Suburbs
Utah’s Daybreak Shows a Way Forward for American Suburbs
Suburban dwellers are increasingly calling for more mixed-use development, walkability, and access to transit.
Urbanist TikTok Takes Aim at the Suburbs
Planners are using the popular video platform to explain how car dependence and single-family zoning deepen suburban isolation and affect affordability and sustainability.
Reimagining the Suburbs
With more people moving away from central cities, we have the chance to avoid past mistakes and redesign the American suburb to be less car-centric and more diverse.
Pandemic-Era Big City Population Loss More Dramatic Than We Thought
A new analysis indicates that many big cities saw their biggest population declines in at least a decade, with suburbs also showing a slowdown in growth.
A New Life for the Suburban Office Park?
With more and more employers downsizing and moving to areas with more urban amenities, large suburban office parks offer an opportunity for increased density and mixed-use development.
A Second Life for the American Mall
‘Dead’ suburban malls, with their existing infrastructure, offer a variety of opportunities for redevelopment into everything from housing to parks.
Day Two of the National Planning Conference: Staying on the Cutting Edge
The American Planning Association gathers for its first in-person National Planning Conference since 2019. Planetizen is in attendance. Here is some of what we saw on the second day of the conference.
Census: Big Cities Lost Population During the Pandemic
For the first time in at least three decades, major metropolitan areas in the U.S. showed negative population growth during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chicago Suburbs Luring Back Major Employers
As more workers move away from the central city due to high costs and remote work opportunities, companies that once relocated downtown are eyeing Chicago’s suburbs once again.
Resilience Planning for Suburban Growth
Whether or not the suburban shift accelerated by the pandemic continues, policymakers can implement climate resilience strategies and guide sustainable growth in both cities and exurbs.
San Diego County Development Turns Inward
Formerly a bastion of sprawling suburban developments, the San Diego region is experiencing a renaissance of urban infill development and higher-density, mixed use construction projects.
Zoning Reform: Lessons From New Zealand
The island nation is mandating mid-density zoning requirements and transit-oriented development in an effort to increase housing affordability and encourage compact development.
Houston Area's Center of Gravity Shifts Outside the Loop
The population center of Harris County is now outside central Houston, a shift that occurred over the last two decades as the region's suburbs blossomed.
Mobile Social Services Address Gaps in Suburban Colorado
In the Denver suburb of Aurora, nonprofits are using 'mobile public spaces' to reach refugees settling in the autocentric community.
How COVID-19 and Skyrocketing Housing Costs Accelerated Sprawl
In search of space and affordability, American families are increasingly moving to suburbs and exurbs.
Opinion: Oversized Mansions Are Harming Maryland Neighborhoods
'Mega-mansions' are rapidly replacing smaller single-family homes, pushing Maryland residents out of its formerly affordable suburbs.
Snowstorm That Stranded Thousands Prompts Questions About Auto-Centric Development
After thousands of motorists spent over a day on a snowbound Virginia highway, experts are warning that auto-centric sprawl will worsen the impacts of extreme weather events.
What Is White Flight?
'White flight' refers to the exodus of white Americans from central cities to suburbs in the early and mid-20 century, a phenomenon which led to declining tax revenue and business closures that created lasting damage to urban neighborhoods.
How Cities Can Plan For the Rise of Autonomous Vehicles
When cars first started proliferating on American roads, it led to increased sprawl and flight from central cities. What can we do now to prevent the same problem as AVs become more widespread?
The 2010s: The Decade of the Suburban Rental
Census data reveal a growing number of suburbs are home to a majority of renters. The data challenges the "very definition of suburban living," according to this article.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
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