Rents continue to rise in Los Angeles and more people are living in their cars.
Over the next decade, Los Angeles plans to spend 1.2 billion dollars on affordable housing, that help can't come soon enough to support a growing number of people without homes in L.A. "The number of homeless people has risen a startling 20% in the city of Los Angeles and 23% in the county, according to the results of the 2017 countywide street and shelter count of homeless people over three nights in January," writes Carla Hall for the Los Angeles Times.
Working class wages have not kept pace with rising housing costs in the area."There’s a 50% increase in people living in their cars," Hall writes. Additional funding and more affordable housing helps, "But we also need to ask how well the city and county are spending the money that they have already allocated for homelessness," Hall argues.
Read the full story: L.A.'s new homeless numbers are grim. Why?
The Promises and Limitations of Modular Housing
Converted shipping containers offer the promise of fast construction and low costs, but face regulatory and accessibility challenges.
Federal cuts to voucher program put 9,000 New Yorkers at risk of homelessness
The Emergency Housing Voucher program is ending years ahead of schedule, forcing housing agencies to find new ways to support roughly 70,000 households nationwide.
LA Proposal Would Forcibly Remove Unhoused People Near Olympic Venues
Los Angeles County sent city officials a report outlining strategies for clearing homeless encampments, but advocates point out that the report itself notes there are not enough shelte resources to accommodate all unhoused residents.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet
Get ready for that new train smell and more seats. But they won’t go faster or run more frequently on the Cascades route in Washington and Oregon.
Brightline Florida files for bankruptcy
The transit company is over $5 billion in debt.
St. Louis Metro to test if single-car trains can reduce operating costs, maintain rider satisfaction
The pilot program will run from October to spring 2027, and begin with one single-car train operating on Metrolink’s Red and Blue lines.
Pennsylvania is building data centers in abandoned mines
Housing data centers in mines provides an alternative to destroying local forests and may spare residents from data centers’ noise and air pollution.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello