Urban Development

Scaffolding

The Costs of California Building Codes

Reconciling accessibility and safety with costs and innovation in the Golden State.

May 1, 2017 - The Bay City Beacon

Housing Construction

Op-Ed: Affordability Depends on Market-Rate Housing

California State Senator Scott Wiener argues that advocating for subsidized affordable housing isn't enough. Anyone concerned with ending the state's housing crisis needs to get behind market-rate development.

May 1, 2017 - Art + Marketing

Pittsburgh at Night

What Makes For a 'Day 1 City'?

Can we use Jeff Bezos's distinction between "Day 1" and "Day 2" companies to compare cities? If so, Pittsburgh may be a prime example of the former.

May 1, 2017 - Hacker Noon

Detroit Vacant Properties

Using Big Data to Identify Problem Properties

In New York state, municipalities can apply to use a new tool that gathers property data and sifts for red flags. The intent is to identify potential blight before it sets in.

April 29, 2017 - NextCity

Washington, D.C.

One Year Later: H Street and the D.C. Streetcar

Intended to spur redevelopment along blighted commercial corridors, the streetcars are the first to run in the District since the 1962 dismantling of the previous early 20th century citywide streetcar network.

April 28, 2017 - Modern Cities

King Tides

A Timeline of CEQA-Circumventing Court Rulings

The California Environmental Quality Act is generally considered a major obstacle for development. In a few cases, however, the law's definitions have been used to clear the way for development in environmentally sensitive areas.

April 27, 2017 - San Francisco Public Press

Oklahoma City

Cultivating Oklahoma City's Innovation District

A new Brookings Institution reports recommends strategies for Oklahoma City to continue to grow the influence of its innovation district.

April 27, 2017 - Brookings

Detroit Vacant

Bad Bets on Detroit Housing Speculation

When investors from Belgium and elsewhere snapped up Detroit houses for a song, some of them didn't consider the full picture. The lesson: do your research, and maybe don't invest thousands of miles form home.

April 27, 2017 - Detroit Free Press

Debating Los Angeles' Proposed Affordable Housing Development Fee

A proposed affordable housing development fee has inspired a debate about how far developments fees can go in generating funds for affordable housing before they finally stop development altogether.

April 26, 2017 - KPCC

Amazon Warehouse

Debating the Role of Amazon Delivery Service in the Future Built Environment

The team at Strong Towns is taking an in-depth look at Amazon, with a week of events, including the point-counterpoint series shared here.

April 26, 2017 - Strong Towns

United Nations Taking First Steps Toward the New Urban Agenda

Some of the big work left undone by the Habitat III summit in finalizing the New Urban Agenda in December is now moving forward. The future of the New Urban Agenda and UN-Habitat can now start to take shape.

April 26, 2017 - Citiscope

Harlem River

Rezoning Coming to East Harlem

New York City has commenced a Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) in the neighborhood of East Harlem. This would be the second rezoning toward Mayor de Blasio's goal for 15 rezonings.

April 25, 2017 - The Real Deal

Google Headquarters

Report: Bay Area Needs More Transit Oriented Companies

The irony isn't lost on the authors of a new report by SPUR: Bay Area companies committed to technology innovation obstinately rely on traditional and inefficient commutes in automobiles.

April 25, 2017 - The San Francisco Chronicle

Multi-Family Housing

Dallas-Fort Worth Leads the Nation in Multi-Family Residential Construction

The Dallas-Fort Worth region is building multi-family housing a lot faster than anywhere else in the country, according to a recent report.

April 25, 2017 - Dallas News

When Environmental Goals Collide

Using the movie titled "When Worlds Collide" as a metaphor, environmental attorney Richard Opper describes how environmental regulations can get in their own way to defeat density and infill development—and NIMBYs are not just residents.

April 25, 2017 - UrbDeZine

Trinity River Dallas Floodplain

A Closer Look at the Big Park Plans Along Dallas' Trinity River

The Trinity River Project is coming into focus, after years of planning and decades of discussion. A $50 million donation in 2016 provided a big boost for Dallas' ambitious plans.

April 24, 2017 - Business Insider

Jane Jacobs

Reviews for 'Citizen Jane: Battle for the City'

Two publications likely to find an audience with people sympathetic to the cause of Jane Jacobs reviewed the latest film about her political battles with Robert Moses for the soul of New York.

April 24, 2017 - NPR

Visualizing Compatible Density

Density is a controversial subject. This blog post demonstrates that good streetscapes, vehicular-access elements, and building design are all components that make developments appear less dense, more livable, and attractive.

April 24, 2017 - MRSC Insight

Virginia

Transit Oriented Parking Reform in Virginia

Arlington County, Virginia has begun a process to reduce parking requirements for large residential developments near transit stations.

April 22, 2017 - Greater Greater Washington

Chicago

New Public Space Outside Wrigley Field Just Another Win for Chicago

Chicago Cubs fans looking to bask in the glory of the team's first World Series victory since 1908 will find a new public plaza and lawn next to the stadium. The plaza will be open to the public on non-baseball days too.

April 21, 2017 - Chi.Streetsblog

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

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.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

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.