Around the country, small, rural towns are experiencing the same political conflicts related to land use and planning more commonly associated with the city.
[Updated 3-10-2016] "The affordable housing crunch and fire-breathing NIMBYism often associated with America’s rapidly gentrifying cities has reached our resort towns — from the Rocky Mountains to Northern Michigan," according to an article by Bill Bradley. "Small towns, they’re just like us!" adds Bradley.
Green lists Traverse City, Michigan; Portland, Maine; and Breckenridge, Colorado as examples of small cities facing challenges more commonly perceived as urban. The question posed by the article, and by the residents experiencing these new dynamics firsthand: "What happens when the affordable backwoods dream town turns into an urban destination?"
After reading Bradley's article, follow up with recent coverage from Planetizen on these subjects in Traverse City, Portland, and Breckenridge.
[The article was updated to give proper credit to the author of the Next City article.]
FULL STORY: Small-Town America Is Facing Big-City Problems
When a Summer Resort Town Finds Year-Round Success
Northern Michigan's "premier summer resort town" finds itself embroiled in a heated development controversy, reflecting that town's changing population.
‘Instagrammed to Death’ or a Return to Pre-Pandemic Normal?
Familiar controversies might seem reassuring in 2022.
Left-NIMBYism and COVID-19
The events of the past year shows that the law of supply and demand applies to urban housing, and that gentrification can, in fact, be subdued.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Seattle's Plan for Adopting Driverless Cars
Equity, safety, accessibility and affordability are front of mind as the city prepares for robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
With Protected Lanes, 460% More People Commute by Bike
For those needing more ammo, more data proving what we already knew is here.
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.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)