Urban Development

Trump Administration Suddenly Drops Fair Housing Concerns in Westchester, New York
The news that the Trump Administration hired a former party planner to oversee HUD's New York and New Jersey office went viral in June. The hire has already had an effect on affordable housing policy in Westchester County, New York.

Cleveland Clinic Lacks a Prescription for its Community
According to an article by Dan Diamond, the Cleveland Clinic is a worldwide success story, but the community surround the hospital "remains mired in poverty."

The Remaining Gap Between 'Smart Cities' Ambition and Reality
A critique of a proposed "smart cities" development in Mumbai reveals how much work remains in providing the resources and maintaining the rigor to built sustainable, resilient, liveable cities.

San Diego Activists Plan a Pedestrian Promenade and 'Nudillo'
Activists organized to save their downtown San Diego neighborhoods from the NFL Chargers' stadium proposal. Their defense strategy? A fine-grained community plan with no stadium. In the process, they came upon the idea of a promenade and a "Nudillo."

The Secrets of 'Place Making' Success
Some well-meaning urbanists try a place-making-in-a-box approach. Their efforts would resonate more if they took the neighborhood’s history and culture into account.

Venice, California Has Fewer Housing Units Than in 2000
Venice, the famously picturesque neighborhood in Los Angeles, has become a poster child for wealthy urban enclave that has closed its doors to development and new residents—despite a strong local economy.

An Investigation of Affordable Housing Failure on the Atlanta Beltline
An investigative collaboration between the Georgia News Lab and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has produced a scathing critique of Atlanta Beltline Inc., the organization shepherding one of the nation's most ambitious public works projects.
Property Tax Assessment Shake Up in Wisconsin
A highly anticipated decision by the Wisconsin State Supreme Court has stakeholders scrambling to anticipate changes to the property tax system.

Development Overtakes Open Space in Boston's Seaport District
Planners worry that the success of the waterfront district has led to its overdevelopment.

Booming Downtowns Are Squeezing Out Homeless Shelters
In downtowns across America, booming development has come at the expense of crucial homeless services that have traditionally located there.

Proposals for Displacement-Free Development in D.C.
Cities have to prioritize displacement as a policy issue if they want to achieve inclusive growth, writes David Whitehead.

A City With Room for Everyone
A vision set forth for Los Angeles in 1970 still has powerful relevance in 2017.

Why was BART's Ridership Forecast for Millbrae Station So Wildly Off-Base?
In 1995, planners forecasted that the Millbrae BART Station in San Mateo County, where riders can transfer to/from Caltrain, would attract 16,500 weekday riders. Fourteen years after it opened, ridership is 7,000. Planners were off by 58 percent.

Report Suggests Improvements for Chicago's Network of Underground Paths
A new report is potentially a first step in a larger project to revamp Chicago's Pedway—an under-appreciated network of tunnels in downtown Chicago.
Study: Bike Lanes Raise Property Values in Brooklyn
New bike lanes in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bushwick started raising property values within a year.
Report Predicts the End of Individual Car Ownership
The first report from independent think tank RethinkXL predicts that by 2031, 95 percent of U.S. passenger miles traveled will be served by on-demand, autonomous electric vehicles owned by companies providing transport as a service.
Chicago Developers Replacing Four-Plus-Ones with Single-Family Homes
A piece of Chicago development history as disappearing, as well as some of the city's uniquely urban density, as developers convert four-plus-ones into single-family homes.
Artificial Intelligence Unlocks the Secrets of Neighborhood Change
Researchers at MIT and Harvard believe that their computer vision system (i.e., artificial intelligence) helps reveal fundamental characteristics of neighborhood change.

Op-Ed: Out-Of-Town Architects Miss a Huge Opportunity
A Cleveland architect offers a scathing critique of the design choices made by one of the city's cultural institutions.

University of Washington's Campus Master Plan Gets Pushback on Equity Issues
The Campaign For Responsible UW is hoping to push for additional changes to a finalized version of a master plan for the University of Washington's Seattle campus before the city can approve it.
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
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Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Municipality of Princeton
Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission
City of Mt Shasta
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)