Last week, San Francisco's supervisors approved new legislation intended to jump-start urban farming throughout the city, reports John Upton.
The nonprofit San Francisco Planning + Urban Research Association (SPUR) was instrumental in pushing for the legislation [PDF], which Upton notes, "follows zoning changes last year that made it easier to operate small farms and legal to sell food
grown in San Francisco. This new set of laws will take it further by
removing additional bureaucratic barriers for hopeful gardeners and
actively searching for land they can use while providing them with
seeds, tools, and advice."
The legislation establishes an Urban Agriculture Program for the city and county of San Francisco, that, "will audit city-owned land and rooftops in a quest to dig up
potential new public gardening sites. It will also develop incentives
for owners of vacant lots to allow their land to be used for community
farming."
"San Francisco's adoption of the new urban farming programs follows a
trend that has seen Detroit, Portland, Baltimore, New York, Seattle,
Oakland, and other major cities craft programs and laws in recent years
to encourage agriculture and gardening within city limits," notes Upton.
FULL STORY: New San Francisco legislation will jump-start urban farming

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

Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”

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.

Platform Pilsner: Vancouver Transit Agency Releases... a Beer?
TransLink will receive a portion of every sale of the four-pack.

Toronto Weighs Cheaper Transit, Parking Hikes for Major Events
Special event rates would take effect during large festivals, sports games and concerts to ‘discourage driving, manage congestion and free up space for transit.”

Berlin to Consider Car-Free Zone Larger Than Manhattan
The area bound by the 22-mile Ringbahn would still allow 12 uses of a private automobile per year per person, and several other exemptions.
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)