Residential Zoning

Manhattan Retail

Op-Ed: SoHo and NoHo Need a Zoning Overhaul

Two SoHo residents argue that outdated zoning holds the Manhattan neighborhoods back, requiring special permits or variances for many current residential and commercial uses.

June 2, 2019 - Crain's Business New York

Expo Line LA Skyline

Proposed New Zoning Around the Los Angeles Expo Line

Los Angeles' proposed transit neighborhood plan for the Expo Line corridor includes minor changes, but nothing earth-shattering. Many of the line's stations remain underutilized.

May 2, 2017 - Urbanize LA

Definition of Family Still Up for Debate in Hartford Zoning Case

When zoning codes separate uses, they require definitions about what constitutes each of those uses. The question in Hartford, Connecticut: Does a group of cohabiting adults fit the definition necessary to reside in a "single-family house"?

November 18, 2015 - The Hartford Courant

Casa Torre

Re-Evaluating Pasadena's City of Gardens Ordinance

Practicing urbanist and USC professor Vinayak Bharne examines the legacy of a progressive zoning code over the two decades since its adoption.

March 31, 2015 - Vinayak Bharne

Hartford Connecticut

Nontraditional 'Family' Questions Hartford Zoning Code

After a group of unrelated adults bought and moved into a large house in Hartford, Connecticut, they were found to be in violation of local regulations. They are asking for a broader definition of 'family.'

March 29, 2015 - WFSB

Small-Scale Apartment

Single-Lot Densification Faces Zoning, Economic Challenges

Small-scale development on single lots is an alternative to the centralized mid-rise norm. But this kind of classic infilling may not be as easy as build-it-and-they-will-come.

March 26, 2015 - Streets.MN

How the U.S. Became a Unique "Nation of Homezoners”

Exceptionalism is a word often associated with the U.S., most often with foreign policy. Sonia Hirt of VPI argues that since its inception American zoning has also taken a unique form compared to European counterparts.

October 23, 2013 - JPER

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.