Seattle

Seattle Considers Transportation Tax District

Seattle has a long list of transportation projects on the drawing boards, but little money to bring them into reality. So local officials are considering a plan to create transportation taxing districts to help fund the projects.

August 14, 2010 - The Seattle Times

Seattle Could Ban New Houseboats

The city has hundreds of houseboats on its waterways, but new shoreline regulations could prohibit any new houseboats.

August 1, 2010 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Seattle Upgrading its Stormwater System to Prevent Sewage Overflows

The city of Seattle is taking on a $500 million project to update its storm drains to reduce the amount of untreated sewage that overflows into waterways during storm events.

July 15, 2010 - The Seattle Times

Reusing Stalled Construction Sites in Seattle

Officials in Seattle are trying to pass legislation that would allow stalled construction sites to be reused as parking lots and temporary vending areas.

June 15, 2010 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Ten Actions For Cities In Response To Gulf Spill

Grist's Jonathan Hiskes spoke with smart growth leaders to devise strategies that municipalities, as opposed to U.S. government, can take to lessen oil dependency - that are financially sustainable, not overly dependent on technology, and ready to go

June 8, 2010 - Grist

Seattle's Backyard Cottages Encouraged

Don't call them granny flats or inlaw units! These are separate units that can only be built on lots of 4,000 sq. ft. minimum. Only 50 have been built or permitted since the trial began in 2006. The goal is to bring affordabllity to SFH neighborhoods

May 28, 2010 - USA Today

With Transit Funding in the Dumps, Seattle Could Ditch Ride Free Area

A section of downtown Seattle has for decades been a fare-free public transit zone. Those days could be coming to an end.

May 22, 2010 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Carpooling Falls Out of Favor

In Seattle, parking spaces are reserved for people who carpool into downtown. But in recent years, an increasing amount of those parking spaces are empty.

May 21, 2010 - Seattle Weekly

From Bedroom Communities to Jet Engine Communities

More and more people working in the San Francisco Bay Area are opting for cheaper housing outside the region. Some are going way outside the region, commuting by airplane from Portland or Seattle.

April 22, 2010 - The Wall Street Journal

Completing the Grid to Improve Walkability

Grist's David Roberts maps out why his neighborhood is not walkable and how it could be greatly improved with just a little extra infrastructural connectivity.

April 10, 2010 - Grist

San Francisco Takes Lessons From Seattle Over Sidewalk Sitting

San Francisco's recently passed and controversial sit/lie laws that prohibit sitting on sidewalks were based on a similar rule passed in Seattle in 1993. Though that rule has been on the books for years, its controversy remains.

March 31, 2010 - San Francisco Chronicle

Splicing Small Farms into Residential Development

Small farms are increasingly being integrated into new housing development proposals. One new project in Washington is betting on the growing popularity of local food to draw in homebuyers.

March 19, 2010 - Crosscut

Rethinking Urban Alleyways in Seattle

Through a new competition, the city of Seattle is looking to revive and reuse the alleys of the urban core.

March 18, 2010 - Crosscut

Community Gardens Sprout in Seattle

Activists in Seattle have created a community garden on empty land to help provide food for the city's needy.

March 2, 2010 - The Seattle Times

Breathing Life Back into Seattle's Alleys

The City of Seattle is looking to revive some of its often forgotten and neglected urban spaces: alleys.

February 28, 2010 - The Seattle Times

How Bill's Hotel Room Saved Some Trees

Bill Fulton was prepping for a panel on transferable development rights programs for last weekend's New Partners for Smart Growth conference in Seattle when he realized the hotel he was in was the beneficiary of just such a program.

February 8, 2010 - California Planning & Development Report

Getting Fruits and Vegetables into the Convenience Store

A neighborhood development group in Seattle is working with convenience store owners to add healthier food choices to their inventories.

January 12, 2010 - KUOW

Big Brother is Watching You Ride the Bus

Electronic passes used to board transit systems in the Seattle region could offer a new eye for Big Brother. According to privacy rights activists, the data in the employer-provided passes can be monitored by employers without employees' knowledge.

December 20, 2009 - The Seattle Times

Seattle's Big Dig Controversy

Seattle's new mayor come January, Mike McGinn, a former Sierra Club activist, withdrew his campaign threat to veto the highway tunnel planned to replace the Alaska Way Viaduct.

December 15, 2009 - The Wall Street Journal

Seattle Approves Backyard Cottages

The Seattle City Council has unanimously approved an ordinance that will allow owners of single family homes to construct additional cottage-like housing units on their property.

November 4, 2009 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

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.

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.