Missing Middle Housing, the kinds of additional density that can be added with limited construction on a footprint the size of traditional single-family homes, is gaining momentum in the D.C. region.
"Arlington County [Virginia] plans to launch a new Missing Middle Housing Study to reexamine its missing middle housing stock," reports Biran Goggin.
"According to the county website, the study hopes to provide people with a general understanding of the county’s housing challenges, what options the County Board has, and what policy changes can create new housing types," adds Goggin.
"The county’s Missing Middle Housing Study is part of two broader initiatives: Housing Arlington and Realizing Arlington’s Commitment to Equity, which seek to address the county’s housing affordability and racial equity challenges."
Other governments in the immediate area around Arlington County have completed similar studies in recent years, according to Goggin. "For example Montgomery County, MD completed a similar study in 2018 while DC’s Office of Planning published a report focused on single-family zoning earlier this year."
After the study, the county could proceed with amendments to the county’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance that would allow for new zoning to allow for the construction of Missing Middle Housing in more of the county.
FULL STORY: Arlington takes stock of the county’s missing middle housing and its racial implications
'Housing Choice' Approved in Massachusetts
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The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
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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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association