Emily Badger pulls particularly salient information from last week's Pew Research Center's report on political attitudes: liberals prefer the city while conservatives prefer small towns and rural areas.
According to analysis by Emily Badger of a new study by the Pew Research Center that found evidence of widening political polarization in the United States, the study also found evidence that Americans tend to make lifestyle choices, especially about where to live, along political lines. "Seventy-seven percent of 'consistently liberal' adults went with what sounded like dthe [sic] urban milieu: the dense neighborhood, the compact home, the 'walkability.' Fully seventy-five percent of 'consistently conservative' adults went with the polar opposite," writes Badger.
Unclear, however, is that the data means about why people make these choices. "This latest Pew data, though, renews some curious questions about what's really going on here," says Badger. Some examples of the questions raised by the findings:
"Does ideology inform our living choices, or is it the other way around? Do liberals move to cities because cities happen to have the things that liberals like: dense amenities, cultural institutions, greater diversity?"
"Or do people who happen to live in cities because they value those things come to lean liberal thanks to other concerns inherent in that way of living?"
"Likewise, do conservatives settle in the exurbs and beyond because they want room to stretch out and a fenced-in yard? Or does having those things make you value privacy and individualism -- and the ideology that defends them?"
FULL STORY: Conservatives are from McMansions, liberals are from the city

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.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations
Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.

Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean
Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?

Jacksonville Launches First Autonomous Transit Shuttle in US
A fleet of 14 fully autonomous vehicles will serve a 3.5-mile downtown Jacksonville route with 12 stops.
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
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont