The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Bringing Planning Back to the People
Has the profession given in to corporate interests, and is there another way forward?

Denver Could Put Pause on New Traffic Circles
The city’s fire department has asked for a moratorium on new traffic circles, installed as a traffic calming mechanism.

Fairfax County Approves Parking Reform
The new parking policy creates a new, tiered framework for parking requirements and reduces the required number of parking spots near transit.

Diverse Perspectives of America Outdoors
Best-selling writer, podcaster and comedian Baratunde Thurston travels the country to better understand and explain people's complex relationship with the outdoors in a series on PBS.

Opinion: Fare Evasion Punished Disproportionately in California
A bill currently on Governor Newsom’s desk would replace punitive measures with more equitable and compassionate approaches to fare enforcement.

Seattle Passes Downtown Zoning Reforms
The changes, part of the mayor’s Downtown Activation Plan, make way for more residential development in the city’s downtown core.

Report: U.S. Biking Boom Slows
The pandemic bike boom is petering out, but more Americans are biking than ever before, signaling a need for cities to keep improving bike infrastructure and make roads safer for cyclists.

Tempe Historic Preservation Proposal Could Make it Harder to Build New Homes
Proposed changes to the city’s preservation ordinance would make two-thirds of the city’s housing stock eligible for preservation.

How to Measure Transit Equity
A new report highlights the need to go beyond traditional equity metrics to assess how public transit systems are serving the lowest-income and most disadvantaged riders.

Why Brand New Cities Won’t Solve Our Urban Problems
Building cities takes time and resources. Why not spend them on fixing the ones we have?

Former Brooklyn Sugar Refinery Reopens as All-Electric Office Tower
A historic building was reimagined as a 15-story office tower powered by renewable energy.

NHTSA: Traffic Fatalities Decline for Fifth Straight Quarter
Traffic deaths were 3.3 percent lower in the first half of 2023 than the same period last year, but not all states saw the same results.

LA Rail Project Testing Electric Excavator
The battery-powered excavator could replace diesel-powered machinery to reduce construction emissions and noise.

Austin Releases Equitable TOD Study
The document develops a framework for ensuring that the most vulnerable and low-income residents benefit from investments in public transit and new housing and amenities.

The Spectre of Shoddy Infrastructure
How a mythical creature is keeping the historical memory of the Silver Bridge collapse alive.

Could an ‘Urban Innovation Lab’ Spur Downtown Revitalization?
In his fifth article for GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe asks whether an onsite “living lab” could spur more entrepreneurship and impact downtown regeneration in Seattle.

Report: Bike Lanes Can't Make up for New Roads
If California wants to meet its climate goals, the state must stop funding its myriad road construction and expansion projects.

Minneapolis Affordable Housing Project Largest in 20 Years
The city opened its first large multifamily affordable housing complex in decades, but a recent court ruling against the Minneapolis 2040 rezoning plan could jeopardize future projects.

NYC Mayor Proposes Eliminating Parking Minimums
Mayor Adams wants to stop requiring off-site parking for new buildings to reduce the costs of construction as part of the ‘City of Yes’ package of zoning reforms.

A Data-Driven Approach to ‘Playspace Inequity’
Mapping playgrounds and their conditions can reveal how childhood play opportunities are inequitably distributed within cities.
Pagination
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
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.