Urban Development

To Bring Water to the Village, Teach Villagers About Water

In Nicaragua, villagers' access to freshwater resources is sometimes impeded by a gap in coordination between the self-governing indigenous communities present there. WaterAid worked with locals in one village to change just that.

August 1, 2016 - Doggerel

Commuter Traffic

Congestion Pricing Requires a Careful Balance

Congestion pricing is an economic tool for a difficult, complicated problem, and must be calculated carefully to avoid unintended consequences.

August 1, 2016 - Neighborhood Effects

Miami's Downtown Train Hub Begins to Take Shape

Construction of MiamiCentral, an 11-acre plot in downtown Miami that will house the city's station for Brightline higher-speed train service and related transit oriented development, is well underway. Train service begins next summer.

August 1, 2016 - The Real Deal

Indianapolis Street

Indianapolis Cooler than Brooklyn? Defining the Coolness Factor of Cities

How do you define a cool city? What makes a street or neighborhood hip? It's not too difficult to identify the right ingredients; it's putting them together that becomes the challenge.

July 31, 2016 - Indianapolis Business Journal

Japan High Speed Rail

A Bold High-Speed Rail Plan from Australia

Not only would a new $150.6 billion proposal build a high-speed rail project to connect Sydney and Melbourne, it would also build eight new cities along the way.

July 30, 2016 - Next City

Downtown Dallas

Walkability Study Underway in Downtown Dallas

The University of Texas Arlington's Institute of Urban Studies is doing to legwork for an update of the Downtown Dallas 360 master plan.

July 29, 2016 - Dallas News

Houston Micro-Condo Development Now to Include Hotel

A New York City micro-unit developer had hoped to sell 550 micro-condos to millennials and empty nesters. The project is being redesigned to reduce the number of micro-condos and add a hotel.

July 29, 2016 - Houston Business Journal

Portland Bike Safety Signage

Study: Interaction between Bicyclists and Streetcars Find Deadly Results

A new study looks at the interaction between bicyclists and streetcars (trams) or train tracks and does not find a good outcome.

July 29, 2016 - Treehugger

Soccer

Atlanta Piloting a 'Transit Oriented Soccer' Idea

MARTA's Five Points station will be the first to test an idea of building small soccer fields at multiple transit stations in the system.

July 28, 2016 - Creative Loafing

San Francisco Approves Accessory Dwelling Units

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has approved legislation that will allow the construction of accessory dwelling units, potentially adding thousands of units to the city's housing supply.

July 28, 2016 - San Francisco Examiner

Jefferson Park Chicago

South Side Location Selected for the Obama Library

The eagerly anticipated selection of the future site of the Obama Presidential Library has leaked to the press. A formal announcement is expected soon.

July 28, 2016 - Chicago Tribune

Airbnb

Airbnb's Listings Expanded in 2015, but Many Don't Last Long

A new statistical analysis of Airbnb listings shows the short-term-rental service is growing worldwide, but suggests that many hosts don't stick with it. Intermittent commercial uses of residences could be seen in the planning context of "mixed use."

July 27, 2016 - Martin John Brown

Brazil Olympics

Less Than the Olympic Ideal

A long-read in The Nation pokes large holes in the narrative of the Olympics as a beacon of equality and unity. The effect in Brazil, according to the article, has been quite the opposite.

July 27, 2016 - The Nation

Construction

A 'Housing New York' Report Card

The de Blasio Administration set lofty goals for the creation and preservation of housing in New York. So how's that going?

July 27, 2016 - Politico

Denver's B Line to Westminster Now Open for Service

After Monday's celebrations at the new, electrified commuter rail line's only two stations, Union Station and Westminster Station, commuters now have the option of taking an 11-minute, six-mile ride to Denver, costing $2.60.

July 27, 2016 - The Denver Post

Colosseo in Rome as seen from Via dei Fori Imperiali on a Sunday when traffic is cut off.

Walkability Reaches a Tipping Point

With the rise of globalization, and urbanization, people are rethinking how cities should be structured in terms of transportation and mobility. Is it possible to reconfigure auto-centric cities into pedestrian-friendly spaces?

July 26, 2016 - Doggerel

New York City Zoning Map

100 Years Ago Today: The City of New York Adopts its First Zoning Code

On July 25, 1916, New York adopted its first Zoning Resolution, for the first time regulating the height, size and arrangement of buildings in the city.

July 25, 2016 - The New York Times

Produce Aisle

An Argument Against Government Incentives for Grocery Stores

Food desert-busting is one of the cross-over opportunities between planning and public health, but it's unclear how effective bringing healthy foods to underserved neighborhoods has been.

July 25, 2016 - The Dallas Morning News

Trump Tower

A Map of All of Trump's New York Properties

Test your knowledge of the New York home base of Donald Trump's real estate business.

July 25, 2016 - Curbed New York

Cleveland

Planetizen Week in Review: July 25, 2016

The Republic National Convention dominated the news last week, and for good reason. There was also eye candy for New York transit advocates and lots of new housing research to enjoy.

July 25, 2016 - Planetizen

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.