Randal O'Toole pushes back against Philip Langdon's article that questions whether Portland's growth boundary made the city less affordable.
In the March 2005 issue of New Urban News, New Urbanist Philip Langdon argues that the city's urban growth boundary did not make Portland unaffordable.
Randall O'Toole offers a rebuttal to Langdon's article: "[Langdon] reveals that the National Association of Home Builders had used erroneous data in its housing affordability index. Since smart-growth skeptics such as Wendell Cox and me relied on that faulty index to conclude that Portland experienced the fastest decline in affordability of any U.S. housing market in the 1990s, Langdon triumphantly announces we must be wrong.
...[But] the best data available clearly show that Portland suffered the greatest decline in housing affordability of any urban area in the 1990s.
...Yes, Portland's urban-growth boundary, along with other smart-growth policies, did reduce Portland's housing affordability. Yes, Portland's affordability declined in the 1990s by more than any other urban area. Yes, urban-growth boundaries or other smart-growth policies appear strongly correlated with reductions in affordability in other urban areas as well."
Thanks to Chris Steins
FULL STORY: Did Smart Growth Make Portland Unaffordable?

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts
Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement
An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.
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.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions