Vacant Properties

Detroit Residents Find it Hard to Access Land Bank Properties
Longtime residents say the city is not fulfilling its goal of keeping vacant parcels in the hands of locals as property values rise steeply.

Pittsburgh Revitalization Plans Stuck on Blight
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette recently published an investigation of the city's efforts to buy and rehabilitate vacant properties in the troubled neighborhood of Homewood.

A Dark Night for the Right to Housing Movement
After a string of high-profile successes in places as geographically distant as Philadelphia and the East Bay Area, an ugly episode in L.A. County the day before Thanksgiving dealt a brutal setback to the burgeoning right to housing movement.

The State of Commercial Corridors (And Hot to Protect Them During the Pandemic)
The pandemic is accelerating recent trends in commercial real estate with potentially catastrophic consequences for the commercial corridors that play such a fundamental role in the urban fabric.

$160 Million in Bond Funding for Demolitions on the Ballot in Detroit
Proposal N, on the ballot for Detroit voters next week, will provide $160 million in bond funding for demolitions and $90 million to mothball homes for future rehab, but, according to this opinion, it won't solve the city's blight challenges.

Detroit Continues Demolition Program After Lead Risks Revealed
The city of Detroit said it would halt a demolition program after a report revealed the amount of lead released by demolitions into the environment, risking the health of children and other local residents.

Vacant Properties Occupied by Homeless Families Turned Over to Community Land Trust
A major victory in the fight for housing justice has been achieved in Philadelphia.

Demolitions Can't Keep Pace With Vacancies in Baltimore
As the city of Baltimore grapples with a declining population, it faces obstinate challenges in controlling the problems associated with vacant buildings, including the "vicious cycle" of vacancies causing more vacancies.

Effective Strategies for Tackling Vacant Properties
Urban homesteading as a response to hypervacancy is in the news after South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg proposed the Douglass Plan while on the presidential campaign trail.

Number of Vacant Properties Declining in Syracuse
Like many cities around the country, the city of Syracuse struggles with vacant and blighted residential properties. Lately, Syracuse can report positive progress on the challenge.
Clarion Associates
Urban Planning Partners
Sandy City
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Redwood City
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
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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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.