Urban Development

According to economist Christopher Thornberg, sky-high housing prices in California indicate a state suffering from an acute housing shortage. In an op-ed for the LA Times, he argues that local interest groups and "populist politicians" are to blame.

July 17, 2013 - Los Angeles Times

Small-lot homes are popping up in the hillsides north of downtown L.A. While the new occupants, often young buyers who can't afford or aren't interested in traditional single-family homes and high-rise condos, are pleased, some neighbors are not.

July 16, 2013 - Los Angeles Times - Real Estate

The students of Gallaudet University, one of the world's premier colleges for the deaf and hard of hearing, helped transform H Street into one of D.C.'s 'hippest neighborhoods'. Could the area's popularity extinguish an enclave of deaf culture?

July 16, 2013 - The Washington Post

After less than a year on the job, Vancouver's planning manager is under fire for controversial proposals. Do the recent misfires reflect poor messaging, tight budgets, and short timelines; or a more fundamental problem with the city's leaders?

July 16, 2013 - The Globe and Mail

The low-income housing and new-markets tax credits are two of the most effective tools for stimulating affordable housing creation and the revitalization of low-income neighborhoods. Don't let them fall victim to tax reform, argues Michael Rubinger.

July 16, 2013 - The New York Times

A rising chorus of architects, urban planners and developers are criticizing the suburban scale of development sweeping through downtown L.A. as a missed opportunity. They argue high-rises should be built instead of mid-rise apartment complexes.

July 16, 2013 - Los Angeles Downtown News

As many planners know, building next to transit doesn't guarantee a project will have the ridership boosting effects envisioned by proponents of such developments. A new tool seeks to provide an objective measurement of TOD effectiveness.

July 16, 2013 - the transport politic

Reporting from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where a 2008 flood devastated 14% of this city of 126,000, John Eligon writes of the extensive rebuilding that has occurred in the flood plain - largely without protection from future floods.

July 14, 2013 - The New York Times - U.S.

Seemingly forgotten in D.C.'s rush to revitalize its once run-down neighborhoods is the allocation of new parks and open space, says Aaron Wiener. Are planners repeating the same mistake in the transitioning Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood?

July 14, 2013 - Washington City Paper

The fact that New York is loud is unlikely to surprise anyone. But despite decades of noise abatement efforts, the contributors to noise pollution keep multiplying. As scientists recognize the multitude of negative health impacts, what can be done?

July 13, 2013 - The New York Times

In a feature article and provocative editorial, The Architect's Newspaper seeks to examine the lead role that architects are playing in 'laying out the future of cities'.

July 13, 2013 - The Architect's Newspaper

As the back-to-the-city movement takes hold, cities are turning old industrial buildings into distinctive spaces prized as offices and lofts. St. Louis is trying to figure out how to preserve their legacy assets from crumbling as they await new life.

July 12, 2013 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

While Staten Island and Rockaway, Queens also suffered devastation from Superstorm Sandy; Broad Channel, an island in Jamaica Bay, Queens, may be the lowest lying area in the City and endures tidal flooding regularly, not just from storm surges.

July 12, 2013 - The New York Times - N.Y. / Region

Over the last several years, successive books and exhibitions have sought to paint America's midcentury master builders in a new light, by focusing on their accomplishments. What can we learn from the 'post-war planning titans'?

July 11, 2013 - The New Republic

Kicking off its in-depth examination of the ways in which New York City has been remade during Mayor Bloomberg's tenure, Matthew Schuerman looks at the city's astonishing vertical growth, a significant feat considering the shadow of 9/11.

July 11, 2013 - WNYC

Calling 'white infill' the new 'white flight', Richey Piiparinen argues that urban thinkers need to consider whether the back-to-the-city trend is exacerbating inequity and segregation.

July 10, 2013 - New Geography

Fewer cars on the road, less driving, why not fewer parking spots? Cities like D.C., L.A., Denver, Philadelphia are responding by reducing or eliminating parking minimums, while Portland, which had already eliminated them, are bringing them back.

July 10, 2013 - The Wall Street Journal

A Canadian real estate startup has created striking animated 3-D visualizations of the evolution of the skylines in cities such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago.

July 10, 2013 - Fast Company Co.Exist

A controversial affordable housing project proposed for Somerville, Mass. diffused community opposition by coordinating with the for-profit developer of an adjacent parcel. Could the partnership provide a template for moderating NIMBYism?

July 10, 2013 - Rooflines

Chuck Wolfe's photoshoot in the Palouse region of southeastern Washington State shows the timeless issues of human settlement, from agrarian to urban.

July 9, 2013 - The Huffington Post