Marcelle Cerny describes her family's so-far-fruitless quest for an affordable, suburban-sized home in an urban area close to public transit and amenities.
Cerny describes how she and her husband have looked at numerous small, semi-detached houses near downtown Toronto, that were once affordable but are now the "exclusive domain of the double-income, Starbucks-drinking set." She wants the spaciousness and affordability of the suburbs, but with urban amenities. Why, she asks, can't they find the best of both worlds?
"[W]hat we need is an affordable, big, four-bedroom suburban house – in the city. That way, we non-car owners could live in spacious comfort and still be within easy walking distance of a decent health-food store, playing fields, the library, the boys' public school, restaurants, our families and work. Unfortunately for our children, who ask regularly for a backyard – with grass – we have urban tastes and a suburban budget, and we're finding these competing concerns hard to reconcile.
I recognize how much our suburban-dwelling friends love their homes, and their version of life sounds appealing...[but] I look around at what [my children] see every day – the diversity of the city, the homeless and the wealthy, art and ugliness, bad and good – and I hope that experience will serve them well. It's why we want to raise them in the city in the first place."
FULL STORY: I want an urban house on a suburban budget

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