Learn today, plan for tomorrow.
Sign up for news and offers from Planetizen Courses, the online learning platform for planners.
United States
Black Americans pay a higher price to be homeowners—and the number of those who can afford to pay that price is dropping quickly.
NPR
The CDC abruptly changed its masking guidance on May 13 to further distinguish behavior for those who are fully vaccinated from those who are not, prompting states, counties and businesses to end indoor mask mandates and social distancing.
Los Angeles Times
The intense competition in today's housing market means more people might have to settle for rental housing.
Vox
Cities and counties have been slow to take advantage of the promise of full and retroactive FEMA reimbursement to expand emergency housing programs, frustrating housing advocates. What’s getting in the way?
Shelterforce Magazine
Facing calls to invest in racial equity, companies like Netflix, Twitter, and others have recently pledged millions in new financing for affordable housing, small businesses, and other community development projects. Will they stick around?
Shelterforce Magazine
Highway expansion has been shown, time and again, to increase traffic and congestion. Cities are finally getting the message.
Governing
Is the lesson from the Seychelles, an African archipelago nation in the Indian Ocean, that all COVID-19 vaccines are not the same? If so, that could spell trouble for other countries relying on the Sinopharm and Covishield vaccines.
Bloomberg News
A new real estate investment fund wants to help music venue owners buy their properties and stay in business as the pandemic and market forces decimate their earnings.
Next City
While autonomous vehicles still face regulatory and technical challenges, investment in basic transportation infrastructure like buses and bike lanes can go a long way toward improving safety and taking cars off the road.
The New Republic
The program, which gives tax credits to investors, has resulted in added jobs, increased incomes, and low rates of displacement.
Next City
Expanding wealth inequality has contributed to the explosive growth of "dollar store" retailers.
CNN
The unchecked power of individual city councilmembers has, in some cases, restricted housing development and fueled corruption.
Slate
An analysis of housing affordability shows rising costs in America's smaller cities.
Bloomberg Opinion
Coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths are dropping in the U.S. Govs. Andrew Cuomo, Phil Murphy, and Ned Lamont jointly announced on May 3 that their states would lift most restrictions on May 19. Experts and residents have mixed reactions.
The New York Times
A study that made the rounds as a working paper at the beginning of 2019 has now been published in a peer-reviewed journal.
The Review of Economics and Statistics
The nation's most populous state learned from the Census Bureau last month that it would lose a congressional district for the first time in its history. On Friday, it revealed that 2020 was the first year since 1850 to experience a population loss.
CALmatters
The lack of disclosure laws in most states has led to an overvaluation of homes located in floodplains across the country.
Grist
A new study shows a troubling reversal of fortunes in many middle-class Black neighborhoods.
Governing
The Biden administration released its preliminary report on a plan to conserve 30 percent of the nation's lands and waters by 2030, one big, ambitious component of the administration's climate plans.
The Washington Post
Dr. Joe Lyou, CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air, walks through the legal necessity of South Coast AQMD's proposed Indirect Source Rule, which aims to accelerate the transition to zero-emission technologies and fleet electrification.
The Planning Report
