Urban Development
High Hopes for a Renovated Vernon Park in Philadelphia
A once-neglected park is at the center of efforts to breathe new life into Germantown's business district.
Guidebook: Lowering Barriers to Urban Farming
Urban agriculture has long been a staple of sustainable urbanism—in theory. Can policy changes help it become much more than that? This guidebook offers tactics and policies that planners can use to promote urban farms.
On the Life Cycle of Suburban Malls
Using Greenwood, Indiana as an example, Eric McAfee discusses how the value of individual suburban malls depreciates over time. Shiny new shopping centers compensate for inevitable vacancies in older ones.
New Orleans Residents Seeking Less Density From the Zoning Code
A zoning controversy in a neighborhood in New Orleans has locals questioning how well the city's new Comprehensive Zoning Plan reflects the city's Master Plan.
Developers See Dollar Signs in the Viaduct Rail Park Proposal in Philly's Center City
The Viaduct Rail Park could one day become a version of the High Line in Philadelphia's Center City.
Designated Zones to Protect New York Manufacturing
Without designated industrial zones, New York manufacturing companies risk losing their facilities to the residential development market. The de Blasio administration has promised some zoning protections for industrial enclaves.
The Reality of Neighborhood Change: Planners Should Worry About Decline
City living is back. After half a century of relentless population decline and several false starts at revitalization, residential investment in America's urban centers began to pick up in the mid-1990s.
Are Small Towns the Next Arts Districts?
As rising costs expel artists from urban cores, some small towns are positioning themselves as unlikely magnets for creative expression.
Battling the Ugly: Denver Contemplates an Effective Design Review Process
As Denver booms, planners and architects discuss the good and the bad of imposing design guidelines on new construction.
A Parking Kerfuffle in Downtown Dallas
The big, contentious question of contemporary downtowns is under consideration in Dallas: Is there too much parking or not enough parking?
Commercial Linkage Fee Approved—Seattle Moving Forward with Affordable Housing Agenda
The Seattle City Council recently took the first legislative step in the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) process.
Something's Missing in Boston's Reinvented Seaport
Boston would hardly seem capable of resembling "Anytown, USA" but that might be precisely what's happening in the Seaport neighborhood of the city's waterfront.
Detroit Receives Funding for Another Demolition Push
A recent influx of money to Detroit for demolitions of abandoned properties brings the city's total to $107 million. That money has established Detroit as the country's proving ground for the idea that demolitions stabilize struggling neighborhoods.
Report: Cutting Urban Emissions Could Save $17 Trillion
Research from the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate recommends an emissions reduction program that might pay off big in the long term. Inter-city exchange and transit planning are key strategies.
Landscape Architecture Unites Impact and Design
In a field that seems divided between aesthetes and the activists, landscape architects may be closest to reconciling the two trends.
Eminent Domain in 2015
The dust is still settling from Kelo v. New London, a 2005 Supreme Court Case allowing for expansive powers of eminent domain. A book released this year chronicles the effects of the landmark court case.
Making Plans Deliver on Promises in the San Fernando Valley
The Warner Center 2035 Plan was designed to bring growth to Los Angeles’s San Fernando Valley. If the opening of a $350-million Westfield Village in September is any indication, it’s succeeding.
The Hazards of Predicting the Future of Cities
City planners should be wary of any predictions that downplay the unknowability of the future by projecting present conditions onto it.
A Growing Mexico City Faces Infrastructural Hurdles
As Mexico City continues to add population, issues of sprawl, inequality, and water infrastructure remain challenges in the growing megalopolis.
4 Principles for Making Transit Oriented Development Work
Many communities that want more transit oriented development are still struggling to build the political will and the financing mechanisms necessary to deliver. Here are four ideas about how to make TOD happen.
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.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
