Urban Development
Will the Reconnecting Communities Program Survive Trump?
A freeway cap in Portland, Oregon is in jeopardy. But the visionary “restorative redevelopment” next door goes on.
Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean
Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?
Frederick Wiseman: Cinema’s Greatest Chronicler of the City
For over 60 years the legendary documentarian has quietly chronicled the urban American experience. The result is a subtle, stubborn celebration of the unsung hero of civic life: process.
Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.
San Antonio and Austin are Fusing Into one Massive Megaregion
The region spanning the two central Texas cities is growing fast, posing challenges for local infrastructure and water supplies.
Charlottesville Temporarily Has No Zoning Code
A judge ordered the Virginia city to throw out its newly revised zoning code, leaving permitting for new development in legal limbo.
In California Battle of Housing vs. Environment, Housing Just Won
A new state law significantly limits the power of CEQA, an environmental review law that served as a powerful tool for blocking new development.
Boulder Eliminates Parking Minimums Citywide
Officials estimate the cost of building a single underground parking space at up to $100,000.
Orange County, Florida Adopts Largest US “Sprawl Repair” Code
The ‘Orange Code’ seeks to rectify decades of sprawl-inducing, car-oriented development.
In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?
The Mobility-Productivity Paradox
New research shows that excessive vehicle travel reduces economic productivity, and that less mobility provides more productivity. Yes, you read that right.
A New Texas Neighborhood is Powered by Geothermal Energy
The 7,500-home development claims to be Austin’s ‘first zero energy planned community.’
Berkeley Approves ‘Middle Housing’ Ordinance
The city that invented single-family zoning is finally reckoning with its history of exclusion.
More Apartments Are Being Built in Less-Dense Areas
Rising housing costs in urban cores and a demand for rental housing is driving more multifamily development to exurbs and small metros.
Downtown Portland Ready for Maine's Tallest Building
The city of Portland anticipates a major new urban development addition called the “Old Port Square” project.
How Planners Can Help Cut Corporate Carbon
Up to 75 percent or more of many companies’ greenhouse gas emissions come from activities impacted by urban planning. Like it or not, planners are key players in mitigation. Technology can help.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
How Public Spaces Exclude Teen Girls
Adolescent girls face unique challenges and concerns when navigating public spaces. We can design cities with their needs in mind.
Maryland Awards $1.25M in TOD-Related Grants
The state’s DOT is funding projects that prepare sites around transit stations for future mixed-use development and housing.
Judge Rules in Favor of Massachusetts TOD Law
The court rejected an argument that the MBTA Communities law, which requires zoning for multifamily housing, is an “unfunded mandate.”
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
