Social / Demographics

Over 500 Medical Marijuana Shops Shuttered in Los Angeles
In Los Angeles, Proposition D has done its job over the past two years, putting a damper on new medical marijuana shops and dispensaries. Meanwhile, California inches toward decriminalization.

Study: More Than Income, Race Influences Neighborhood Standards
Although income inequality receives plenty of coverage these days, research suggests that neighborhoods of color have less access to resources than white neighborhoods despite similar median incomes.

How Urban Ugliness Increases Stress
The definition of blight may be in the eye of the beholder, but it may also be subconscious. Broken windows, abandoned buildings, and weed-filled yards may actually create stress and degrade health, according to a small study out of Philadelphia.
Will Expenses in Coastal Cities Lead to Northeast Ohio's Resurgence?
Joel Kotkin recently waded into the conversation about that it will take to return Legacy Cities into the prosperity of former years.
A New 'Livability Index' to Help Americans Age in Place
Following on research findings produced a year ago, AARP announced the release of its Livability Index earlier this week at the APA National Planning Conference.

Music Clubs in S.F. Fight for Right to Party
Local ordinances typically try to protect residents from excess noise. In San Francisco, though, a city official is proposing policies that would protect the right of musical acts to keep rocking despite the encroachment of new neighbors.

Op-Ed: Stop the Hipster Hate
Un-American to some, symbol of oblivious privilege to others, the urban hipster is a polarizing character. But the stereotype also lays blanket criticism on those simply trying to make people-scaled cities work.
Foresight and the Built Environment
In the ever changing global landscape, organizations need to anticipate and adapt to shifting circumstances to survive. AJ Artemel spoke to Dr. Gereon Uerz of the Arup Foresight + Innovation team to discuss how this can be realized.

Pittsburgh Reduces Crime with 'Slumlord Buy-Out' Program
At least some of a remarkable 49 percent drop in crime in a rough Pittsburgh is attributed to a new nonprofit-sponsored program designed to put slumlords out of business and get rid of their problem tenants.

The Rise of 'Segregated Affluence'
American cities are often described as 'segregated,' but segregation is not always well defined. A new study reveals a distinctive pattern: American cities tend to have many small areas of affluence amid fewer, but often larger, areas of poverty.
A New Remedy for America's Complicated Immigration History
Our immigration system is broken and needs comprehensive reform. Comprehensive reform would address all aspects of our immigration system, not just focus on enforcement measures, for example, or on updating a single kind of visa.

Seattle's Homeless Population Is Booming Too
While rates of homelessness drop elsewhere, tents and cardboard are becoming a very regular sight in Seattle. New wealth and newly unaffordable housing may be twin culprits.

Family-Friendly Downtown Living
What helps make a downtown family friendly? Safe places to play, safe streets, good schools and attainable housing, writes Jennifer Hill.

Book Review: Before 'Park' Became a Verb
With so much to learn just by reading a Wall Street Journal book review of "Bike Battles: A History of Sharing the American Road" by James Longhurst, history professor at University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, imagine what's to learn by reading the book.

How Planning Can Reduce the Threat of Gender Violence
A piece from Anchorage, Alaska discusses problems that can arise when planners don't address gender-based safety. Walkable, populated, well-lit streets and transit are the best remedy.

Study: Income Inequality Lowers Life Expectancy
Research suggests a correlation between regional income inequality and poorer health. Several statistical and sociological causes may come into play.

Suburbs Try to Figure Out Transit
Of the many reasons why the suburban lifestyle is falling out of favor with young Americans, reliance on automobiles is near the top of the list. Some suburbs are now figuring out that, to attract Millennials, they must also invest in better transit.
Study: 8,000 Latinos Have Left the Mission Since 2000
A recent study by the Council of Community Housing Organizations and the Mission Economic Development Agency puts some hard numbers to the displacement forces weeping through a historically Latino neighborhood in San Francisco.

Can Gentrification Integrate Neighborhoods?
Hector Tobar argues that despite the well-documented ills of gentrification, under the right circumstances it can eat into long decades of racial segregation. Eastern Los Angeles may be a prime test case.

What do we want? COFFEE! When do we want it? NOW!!!
The City Observatory's new Cappuccino Congestion Index quantifies the delay that inadequate coffeeshop capacity imposes on caffeine consumers. For cappuccino-sucking urbanites, it is a more severe problem than traffic congestion.
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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