Urban Development

COVID-19 City

Large Cities Were Already Losing Population. Then Came the Coronavirus.

"Cities of all sizes may soon look less alluring, if drastic drops in income, sales and tourism tax revenue leave gaping holes in budgets," according to this article, which encapsulates a popular school of thought as the pandemic rages.

April 21, 2020 - The New York Times

Paris Street

Is it Time to Revive the Pattern Language?

Software and other fields have made brilliant progress with the pattern language methodology, while built environment fields lag badly, mired in parochial debates over the massive book that invented the methodology.

April 21, 2020 - Michael Mehaffy

Construction

Demand Expected to Slow in U.S. Rental Market

Analysis from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University predicts the pandemic will reduce rents, but only at the top of the market.

April 20, 2020 - Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

COVID-19 Mobility

Watch: The Future of Cities After COVID-19

An expert panel convened to discuss the effect of the coronavirus on the foundations of society and contemporary life. The future, both the remaining time dealing with the pandemic and after, is becoming more clear with every passing day and week.

April 17, 2020 - Planetizen Courses

Coronavirus Economy

Layoffs Sweeping the Construction Industry

Halted construction work has contributed to a growing number of layoffs in the construction industry during the month of April.

April 17, 2020 - Smart Cities Dive

NYC from Hoboken

How the Post-Pandemic Future Could Resemble the Pre-Pandemic Future

Response to coronavirus challenges in urban settings will likely be a continuity of work started decades ago.

April 16, 2020 - CityLab

Sound Transit Bus

Key Considerations for Urban Demolition Planning

Demolition can be a lot of fun for the people holding the sledge hammers and swinging the wrecking balls, but demolition is serious business with a large number of significant social and environmental consequences.

April 16, 2020 - Kayla Matthews

American Dream Meadowlands

American Dream Mall, Delayed Due to Coronavirus, Will Open Testing Facility

Delays have been part of the story with the American Dream mall in New Jersey since its earliest inception, and the mall has been lauded in the past for evolving to match the American retail landscape.

April 16, 2020 - Business Insider

Public Health

COVID-19 Impacts on the Future of Transportation

MoveLA's Denny Zane and Gloria Ohland assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public transit.

April 15, 2020 - The Planning Report

High Line with Denari

Superstar Cities Are Struggling Now, But Could Recover to Gain Even More Economic Power

The public health and economic crises caused by the coronavirus are threatening to further entrench inequality in America—between regions and within cities.

April 15, 2020 - Brookings

Steptoe Butte State Park

Does Dispersion Help?

Only 7 percent of U.S. residents live in the nation's largest metropolitan area (New York). Has that made coronavirus less deadly?

April 14, 2020 - Michael Lewyn

One57

Office-to-Residential Conversions Considered as Workers Go Remote

Reduced demand for office space after coronavirus could lead New York landlords to consider the conversion of offices to residential spaces.

April 14, 2020 - The Real Deal

The Tenderloin

Safe At Home: Securing Affordable Housing in a Pandemic

An interview on the critical importance of securing quality affordable housing during the pandemic, coupled with the challenge of responding to the operational needs of ongoing development projects.

April 13, 2020 - The Planning Report

Wisconsin

Will the Coronavirus Spare Rural America?

Many counties throughout the nation have recorded no deaths from COVID-19. A perception exists that population density is responsible for the massive death toll in New York and New Jersey and that exurban and rural counties may be spared.

April 13, 2020 - The New York Times

Regional Transit

A New Ballot Measure Could Increase Caltrain's Funding by $108 Million Per Year

Santa Clara, San Mateo, and San Francisco county voters could see a ballot measure to fund an ambitious Caltrain plan with a one-eighth cent sales tax, amounting to more than $100 million dollars per year.

April 12, 2020 - The Mercury News

Los Angeles Grand Park

L.A. Department of City Planning Goes Remote

Los Angeles Department of City Planning Director Vince Bertoni shares the status of the planning department and the daily challenges of providing public-facing service and community meetings under social distancing orders.

April 9, 2020 - The Planning Report

New York Public Transit

Watch: 'Planning and Health in the Time of COVID-19'

Listen in as planners discuss the response of the profession to the coronavirus pandemic in California.

April 9, 2020 - APA California via YouTube

City Kids

Project For Public Spaces Launches Initiative to Improve Marketplaces Worldwide

Project for Public Spaces' Market Cities Initiative seeks to understand and addresses challenges faced by the public marketplaces to improve market infrastructure and promote healthy food systems in local communities.

April 9, 2020 - Project For Public Spaces

California Shelter-in-Place

Contrasting the Coronavirus Impact in the Bay Area to New York City

Early intervention, or population density? NPR reporters based in the Bay Area and New York City offer explanations as to why the two regions are seeing such a wide contrast in experiences during the coronavirus outbreak.

April 8, 2020 - NPR

Interbay Seattle

Seattle Interbay Industrial Plan Is Dead

Many elements of the plan for the Ballard-Interbay were never implemented, and its relevance as a planning document is over.

April 8, 2020 - The Urbanist

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.