Urban Development

Two Narratives Collide in Post-Katrina New Orleans
“A narrative of rebirth, reform and success that coexists with a narrative of stasis, failure and unrealized dreams.”

Study Reveals a 'Bull Market for City Centers'
If housing prices were tracked like the stock market, urban cores would be soaring to new highs.
Global Call for Ideas Reveals Promising Resilience Solutions
Superstorm Sandy spurred the New York City Economic Development Corporation to form the RISE:NYC program, a global competition for innovative solutions to post-disaster resiliency. Arup's Sarah Wesseler spoke with them to learn more.

2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard: Still Measuring Urban Travel Conditions Incorrectly
The new Urban Mobility Scorecard measures traffic congestion with greater precision, but incorrectly. As with previous editions, it exaggerates congestion costs and undervalues the congestion reduction benefits of alternative modes and Smart Growth.
Lawsuit Over Contract Planning Work Embroils Paterson, New Jersey
The city of Paterson, New Jersey, is suing the City-Council-appointed Board of Adjustment in a dispute over using in-house planners versus contract planners.
Planning the Future of Buffalo's Outer Harbor Waterfront
A plan to revitalize Buffalo's Outer Harbor as an expansive, fully programmed park was sunk by a housing component. A new draft is expected soon.

The Popsicle Test: What Makes a City Good for Children?
Low crime rates and affordable property preoccupy adults, but kids need something more: the ability to walk the streets and play out on their own. In The Guardian, Viv Groskop explores the "popsicle test" and other elements of child-friendly cities.
Report Finds Tremendous Economic Benefits From Indy's Cultural Trail
A $63 million investment to build the Cultural Trail in Indianapolis has returned $1 billion in increased property value and other economic benefits since 2008.
Atlanta's Midtown Achieving 'Tech Hub' Status
Companies looking for creative class cache have begun to locate in Atlanta's Midtown and spilling over into neighboring districts.
Federal Bill Would Enable Waterfront Community Resilience Planning
A bill proposed in the U.S. Senate provides a model for how the federal government could support resilience planning in waterfront and coastal communities.

Building a Better Suburb
Suburbs are changing. Instead of "green lawns, sprawling backyards, and lots of parking for cars," now there are "agri-hoods."

Santa Monica Nixes Mixed-Use Development in Favor of Suburban-Style Office Park
A hotly contested development in the coastal enclave of Santa Monica, CA—soon to be blessed with light rail access to the rest of the region—has produced less-than-ambitious results.
St. Louis NFL Stadium Plans Clear Initial Funding Hurdle
A proposal to build a new NFL stadium in St. Louis received its first clearance for tax credits—$15 million from the Missouri Development Finance Board. Additional requests for $17.5 million will follow in 2016 and 2017.
HUD Grants $24 Million for Community Development Pool in North St. Louis
The federal government offered to $24 million to create a loan pool in struggling areas of North St. Louis County—most infamously displayed to the country over the past year in the intense racial conflicts centering around Ferguson.
Should Architects Be Citizen Scientists?
Can self-contained urban food systems exist in the core of our cities? Architect Darrick Borowski of New York based firm ARExA developed a model to determine just that.

Why the McMansion Isn't Really Back
Joe Cortright criticizes reports linking high median new home sizes to a renewed demand for McMansions. The market for single-family homes, he argues, locks out buyers of modest means. Only the well-off are buying.
De Blasio Could Open the Times Square Pedestrian Plaza to Cars
Exotic street performers in the plaza have caused Mayor Bill de Blasio to reconsider his initial opposition to street plazas. Unlike his police commissioner and the governor, de Blasio has yet to make a decision on the removal of Times Square plaza.
From the Ashes of a Freeway—a New Neighborhood Rising in Providence
A part of the city of Providence once lobotomized by the I-95 freeway is ready to be born anew as LINK, with three projects already in the works and 19 acres of developable land.

America's Streets: Two Ways to Urban Regeneration
Dr. William (Billy) Riggs guest blogs about his new research in Journal of Planning Education & Research. Dr. Riggs is Assistant Professor at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo focusing on quantitative community analysis and urban planning policies.

A State of Thirst
In the middle of a population boom, Texas is looking across state lines for more water. The U.S. Supreme Court said no the first time; does that mean it will say no again?
Pagination
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.
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions