The governors of Florida, Alabama and Georgia have come to a tentative agreement on how to divvy up the water supplied by shared rivers, giving hope that the 17-year water rights battle between the states may soon come to an end.
After five hours of "brutally candid" negotiations, the governors of Florida, Georgia and Alabama struck a tentative deal Monday in a 17-year battle over shared rivers.
"They agreed, at least temporarily, to shelve a plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to bolster Atlanta's water supply by reducing the flow to Florida."
"And instead of suing each other, the three states will send teams of river experts to Washington in January to hash out a new plan for sharing water. The plan should be complete by February and approved by federal officials by March 15."
"The ongoing water war, intensified by this year's crippling drought across the Southeast, has pitted Atlanta's burgeoning $5-billion economy against Florida's $200-million seafood industry. So far the seafood industry has been losing, McLain said."
"So the corps' proposal to cut back the flow even further 'was like a sword hanging over the Apalachicola Bay oystermen's heads,' McLain said. Stopping that cutback, even temporarily, is good news, he said."
FULL STORY: States reach water deal

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

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

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
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.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie