Urban Equity to be Focus of New Academic Center

Launched May 1 within the Spitzer School of Architecture at the City College of New York, the new J. Max Bond Center on Design for the Just City will pursue the ways in which design can make "American cities more just and inclusive places to live."

1 minute read

May 15, 2012, 12:00 PM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Named for the architect who directed of one of the country's first community design centers, the Architects Renewal Committee of Harlem (ARCH), and died in 2009, the Bond Center will be led by Toni Griffin, the former deputy director of planning in Washington, D.C., who founded the Detroit Works Project, reports Julie Iovine.

"The center is a reinvigorated recast of the City College Architecture
Center (CCAC) that operated in the 1980s and '90s primarily as a pro
bono architecture and planning service for the Harlem community. The
Bond Center will focus more on faculty and collaborative research,
drawing on disciplines across the CUNY system and beyond, as well as
initiate urban projects engaging with policy reform that could become
models for other cities, and especially Harlem itself. An active
conference, publication, and events program is also on the agenda."

Monday, May 14, 2012 in The Architect's Newspaper

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

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

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

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.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Person wearing mask walking through temporary outdoor dining setup lined with bistro lights at dusk in New York City.

Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?

Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.

June 19, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Aerial view of new neifhborhood under construction with enpty lots in foreground.

In California Battle of Housing vs. Environment, Housing Just Won

A new state law significantly limits the power of CEQA, an environmental review law that served as a powerful tool for blocking new development.

July 2 - CALmatters

Low-rise Pearl Sreet mall in Boulfer, Colorado.

Boulder Eliminates Parking Minimums Citywide

Officials estimate the cost of building a single underground parking space at up to $100,000.

July 2 - Boulder Reporting Lab

Two-story buildings with porches in walkable Florida neighborhood.

Orange County, Florida Adopts Largest US “Sprawl Repair” Code

The ‘Orange Code’ seeks to rectify decades of sprawl-inducing, car-oriented development.

July 2 - CNU Public Square