City rankings can be double-edged sword.
"Tension seems to play out in any city or town that earns a 'best of' ranking. Of course it's nice to be called the greatest town in the country. Economic development boosters plug the rating in hopes of attracting individuals and businesses interested in relocating. But such recognition can spark fears of a flood of incoming residents, sprawling growth and skyrocketing housing costs. Residents worry that their town's newfound attention will erode everything that made it a great city in the first place. Locals start blaming every civic ill on their city's best-in-the-nation status. Depending on who you talk to, being called the best place to live is an honor, a nuisance, a curse or a wash."
Thanks to Jon Cecil, AICP
Read the full story: Do You Really Want to be the Best?
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority