Planning

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A map showing the city of Hammond and surrounding cities in Louisiana and Florida.

Louisiana City Halts Multi-Family Housing Construction Due to Infrastructure Concerns

The Hammond City Council has paused multi-family development approvals while it studies ways to improve the city's infrastructure.

February 10, 2022 - The Daily Star

Colorado

What Is Discretionary Approval?

Discretionary approval requires an appointed or elected body of officials to decide whether or not to proceed with a development. Discretionary approval is usually reserved for development proposals that don't conform to zoning or building codes, but other regulatory triggers can also create the need for a discretionary approval process.

February 8, 2022 - James Brasuell

Atlanta Park

Tim Keane, Atlanta Planning Commissioner, Headed to a New City

Tim Keane, who has led the Atlanta Department of City Planning since 2015, is set to take a new job in a new city.

February 1, 2022 - Axios Atlanta

A sunny day in San Francisco, with a view of the city skyline with the Easy Bay Hills in the background.

Development Streamlining Proposal Dies in San Francisco

The doomed effort was Mayor London Breed's third attempt to streamline development in the city.

January 31, 2022 - San Francisco Chronicle

An image of stadium seats at Petco Park in San Diego, with new buildings under construction nearby in the background.

What Is a Development Approval Process?

A development approval process decides whether or not to allow a proposed development project to proceed with construction. There is plenty of room for interpretation, both legal and political, about what a development approval process can or should entail.

January 27, 2022 - James Brasuell

online education

Annual Google Scholar Citation Data for Planning Faculty

Publish or perish?

January 26, 2022 - Tom Sanchez

San Francisco Skyline

San Francisco's 1971 Urban Design Plan Echoes Today's Concerns

A 1971 effort to quantify the city's values and design goals reflects many of the same priorities that planners and residents face today.

January 13, 2022 - San Francisco Chronicle

A silhouette of construction workers lowering larger numerals into place to form 2022.

Planning Trends to Watch in 2022

Building a framework of understanding for the year to come.

January 12, 2022 - James Brasuell

Central Los Angeles

Lawsuit Uses Environmental Law to Challenge the Housing Element of L.A.'s General Plan

The city of Los Angeles in November wrapped up an update to a new Housing Element, as required by state law. A lawsuit will use a different state law to challenge the validity of the city's housing goals.

January 3, 2022 - Los Angeles Times

A conceptual rendering showing an extended shoreline, filled with green park space, along the shore of Lower Manhattan.

Lower Manhattan Climate Resilience Plan Released

The Financial District and Seaport Climate Resilience Master Plan will extend the shoreline in Lower Manhattan by up to 200 feet.

January 2, 2022 - New York City

Joe Biden sits in a chair holding a microphone in front of a screen that reads Wall Street Journal and Infrastructure

Year in Review: The Stories That Defined Urban Planning in 2021

Part two (of two) of Planetizen's review of 2021 collects the biggest stories and storylines of the year from the wide world of planning.

December 30, 2021 - James Brasuell

A map with the location fo Fayetteville, Georgia highlighted among surrounding cities and highways.

Atlanta Suburb Freezes Residential Rezonings

Fayetteville, Georgia is seeing more applications for new townhomes than the city council can stomach.

December 27, 2021 - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Trump supporting insurrectionists scale the walls of the U.S. Capitol Building on January 6, 2021.

Year in Review: Urban Planning in 2021

Part one of two of Planetizen's review of 2021—re-assessing failed predictions and daylighting the biggest planning stories of the year.

December 20, 2021 - James Brasuell

New Zealand Bus Transit

New Zealand Approves Sweeping Land Use Reforms

The five largest cities in New Zealand will be zoned to allow townhouses. The latest bill continues a recent string of zoning reforms.

December 15, 2021 - Stuff

Downtown Austin with Lady Bird Lake in the foreground. Multiple bridges are crossing the lake and small personal water-crafts dot the water.

Light Rail and Buses and More, Oh My!

A light rail bridge proposed for Lady Bird Lake, still pre-design, is causing controversies about whether adding buses to the bridge would be too dangerous for the other non-automotive modes.

December 13, 2021 - KUT

Downtown Los Angeles

L.A.'s New Housing Element Calls for 456,000 New Homes

The newly updated Housing Element of the city of Los Angeles General Plan makes an ambitious commitment to housing construction—after decades of slow construction and a population out of scale with the city's housing stock.

December 7, 2021 - Urbanize Los Angeles

A movie studio buildiing located in Old Toronto's Port Lands is fenced off from the sidewalk and protected by a security guard station.

Are Movie Studios 'Highest and Best Use' During a Housing Affordability Crisis?

Toronto's answer to the question posed in the headline is, "yes." One columnist wonders if the city can do more to balance its priorities.

December 2, 2021 - Toronto Star

Urban Living

Leadership Change at the D.C. Office of Planning

D.C. Planning Director Andre Trueblood is leaving the helm of the District's Office of Planning.

November 30, 2021 - Washington Business Journal

Toronto Construction

Toronto Reconsidering its Parking Requirements

Parking reform is reaching new frontiers.

November 29, 2021 - CBC News

The New York Public Library's stone lions Patience and Fortitude have donned face masks to remind New Yorkers to wear face coverings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Top Urban Planning Books of 2021

Planetizen's annual list of the top urban planning books of the year is here—maintaining a tradition that dates back to 2002.

November 26, 2021 - James Brasuell

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

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New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Websites

The best of the Internet—since 2002.

Top Apps

Planning apps for a brave new world.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

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.