Despite advocating for an end to ground-floor garages, a neighborhood group in Philadelphia is now asking for an exemption to the rule it wrote against them.
"[S]treet-front garages mess up the rhythms of the city's colonial grid. When a ground-floor room is replaced with a windowless garage door, it takes the human eye off the street. The accompanying driveway makes life more treacherous for pedestrians."
"On top of all that, front garages reduce the supply of parking available for everyone else, by transferring a parking space from the public realm of the street to the private enclave of the garage. It seems rather selfish, when damage could be minimized by locating the parking behind the houses or in clusters."
"Urban-design purists aren't the only ones who object to garage-fronted rowhouses. Last year, the Queen Village Neighbors Association voted to ban them when it created the city's first Neighborhood Conservation District. A response to the frenzied real estate boom, the review body was meant to give residents more say over what gets built in their midst. Mayor Nutter signed the district's design guidelines into law in July, just as the boom was flaming out."
"So, it was a little disconcerting to see the very people who wrote the rules standing before the Planning Commission last week, begging for an exemption that would allow developer Louis Zahner to install ground-floor garages in two rowhouses on the 500 block of Carpenter Street."
FULL STORY: Changing Skyline: Poor economy prompts a poor design decision

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