Texas

Aerial view of downtown San Antonio with Tower Life Building in foreground

San Antonio Office Tower To Become Residential

With the building more than half vacant, the new owners of the Tower Life Building plan to convert the historic tower into residences that could include affordable housing.

August 15, 2022 - San Antonio Report

Embarcadero

Freeway Removal Movement Slowly Gains Steam

Although the concept has recently received more national attention thanks in part to the federal Reconnecting Communities Act, cities have shown reluctance to support highway removal projects.

August 15, 2022 - Governing

Fort Worth bus parked at a station

Fort Worth To Study Transit Opportunities in its Poorest Neighborhoods

Residents in the 76104 ZIP code, where life expectancy is the lowest in Texas, lack access to effective transit and essential needs.

August 4, 2022 - Mass Transit

Downtown Houston covered bus station with one parked bus

Editorial: Why Houston’s University Line BRT Is a ‘Crucial’ Project

The Houston Chronicle editorial board comes out in support of a proposed 25-mile bus rapid transit line, arguing it would provide essential service to transit-dependent residents.

August 3, 2022 - Houston Chronicle

Single-family homes in a suburb of Dallas, Texas

North Texas HOA Effectively Bans Section 8 Recipients

Housing and civil rights advocates warn that the community’s rule instituting fines on landlords who rent to housing voucher recipients will disproportionately affect Black families.

July 27, 2022 - Texas Tribune

Texas State Capital

Austin Metro Home Sales Slow Dramatically

After a whirlwind of rising costs and sharply spiking demand for housing in smaller cities, the housing market is cooling down to pre-pandemic levels.

July 21, 2022 - KVUE

Aerial view of Dallas freeways

TxDOT Recommends a 10-Lane ‘Infrastructure Grave’ in Dallas

Rather than removing the freeway altogether, which the Texas Department of Transportation calls ‘unfeasible,’ the agency recommends burying the road in a billion-dollar, ten-lane trench through the city’s downtown.

July 12, 2022 - Strong Towns

Rendering of subterranean subway station

A Look at Austin’s Proposed Subway Stations

The Texas capital is planning an ambitious light rail system that will include subterranean stations.

July 8, 2022 - KUT

Historic single-family homes in San Antonio, Texas.

Opinion: Accessory Dwelling Units Will Benefit San Antonio

As the city considers loosening regulations on accessory dwelling units, one writer argues that the reforms would boost affordable housing and provide more options for changing household needs.

July 6, 2022 - San Antonio Report

View south along Interstate 45 (North Freeway) from the ramp between westbound Interstate 10 and southbound Interstate 45 in Houston, Harris County, Texas

Houston Apartments To Be Demolished for Freeway Widening

Despite a federal hold on the controversial freeway widening project, the Texas Department of Transportation is pushing ahead with the demolition of an apartment complex in downtown Houston.

July 5, 2022 - Houston Chronicle

Black and white photo of crosswalk

Report: Dallas Needs $54 Million in Sidewalk Ramps and Crosswalk Repairs

The city, which recently adopted a Vision Zero action plan, has one of the nation’s highest pedestrian fatality rates.

June 29, 2022 - FOX 4 News

A map showing the city of mesquite with surrounding freeways, roads, and cities.

Dallas-Area City Wants to Increase Minimum Home Size to 2,000 Square Feet

While some cities are finding ways to add density and use zoning as a tool for affordability, Mesquite, Texas is headed the other direction.

June 29, 2022 - The Dallas Morning News

Rendering of proposed Brazos Valley station

Texas Supreme Court Approves Eminent Domain for Bullet Train

In a decision that could change the calculus on a beleaguered high-speed rail project, the state’s highest court rules that the railroad has the right to acquire land along the project route.

June 27, 2022 - High Speed Rail Alliance

A view of a large water tower, with the words and logo of Fort Worth, looming over a wide freeway.

Advocates Hope the Next Texas Freeway Widening Won’t Be the Like the Previous

Community Design Fort Worth, a nonprofit collective of planners and designers, is pushing the Texas Department of Transportation to do something revolutionary with its plans to widen Interstate 30.

June 26, 2022 - Fort Worth Report

Conceptual rendering of proposed Dallas bullet train station

Central Texas Bullet Train Loses Steam

A proposed bullet train project between Houston and Dallas may have stalled for the last time as the Texas Central Railway CEO steps down.

June 17, 2022 - Houston Chronicle

Unhoused person under a freeway overpass in Houston, Texas

How Houston Is Eliminating Chronic Homelessness

Taking a comprehensive ‘Housing First’ approach, the city of Houston has cut homelessness by 63 percent in the last decade.

June 15, 2022 - The New York Times

Lake TRavis is shown well below capacity, with the city of Austin in the background.

Declining Water Levels Trigger ‘Stage 1’ Drought Response in Austin

The effects of the megadrought in the American Southwest are reaching into Texas.

June 8, 2022 - KUT

Neighborhood in Dallas, Texas

Short-Term Rental Regulations Up for Debate in Dallas

The Dallas city council is evaluating three proposals that would impose new regulations on short-term rentals in the city’s residential neighborhoods.

June 7, 2022 - D Magazine

A row of homes, some brightly colored, on a sunny day in Austin, Texas.

Austin Considering Zoning Tools to Support Affordable Housing Development

An expansion of the city’s vertical mixed-use (VMU) affordable development program is the furthest along of a package of reforms intended to spur the construction of affordable housing.

June 2, 2022 - Community Impact Newspaper

Coastal Resilience

$31 Billion ‘Ike Dike’ Hurricane Protection Project Moving Through Congress

Congress authorized the $31 billion ‘Ike Dike’ sea-level rise adaptation project, along with a laundry list of other water infrastructure projects.

May 26, 2022 - Eno Center for Transportation

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.