In the eight years since Hurricane Katrina, the Gulf Coast states have made great strides in adopting new visions for their cities and towns. A new report outlines the recovery's progress, pointing to successes in housing and transportation.
Federal, state, and local authorities' response to the needs of the Gulf Coast have resulted unexpected improvements, particularly in housing, explains Michael Newsom:
"The Katrina cottage, developed as an alternative to FEMA trailers, was also an overall success, [Former Biloxi, Mississippi Mayor Gerald] Blessey said. About 2,400 of the cottages, which came from ideas in the report, were permanently placed."
"'At first, (the cottages) were supposed to be temporary,' Blessey said. 'So many people liked it. Staying on their own lots made a lot of difference, especially to elderly people, disabled people. We were able to successfully convince all the jurisdictions to change their rules to allow them to become permanently placed.'"
"'We have about 1,000 more public housing units than we had pre-Katrina,' he said. 'That program for low, low income people was a godsend …. There's always a need for public housing and we had a need before Katrina, but the fact that we increased it by about 1,000 is really a credit to the local officials and the local housing authorities.'"
Additionally, in rebuilding transportation infrastructure has allowed the states to make improvements that they otherwise would not have. For example, two major bridges were rebuilt with biking and walking paths.
FULL STORY: Eight years after Hurricane Katrina, many South Mississippi recovery visions, plans realized

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?

San Francisco Mayor Backtracks on Homelessness Goal
Mayor Dan Lurie ran on a promise to build 1,500 additional shelter beds in the city, complete with supportive services. Now, his office says they are “shifting strategy” to focus on prevention and mental health treatment.

How Trump's HUD Budget Proposal Would Harm Homelessness Response
Experts say the change to the HUD budget would make it more difficult to identify people who are homeless and connect them with services, and to prevent homelessness.

The Vast Potential of the Right-of-Way
One writer argues that the space between two building faces is the most important element of the built environment.
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.
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont