Washington

Mount Rainier

Sweeping Zoning Reforms Adopted in Olympia

The Olympia, Washington City Council adopted a new Housing Options Code Amendments ordinance, effectively eliminating single-family zoning in the city.

December 13, 2020 - The Olympian

Portland, Oregon

Columbia River Crossing Back From the Dead With a New Name and Potential Changes

2021 will be a big year for planning on the Interstate Bridge Replacement project, née Columbia River Crossing, that will connect Washington and Oregon across the Columbia River.

December 3, 2020 - The Urbanist

Washington

City Council Rejects Rezoning Approved by Planning Commission, Planning Staff

It's a tale as old as time: A plan to rezone ten acres of land in Spokane splits the public and the City Council from the opinions of the city's planning staff and Planning Commission.

December 3, 2020 - The Spokesman-Review

Seattle

Researchers Flaunt the Benefits of Reduced Minimum Parking Requirements

Seattle is one of the U.S. cities shrinking minimum parking requirements to allow for denser, more affordable development near transit.

December 2, 2020 - Transfers Magazine

Washington State

Connecting Light Rail Plans to Affordable Housing Opportunities

To keep up with affordable housing demand, Snohomish County needs to add 200,000 units by 2050. Planned light rail stations could be the ticket.

December 1, 2020 - The Urbanist

Puget Sound

Cascadia Expects Millions of New Residents. Should it Build New Cities or New Density?

A recent report calls for the region stretching from Oregon to British Columbia to think big about accommodating expected population growth. The report's recommendation to build four new, large cities isn't universally accepted, however.

November 30, 2020 - KUOW

Transportation Planning

Criticisms for Two Seattle Transportation Studies

Two studies begin the process of spending billions of dollars for infrastructure in Ballard and Interbay in Seattle. According to this critique, the effort is off on the wrong foot.

November 25, 2020 - The Urbanist

Duwamish River

A Big Trail Win for Seattle

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and the Seattle City Council have given all the funding necessary to make the Georgetown-to-South Park Trail a reality.

November 24, 2020 - The Urbanist

Beacon Hill Intersection

Seattle Lacks Accessible Pedestrian Signals At Most Intersections

Processing a growing backlog of requests, Seattle Department of Transportation must prioritize which intersections will be made accessible.

November 23, 2020 - The Seattle Times

Port of Seattle

Scrambling to Replace the Heavily Used West Seattle Bridge

The West Seattle High-Rise Bridge Safety Project is in high gear, more than six months after the city's most heavily trafficked bridge was closed suddenly for safety risks.

November 19, 2020 - The Urbanist

Boeing Freeway

Widening, Other Improvements Planned for the 'Boeing Freeway'

The Washington State Department of Transportation is proposing a series of changes to State Route 526 that includes a new eastbound travel lane.

November 17, 2020 - Washington State Department of Transportation via Patch

Woman Computer

Digital Leaders in the Time of Coronavirus

The 2020 edition of the Digital Cities Survey by the Center for Digital Government recognized cities of all sizes for deploying digital technology to empower pandemic responses.

November 16, 2020 - GOVTECH.COM

Seattle, Washington

How Seattle Plans to Leverage Public Resources to Protect Arts and Culture

The Cultural Space Agency, proposed in Seattle, would be a new type of public development authority, a city agency with a mission to preserve and create arts and culture in the face of gentrification.

November 10, 2020 - Crosscut

Seattle, Washington

New Long-Term Regional Plan for Puget Sound Approved

The regional planning organization for the four-county area around Puget Sound has adopted a new long-term plan for the future.

November 8, 2020 - The Urbanist

King County Metro Transit

Transit Spending on the Ballot in Seattle and Washington

Voters in the city of Seattle will consider a sales tax to fund bus transit service, while voters around the state of Washington will have a chance to send new leaders to Congress.

November 2, 2020 - The Seattle Times

COVID-19

COVID's Extensive 'Excess Mortality'

The pandemic's cumulative death toll in the U.S. does not include over 100,000 fatalities that are directly or indirectly attributable to COVID-19, according to a CDC report released Oct. 20 on the subject of "excess deaths."

October 25, 2020 - Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

Seattle Coronavirus

Seattle Extends Outdoor Dining for a Year, Eases Rules on Heaters for the Winter

Outdoor dining is going to hang out for a bit.

October 22, 2020 - Eater Seattle

Dr. Jose Rizal Bridge

A Thorough, Mixed Review for a New Protected Bike Lane in Seattle

So many highly anticipated bike facilities finally deliver only to fall short of real game changing status. Seattle provides the latest example of the phenomenon in the wild.

October 20, 2020 - The Urbanist

Sound Transit Link Light Rail

$4.2 Billion in Washington State Transportation Funding Rescued by the Courts

The Washington Supreme Court struck down an initiative that would have cost state and local governments an estimated $4.2 billion in transportation funding.

October 15, 2020 - Crosscut

New York Public Transit

Trump Administration Puts Covid Funding at Risk for Transit in 'Anarchist Jurisdictions'

A September 2 memo by the Trump administration warned of punitive actions against New York City, Seattle, Portland, and Washington, D.C. A recently announced federal funding opportunity makes good on the threat.

October 15, 2020 - The New York Daily News

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

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.