The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Fairfax County, Virginia Releases Climate Adaptation Plan
Fairfax County, Virginia estimates that climate change caused $25 million in damages from 2010 to 2019. A new plan is meant to prevent worse losses in the years and decades to come.
The Maine City Setting the Gold Standard for Pro-Development Zoning Reforms
Auburn, Maine, a city of 20,000 residents, has plans to add enough housing to increase its population by 25 percent by 2025.
FEATURE
The California High-Speed Rail Project Illustrates America’s Transit Issues
Slow progress and a bloated budget have plagued the High-Speed Rail project linking San Francisco to Los Angeles, exposing deeper issues with American transit projects.
Proposed Transit Line Would Connect Downtown Tucson to Airport
Based on community input for a 15-mile transit line, residents want to see a focus on affordable housing development and anti-displacement measures.
Strip Malls as a Housing Solution
The American strip mall may be a dying breed of commercial development, but could the buildings serve a new use as sustainable housing?
BLOG POST
Density and Driving: A Second Look
A common argument against more compact housing is that increased population density will only reduce vehicle miles traveled at moderate levels of density, as opposed to very low-density and very high-density areas. But this might not be so.
Study: Most of Vancouver Is a ‘15-Minute City’
A large majority of Vancouver residents can access a grocery store in 15 minutes or less by bicycle or on foot.
Urban Design, Transport, and Health
The Lancet medical journal published a series of articles that explore how to evaluate and guide urban planning decisions to create healthy and sustainable cities. Live long and prosper!
Detroit Bike Share Celebrates Five Years
In its five years of operation, Detroit’s MoGo bikeshare has added electric and adaptive bikes to its fleet of more than 600 bikes.
AirBnbs Now Outnumber Available Apartments in New York
With more short-term rentals on the market than apartments, New York City’s housing market is more competitive than ever.
How To Sustain the E-Bike Boom: Make Riders Feel Safe
Riders of electric and non-electric bikes alike agree that they would ride more if they felt safer on city streets, signaling a need for an increased focus on bike infrastructure.
Zoning Stands in the Way of Renewable Energy
Renewable energy is cheap as ever, but zoning isn’t keeping up with the market.
Mixed Use Could Lower Neighborhood Crime Rates
New research shows areas with a heavy concentration of commercial offices experience 40 percent higher crime rates than neighborhoods that mix residential and commercial uses.
Denver E-Bike Rebate Program Proves Wildly Popular
The city is temporarily pausing applications after the program ran out of funds less than a month after the city announced it.
One-Fifth of California AirBnb Rentals in Fire Risk Areas
An analysis of Airbnb properties across the state shows that despite the high fire risk in many parts of the state, the company and hosts frequently don’t provide adequate warning and evacuation instructions to guests.
Minnesota Republicans Kill Passenger Rail, Freeway Cap Projects
Republicans in the Minnesota State Senate blocked the planning of a proposed passenger rail route between Duluth and the Twin Cities in addition to a plan for a freeway cap in a historically Black neighborhood in St. Paul.
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.
Sarasota To Reveal ‘Complete Streets’ Plan
The Florida city will make improvements on two downtown streets to make them safer and more pedestrian-friendly.
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.
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
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.
