one of the most at-risk shorelines in the nation: the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

May 18 - The New York Times

A sign for the Elizabeth Line, a subway route in London, at the Liverpool Street Station

$22 Billion Elizabeth Line Finally Opens in London, With the Queen in Attendance

May 17, 2022 was a big day for transit in London.

May 18 - The New York Times

Downtown Dallas

Short-Term Rentals Vex Dallas City Council

Residents complain that vacation rentals exacerbate the city’s housing shortage and bring traffic and noise to residential neighborhoods, calling on the city to impose—and enforce—stricter regulations.

May 17 - The Dallas Morning News

Traffic Safety Advocates

Traffic Fatalities Set Records as Pandemic-Era Road Carnage Shows No Signs of Stopping

An estimated 42,915 people died in automobile crashes in 2021, according to recent federal data. The increasing fatalities continue a trend that began with the outset of the pandemic.

May 17 - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

Driver Shortage Undercuts the Potential of L.A.’s Recent Bus System Redesign

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority implemented a complete overhaul of its bus system in three waves over the course of 2021. A shortage of drivers for the system has made it impossible to implement that vision.

May 17 - TransitCenter

Homelessness

Fewer People Experiencing Homelessness in San Francisco

In a first since 2015, the number of people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco declined from the year prior, according to preliminary analysis of the city’s most recent Point-in-Time count.

May 17 - San Francisco Chronicle

State Capital of Utah

Affordable Housing Proposal Faces Backlash in Salt Lake City

A public hearing last week revealed widespread opposition to a plan to loosen density and height limits and reduce parking requirements to encourage more developers to build affordable housing.

May 17 - The Salt Lake Tribune

Two people on a bike trail with downtown Houston in the background

Houston Bike Summit Makes In-Person Return

The event will focus on improving bike safety and continuing maintenance on the city's growing network of bike lanes and trails.

May 17 - Houston Public Media

Austin Bus

Austin’s Transit CEO Moving to D.C.

After overseeing a major system redesign and plans for its largest-ever expansion, the head of Capital Metro will take over Washington, D.C.’s transit agency.

May 17 - KUT

Manhattan, New York City, New York

NYC 25x25 Plan Would Reclaim ‘13 Central Parks’ From Cars

A plan backed by New York City Mayor Eric Adams would repurpose 25 percent of the city’s street space for multimodal transportation and pedestrian plazas.

May 17 - Electrek

Rittenhouse Square, a park in Philadelphia, framed by large buildings.

Parks as a Weapon Against Climate Change

The 2022 ParkScore finds that cities are increasingly employing green space as a tool for mitigating heat and extreme weather effects, but the distribution of parks remains inequitable.

May 16 - Trust for Public Land

View of Louisiana state capitol building and downton Baton Rouge, LA

Louisiana Capital Shifting to Electric Transit

The Baton Rouge area is now served by a fleet of nine all-electric buses.

May 16 - American Journal of Transportation

Post News
Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

Director, Strategy and Research

Greater Baltimore Committee

Senior Planner

Eagle County Government

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

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.