Development Regulations

Denver City Council Considering Transportation Demand Management Plan
If approved, the proposed regulations would require developers to implement policies to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips for new developments.

Walkability Plan, Including Parking Reform, Adopted in Houston
The city of Houston is embarking on an ambitious plan to reshape how new development in the city prioritizes walkability, and deprioritizes the automobile.

Reforming Local Development Regulations for Sustainable Megaregions
Managing development at the scale of megaregions is possible. An excerpt from the recently published book, "Designing for the Megaregion: Meeting Urban Challenges at a New Scale," written by Jonathan Barnett, explains how.

Homebuilders Aren't Keeping Pace With Millennial Demand
Places with a lot of Millennials are building homes, just not enough to keep pace with the large number of Millennials coming of homebuying age.

Updated: Requiring Space for Homeless in New Development
The Portland Planning and Sustainability Commission has proposed a truly radical development requirement for private developments in the city's downtown: spaces for the homeless.

Don't Miss the Middle: The Critical Role of Moderate-Priced Housing to Affordability
To increase affordability communities should support moderate-priced housing development. This increases housing options for middle-income households, and for lower-income through filtering, as households move from low- to moderate-priced units.

Level of Service Reform Bill Approved by Seattle City Council
A major change to planning paradigms in the city of Seattle.

Everett's New Downtown Plan
Digging into the city of Everett's recent overhaul of its zoning and development regulations in Downtown and adjacent neighborhoods.

Retrofitting Cities with Accessory Dwelling Units Is a Win-Win
Expensive West Coast cities are looking to these alternative and add-on structures to ease their housing challenges.

Floodplain Development Grows as Regulations Shrink
More Americans are moving to high-risk flood zones as environmental deregulation wins the day.

800 New Homes Approved for Houston's Floodplain
The city of Houston approved a new development that doesn't meet new elevations standards approved by the city of Houston earlier this month.

Houston Seriously Tightens Rules on Floodplain Construction
It was the city's "first major regulatory response" to Hurricane Harvey.

Can Water Supply Keep Up with the Need to Build More Housing?
Population growth creates a collision course in the American West.

The World's Most Iconic Architecture, Brought to You By Taxes and Regulation
How many now-classic design features are actually tax-avoidance strategies?

Houston-Area Floodplain Regulations to Expand from 100-Year to 500-Year Levels
Harris County, home to Houston and the scene of widespread devastation during Hurricane Harvey and other weather events, will make large-scale changes to development regulations on floodplains for the first time in almost 20 years.

A Playbook for Achieving Meaningful Development Regulation Reform
Most cities know they need new development regulations, but it's much, much easier said than done.
Louisville Approves More Stringent Flood Protection Rules for New Development
As the remnants of Hurricane Harvey headed for Louisville, city officials were approving new legislation that enacts more stringent development standards in areas in flood prone areas.
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.
Standridge Inc.
City of Brookings
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service