The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
The Secret to Community Development Fund Success
Two innovative community development funds are behind big impact on affordable housing in New York and Colorado. Enterprise Community Partners spells out how they're structured, the lessons they've learned, and why it's not that scary.
Crowd-Sourced Infographic Rates Ten Transit Systems
An interactive map featuring a combination of ESRI's Story Maps, Yelp, and TripAdvisor posts shows ten popular subway systems as rated by transit riders.
Southwest Airlines Joins Project for Public Spaces to Activate Parks
Southwest Airlines joins Project for Public Spaces in an initiative to reactivate underused public spaces.
Seattle Updating Zoning Regulations for Small Single-Family Lots
Planners in Seattle have responded to controversy over the size and scale of development on small lots in many of the city's single-family neighborhoods, with a new set of zoning regulations.
Tracking Chicago’s Potholes
A new animated map presents the reported cases of potholes in Chicago since November—the maps colorful and provides insights into how the city, and our relationship to it, can change with time.
One Possibility for Activating Vacant Storefronts in Small Cities
A post on the blog for Utile, a Boston-based architecture and urban planning firm, recommends the coffee cart as a bit of DIY urbanism for cities like Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Questioning Denver’s I-70 Highway Widening
Denver Auditor Dennis Gallagher has strong words about the wisdom of spending $1.8 billion to widen Interstate 70 to ten lanes in Northeast Denver. The highway widening would also include a freeway cap park.
Seeking Funding: Light Rail Route from Miami to Miami Beach
Local officials agree that a light rail system from Miami to Miami Beach would work, and they have embarked on a partnership to win the funding to commence a study of a potential $532 million route.
Top Urban Instagram Feeds
Marta Bausells and the readers of Guardian Cities collaborated to create a list of top Instagram photographers from around the world.
Strategies for Big Cities to Streamline Development Services
Kevin Keller, Director of Planning and Housing Policy under Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, provides insight into the city's development services reform.
The Political Foundation Behind America's Worst Tap Water Contamination
NPR host Linda Wertheimer interviews Evan Osnos about his current New Yorker piece on the Jan. chemical spill into W. Va.'s Elk River. His focus is less on the spill and more on the influence of Big Coal in government and how it contributed to it.
Friday Eye Candy: New York Public Library Releases Thousands of Historic Maps to the Public
“For the historic cartographile, Christmas may have come late, but here it is,” writes Daniel Stuckey.
North Carolina to Consider Vehicle Miles Travelled Fee
Bruce Siceloff reports that a North Carolina state Board of Transportation committee will receive a recommendation that the state consider a vehicle miles tax.
Height Controversy in the Lower Ninth Ward
Two seven-story buildings, proposed for the former site of Holy Cross School in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward, have created heated controversy in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward. In question is the character of the city’s riverfront neighborhoods.
Texas Breaking Wind Power Records
Texas is the largest wind power producer in the United States, but its recent capacity efforts have broken records. And there are more megawatts on the way.
San Francisco Legalizes Rental of 'In-Law Units'
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted earlier this week to allow property owners to rent “in-law units”—a major policy departure that could add tens of thousands of rental units to the constrained San Francisco real estate market.
D.C. Business Owners Say Streetcar's No Silver Bullet, but Could Spur Growth
With D.C.'s first streetcar since 1962 about to begin service (any day now), how are business owners along the corridor holding up?
Moving the Hollywood Fault to Suit Developers
Morris Newman sees the lighter side of complaints over a new state geology map that puts an earthquake fault under some big real estate plans.
Cars Are Key to Reducing Poverty
Many advocates for new ways of thinking about places and streets argue for reduced use of cars as the dominant mode of transportation. A new study finds, however that poverty is improved when the poor have access to a car for transportation.
A Proposal for New York's Park Inequity Problem
The inequities of New York City’s park system have been on the policy radar since state legislation was introduced last year that would require large, wealthy park conservancies to contribute to smaller, cash-strapped parks around the city.
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
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.
