Two new books proffer the end of the suburbs and the salvation of dense urbanity. But the suburbs are "not about to shrivel," says Justin Davidson. So who should be responsible for fixing suburban dysfunction?
Davidson looks at two new books that make the case for the demise of suburbia, The End of the Suburbs: Where the American Dream Is Moving by Leigh Gallagher and A Country of Cities: A Manifesto for an Urban America by Vishaan Chakrabarti. In them, an "inquisitorial fever" equates buying a suburban home with "chain-smoking, snarfing down Whoppers, or driving an extra-large SUV—a world-destroying act of staggering selfishness."
But reports of the suburbs' death have been greatly exaggerated. "[S]uburbia is so immense, so culturally ingrained, geographically dominant, and politically significant, that it’s not about to shrivel," says Davidson. "Nor should it. A healthy metropolis needs its greater metropolitan region."
"Why do we build these asphalt steppes, then keep making them grimmer still? And how can we make them not just tolerable but civilized? These lamentations have become more urgent as oil and water grow more scarce, and it’s past time for the most inventive planners and designers to venture beyond city limits and figure out how to preserve the best of the suburbs and clean up the mess of the rest," he urges.
FULL STORY: How Do You Fix Long Island?

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

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

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving
Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.

Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan
Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.

Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding
The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service