United States

Sprawl

Another Grim Coronavirus Milestone: This Time in Southern California

COVID-19 deaths topped 5,000 in Los Angeles County last week as deaths continue to mount due to a hasty reopening after an early shutdown. The center of the of outbreak in California now shifts to the Central Valley.

August 19, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Michigan Central Deport

Economic Recovery in Legacy Cities

Americans living in legacy cities face a unique set of challenges and opportunities in recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Several local, state, and federal support strategies could aid these cities in recouping losses.

August 19, 2020 - Brookings

Affordable Housing

Lasting Affordability Is the Path to Resilience

These six housing investment strategies will incorporate lasting affordability, racial equity, and resilience into COVID-19 recovery plans.

August 19, 2020 - Shelterforce Magazine

Lake Oswego Transit Center

Public Transit in Crisis: Low-Income Riders Have the Most to Lose From Service Cuts

Riders who rely most on public transit are suffering the worst consequences of the cuts to service during the fiscal belt tightening of the coronavirus pandemic.

August 19, 2020 - The New York Times

Coronavirus

The Disconnect Between Virus Prevalence and Local Business Climate

Public health experts assert that to safely reopen the economy, the coronavirus needs to be contained. In Manhattan, where the virus is largely controlled, chain restaurants are closing while their sister stores in Florida are expanding.

August 18, 2020 - The New York Times

Los Angeles Earthquake

Resilient Los Angeles: Preparing for Overlapping Disasters in Pandemic

L.A. City Chief Resilience Officer Aaron Gross elaborates on how the pandemic is shaping the city’s understanding of resilience and the cascading impact that overlapping disasters of earthquake or wildfire could have on the city’s limited resources.

August 17, 2020 - The Planning Report

New York City Subway

Advocates: It's Time to Get Back on Transit

The story about the safety of public transit has changed since the early days of the pandemic.

August 17, 2020 - Scientific American

South Los Angeles

It's High Time for a Community-Led Economic Recovery

Past recoveries have only exacerbated structural inequalities. The recovery from the current economic and social crises can't afford to make the mistakes, according to a recent paper from researchers at the Brookings Institution.

August 17, 2020 - Brookings

Police Enfocement

Investment in Public Transit Could Reduce the Need for Police Traffic Enforcement

In Nick Demarsh and Rick Banks' opinion, defunding the police requires cities to reconsider car culture.

August 14, 2020 - NextCity

Mobility

Mobility-as-a-Service Still Searching for a Market Foothold

Policymakers and venture capital firms love the idea of Mobility-as-a-Service. The public hasn't proven as receptive, despite the willingness to download apps by the millions.

August 13, 2020 - Bloomberg CityLab

Campaign Rally

The Two Conflicting Sides of the Federal Approach to the Pandemic

While President Trump is publicly stating the virus "will soon disappear," his task force is releasing detailed, county-level data on how all 50 states are dealing with the coronavirus and making recommendations – but the reports are not public.

August 13, 2020 - The New York Times

Donald Trump

Skepticism for Trump's Executive Orders

President Trump put on a show while signing a batch of executive orders late last week, but on further evaluation, the president's signatures on these orders aren't likely to save anyone from the economic devastation of the coronavirus.

August 12, 2020 - The Washington Post

Freeway Interchange

Metropolitan Planning Organizations, Explained and Evaluated

Knowing is half the battle, and most people have a lot to learn about metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and how they maintain the status quo of transportation planning and spending in the United States.

August 12, 2020 - DOTs and State Level Steez

Brightline

Brightline and Virgin Trains Splitting After 17-Month Partnership

Among the collateral damage of a quick divorce between Brightline and Virgin Trains USA is the name for the planned high-speed connection from Las Vegas to Southern California.

August 12, 2020 - Las Vegas Review-Journal

Washington, D.C.

I Have Spent My Career Advocating for Fair Housing. It's Good to See Obama's Rule Go.

The Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule, as adopted by the Obama administration and scrapped by the Trump administration, didn't include the policy tools necessary to achieve fair housing in the United States, according to this opinion piece.

August 12, 2020 - Jonathan Zasloff

Foreclosure Sign

Protecting Distressed Real Estate From Private Equity

Elizabeth Warren and Carroll Fife warn about the potential for the worst housing market outcomes of the real estate and financial crisis of 2008 to repeat without action from federal and state lawmakers.

August 11, 2020 - The Washington Post

Coronavirus and Transportation

Ride-Hailing Companies Have Yet to Recover

While public transit tends to make the most headlines for coronavirus-damaged ridership numbers, ride-hailing companies like Uber and Lyft aren't exactly raking in new customers.

August 11, 2020 - The Washington Post

South Beach Open Streets

The Cost of COVID Carbon Reduction: $3,200-$5,400 a Ton

The short-term environmental effects of the pandemic economic downturn are clear in the amount of carbon emissions that have been removed from the economy. The long-term effects, however, are subject to a number of contingencies.

August 10, 2020 - Taking Stock 2020: The COVID-19 Edition

U.S. Census Bureau

Trump Decides to Cut the 2020 Census Short

The pandemic delayed the 2020 Census, and the Trump administration will cut it short. Experts say this could be the most flawed Census in the country's history.

August 10, 2020 - Newsweek

Cities: Skylines

Cities: Skylines as an Urban Planning Tool

Computer simulations continue to play a novel and important role in urban planning, especially in finding new ways to engage the public and add some fun to the process of planning for the future of cities.

August 10, 2020 - parCitypatory

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.