Urban Development
Friday Funny: South Park Gentrification Spoof Could Be Anytown, USA
The most shocking thing about the recent episode of South Park, "The City Part of Town," was that it took Cartman and company so long to poke fun at the effects of gentrification.
How to Reimagine the Skyscraper (and Why)
An essay identifies imperatives for a new theory of tall, dense construction, and begins to sketch out a theory that will reconcile the skyscraper with contemporary business ideals.
On the Perpetual Crisis of American Cities
A long and ranging article in the New Yorker surveys non-fiction, art, and other manifestations of intellectualism for insight into the plight of the city—to always be cast in some manner of morality tale.
City Action on Climate Change
Can cities be at the forefront of tackling climate change? According to forthcoming research by Arup and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, cities play a crucial role in addressing this pressing issue.
Pushing Back Against the Idea that Cities Can Become Full
The perception that a city has reached its maximum population and nobody else should be allowed in, or nothing should be allowed to change, is limiting the potential of our cities and increasing housing inequality.
A Flood Zone Real Estate Boom in Post-Sandy New York
Has New York done enough to continue to build new high-end buildings in flood zones around the city?
Report Grades California's Rail Stations on Neighborhood Service
A report by Next 10 takes the form of a scorecard for six light and heavy rail networks. Rail that serves existing urbanized areas scored the highest.
Coding for Character: Doing Away With the Zoned Out Nature of Cities
What's keeping the historic parts of your city or town from staying up-to-date and well-loved? Usually, the laws.
Chattanooga's Unique Approach to Innovation Districts
Bruce Katz says something special is going on in Chattanooga—where a uniquely situated innovation district is setting an example for more traditional approaches to the concept.
New Jersey Golf Course Gives Way to Sprawl
Once upon a time, golf courses were a popular component of development plans. Much more common now: single-family detached housing on the former site of a golf course.
More Americans Living Next Door to Fire Danger
A summer of drought and devastating fires has demonstrated the dangers of allowing residential developments to sprawl ever farther into wild, natural environments.
Substance, Style, and the Success of the 606
The Bloomingdale Trail, the star attraction of the 606 in Chicago, has been compared to NYC's High Line. But with its restrained design and focus on high-use activity, it is nothing like it, and, in certain ways, it's even better.
Seattle's Struggle to Build Affordable Housing
The Emerald City's affordable housing difficulties mirror those of New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and others: too much demand and too few resources.
King County, Sound Transit Announce $83 Million for Transit Oriented Development
A new regional transit oriented development initiative in Seattle will focus on affordable housing and walkable communities. The Executive's Transit Station Housing and Development Initiative will partner King County and Sound Transit.
Planning for the 'Big One'—In Salt Lake City
Many people outside of Salt Lake City might not realize that the city's proximity to the Wasatch Fault puts it at risk for an earthquake likely in the range of 7.1 on the Richter scale.
Health by Design: Findings from ULI
A new ULI report finds that innovation in placemaking is about the inter-relatedness of health and the built environment.
Op-Ed: Maryland Should Support Baltimore with Money, Not Bulldozers
A response to the conventional thinking about demolitions as the antidote to blighted, vacant properties and the negative effects that follow.
Grand Central Terminal Owner Files $1.1 Billion Suit Against One Vanderbilt
A $1.1 billion lawsuit challenges the approval of plans for One Vanderbilt, adjacent to Grand Central Terminal, on the grounds that it circumvented the purchase of air rights from the adjacent Grand Central Terminal.
Chicago Approves Big Expansion of TOD Ordinance
Ten times more land in Chicago is now designated for transit oriented development—affording new development reduced parking requirements, density bonuses for affordable housing, and new strength for the city's Pedestrian Street design regulations.
Ghost Towns Remain After Rush to Build in North Dakota Oil Boom
Bloomberg details the sudden, catastrophic decline of the real estate market in North Dakota following the oil bust of the last year. Municipalities and investors are on the hook for thousands of new and approved building units.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
